July 28, 2004: More Sex Offenders?  MAPPA Reports Published

42 local annual reports outlining the work of Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) were published today. Each individual area report can be downloaded here.The MAPPA provide the statutory framework for inter-agency co-operation in assessing and managing violent and sex offenders in England and Wales, and ensure much closer supervision of offenders. The Criminal Justice and Court Services Act (2000) established the MAPPA and placed them on a statutory basis.

Under the arrangements, Police, Probation, Prisons and other key agencies combine forces to manage the risk posed by dangerous offenders. Those ‘critical few’ offenders that pose the highest risk are referred to a Multi-Agency Public Protection Panel (MAPPP), where their cases are regularly scrutinised by senior representatives of local agencies. In the last year, 39,622 offenders were covered by MAPPA arrangements, 2,152 of whom were referred to MAPPP.

The total number of MAPPA offenders has fallen from 52,809 in 2002/3 to 39,492 in 2003/4. This is because for 2003/4 the basis for counting Violent and Other Sex Offenders was changed to a community based figure, rather than including offenders in custody. This ensures that all categories now reflect the supervision of offenders in the community.

The total number of registered sex offenders has risen from 21,413 in 2002/3 to 24, 572 in 2003/4, an increase of almost 15%. This was not unforeseen, as the length of time offenders remain on the register is determined by the length of their sentence. This registration requirement currently varies between 5 years and life. As a result, the number of registered sex offenders is cumulative.

Paul Goggins, Minister for the Correctional Services, commented:

"In the MAPPA we have a system of managing and monitoring dangerous offenders that is world-leading, and succeeds in protecting the public better than ever before. The arrangements have enabled Police, Probation and Prisons, with the committed involvement of partner agencies, to work at their very best in supervising dangerous cases through active co-operation with each other… The small proportion of offenders that pose the highest risk are more closely scrutinised than ever by the Multi-Agency Public Protection Panels (MAPPPs). And only a very small proportion – this year as low as 1 per cent – of offenders referred to MAPPPs are charged with serious further offences."