Calls grow for rape sentence review

Friday, 22 May 2026 16:25

By Shaun Moore

The Attorney General’s Office is reviewing sentences given to three teenage boys convicted over two rape attacks in Fordingbridge.

The boys, aged 14 and 15 at the time of the offences, were sentenced at Southampton Crown Court to youth rehabilitation orders, with two also placed under intensive supervision and surveillance.

The attacks happened in November 2024 and January 2025 and involved two teenage girls.

Former safeguarding minister Jess Phillips described the sentences as “unduly lenient” and said they sent a “bad message”.

Judge Nicholas Rowland told the court he had to consider the boys’ ages and the likelihood of reoffending, adding that peer pressure played a significant role.

The Attorney General’s Office says the case is being reviewed under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme.

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