Non-fatal offences against the person
Non-fatal offences against the person form a ladder of seriousness: assault and battery at common law, then assault occasioning actual bodily harm (s 47), malicious wounding or inflicting grievous bodily harm (s 20), and wounding or causing GBH with intent (s 18) under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861.
Last reviewed 14 June 2026
Assault is causing the victim to apprehend immediate unlawful force; battery is the actual infliction of unlawful force. Either can be committed by words, and even silence — in R v Ireland; Burstow silent telephone calls that caused psychiatric harm were enough.
Section 47 (actual bodily harm) requires an assault or battery that occasions actual bodily harm, which includes recognised psychiatric injury (R v Chan-Fook). The mens rea is only that of the assault or battery itself — the prosecution need not prove the defendant foresaw the harm (R v Savage; Parmenter).
Sections 20 and 18 cover wounding and grievous (really serious) bodily harm. The crucial difference is intent: s 20 requires only that the defendant foresaw some harm, while s 18 — the most serious, carrying a maximum of life imprisonment — requires an intention to cause grievous bodily harm. The 1861 Act is widely criticised as outdated and has long been a candidate for reform.
Key cases
- R v Ireland; R v Burstow [1998] AC 147
- R v Savage; R v Parmenter [1992] 1 AC 699
- R v Chan-Fook [1994] 1 WLR 689
Frequently asked questions
What are the main non-fatal offences against the person?
Common law assault and battery, then under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861: assault occasioning actual bodily harm (s 47), malicious wounding or inflicting GBH (s 20), and wounding or causing GBH with intent (s 18).
What is the difference between section 20 and section 18?
Both involve wounding or grievous bodily harm, but s 18 requires an intention to cause GBH and carries a maximum of life imprisonment, while s 20 requires only foresight of some harm and carries a lower maximum.
Can psychiatric harm be a non-fatal offence?
Yes. In R v Ireland; Burstow the House of Lords held that a recognised psychiatric illness can amount to actual or grievous bodily harm.
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