NEWS: Pervert population

By Mark McLaughlin
Edinburgh Evening News
February 25, 2008

NORTH Edinburgh is home to the highest number of registered sex offenders in the Lothians, while the fewest live in the west of the city, it was revealed today.

Figures released to the Evening News under freedom of information laws show for the first time the numbers of convicted offenders being monitored in different areas of the city.

There are currently 76 registered sex offenders (RSOs) being watched by police in north Edinburgh, and 73 in the city centre. The two areas are thought to have among the highest numbers of sex offenders per head of population in Scotland.

There are also 53 sex offenders under surveillance in the south of Edinburgh, 58 in the east and 29 in the west.

Police today said the concentration of RSOs in certain areas was not a problem, and that the public was best protected by offenders being placed in specialist, monitored accommodation.

However, politicians said the number of RSOs living in the north Edinburgh police division was a particular cause for concern. It includes Leith and more deprived areas like Granton and Pilton, as well as traditionally well-off districts such as Stockbridge.

The central division figure is thought to include a concentration of hostels and monitored accommodation in the Old Town and city centre.

Leith councillor Marjorie Thomas said the port had reached "saturation point" for residential facilities for sex offenders being released into the community.

She said: "We were recently successful in overturning a planning application for another hostel in John's Place, which would have attracted not just sex offenders but other undesirable elements into the area. It's important that we ensure a mix of people in the community, but at the same time you don't want the community being overrun by these certain types of people."

Edinburgh North Labour MSP Malcolm Chisolm said he was "concerned" by the figures, and he is planning to ask Lothian and Borders Police how different parts of the city were being monitored.

He said: "Clearly, across Scotland, we have to implement effective and robust measures to make sure sex offenders are monitored effectively. I will raise the matter with our partners in the police to find out how the different parts of Edinburgh are being monitored.

"A recent Scottish Government sub-committee made 33 recommendations to make people safe from sex offenders. Half of these have been implemented already, but these figures would demonstrate that we need to see the other half implemented as soon as possible."

However, a Lothian and Borders Police spokesman said that trying to compare one police area with another does not give an accurate picture, as all forces divide their areas differently.

"The return of sex offenders from prison to their homes in the community is not new," he said. "Many do not re-offend and live in the community without causing further harm to others in the neighbourhood.

"By working in partnership, police are best placed to monitor offenders effectively. The public is better protected where an offender is in stable accommodation, in contact with the relevant services and agencies and complying with any conditions that might apply."

There are presently 3326 sex offenders being monitored throughout the whole of Scotland, with 330 of them in the Capital

Police have always rejected calls for further details about offenders being released, on the grounds that it could force them to disappear, severing contact with police and other agencies.

The Lothian and Borders spokesman added: "Without monitoring or supervision, no stable address, and no clue to behaviour, the likelihood of re-offending is far greater than with someone who is closely monitored by the authorities."

The Scottish Government recently allocated GBP 1.9 million to local authorities under the National Accommodation Strategy for Sex Offenders, which aims to reduce the risk to the public from sex offenders.

The funding provided each council with a flat rate of GBP 30,000, which was topped up with an additional weighted element, based on population and the numbers of RSOs living in the area. Edinburgh received 9.3 per cent of this top-up - or around GBP 125,000 in total.

A Scottish Government spokesman said: "On this basis, Edinburgh's allocation - the second biggest in Scotland - is entirely fair and reflects its population and the number of registered sex offenders released with a home address in the city.

"We are committed to ensuring that our police and local agencies are equipped to protect our communities from the risks they may face from sex offenders.

"That is why we are continuing to strengthen the regime for monitoring registered sex offenders."

The Government has recently introduced what it calls Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements, which require the police and other agencies to work together for the assessment and management of sex offenders.

They insist that there are enough police officers available to monitor sex offenders in the city - especially with the controversial increase in police numbers promised before last year's election.

The spokesman added that Lothian and Borders is set to get more than 100 additional police recruits in this and the next financial year.

"Clearly the deployment of officers is the operational responsibility of the chief constable. However, we are fully committed to delivering a more visible policing presence on our streets," he said.

A spokesman for the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS) said the management of sex offenders was a "particularly sensitive and complex area".

He said: "Public safety is always the main priority in all cases. Whilst it remains the main priority, a balance is required between public safety and the right of the individual.

"All aspects of cases are carefully considered at every stage of the process, from psychological and risk assessments to places of residence and potential security issues.

"A number of measures can be put in place to manage offenders in the community and these are monitored by dedicated police officers and officials from partner organisations."

KEEPING TABS ON OFFENDERS IN THE COMMUNITY

FOR years, campaigners have called for a UK version of "Megan's Law", which allows American citizens to check if high-risk offenders are living in their area.

This has been met by fierce opposition from Westminster, who believe such a law would force sex offenders underground and make them harder to monitor.

In a bid to address some of the concerns, the Scottish Police Services Authority has now started producing monthly updates of the number of registered sex offenders (RSOs) monitored by Scotland's eight forces.

When police are made aware that a sex offender is about to be released into the community, they work closely with local authority social work departments, to assess the risk that person poses to children or other vulnerable people in the community.

Police are responsible for monitoring all offenders and will work with social work departments and other relevant agencies involved in the management process. Sex offenders are required to regularly check in at their local community police station.

Megan's Law is named after Megan Kanka, a seven-year-old who was murdered in New Jersey in 1994 by a sex offender with previous convictions who lived across the street from her family.