Sex offenders list grows 15%

The number of registered sex offenders has risen 15% year on year, official figures revealed today.

Home Office data for England and Wales showed there were 24,572 on the register at the end of March compared with 21,413 a year earlier.

Statistics also showed 26 offenders being monitored under the scheme committed serious sexual or violent offences while on the programme, an annual fall of 46%.

The proportion of registered sex offenders per 100,000 of population rose from 40 in 2002-03 to 46 in 2003-04, the figures showed.

The figures were released as part of the annual report on so-called Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (Mappa) which bring together police, probation, social services and other agencies to monitor violent and sex offenders in the community once they are released from jail.

Offenders are given strict licence conditions on release from prison and can be sent back to jail if they fail to co-operate.

The overall number of offenders monitored by Mappa fell 25% in the year to 39,492, due to new counting arrangements.

Numbers of highest-risk offenders - who are subjected to the most stringent conditions and may even face covert surveillance by detectives - who were referred to the multi-agency panels fell 24% to 2,152 in the year.

Det Chief Insp Steve Neale, a senior member of a multi-agency panel for Thames Valley Police, said: "The 15% rise, particularly in Thames Valley, is down to the success of Operation Ore in which we prosecuted many people for child pornography offences."

Keeping the serious reoffending rate down to just 1% nationally was a "wonderful achievement", he added.