Justice for children in trouble

 

 

NOTES FOR PRESENTATION TO THE LAYJ

 

REGISTRATION UNDER THE SEX OFFENDERS ACT

 

 

A.                 WHAT IS IT?

 Part 1 of the Sex Offenders Act 1997 (SOA) - as amended - places a requirement on any young person who has been:

§         convicted

§         cautioned

§         reprimanded or 

§         warned

 

for one of a specified list of sexual offences to ‘register’ with the police.

(The list is contained in schedule 1 to the Act and is attached to these notes.) 

 

Registration involves notifying the police of name, any other names or aliases which the young person uses, date of birth and address. A court may, however, direct that someone with parental responsibility should register on the young person’s behalf until he or she attains the age of 18 years. (The police do not have this power.) Registration must be made at a police station which is prescribed for the purpose – a list of prescribed police stations is attached to these notes.

 

At the point of registration, the police have the power to take the young person’s fingerprints and photograph and these may be used to confirm the identity of the person attending the police station by reference to existing records.

 

A failure to comply with any of the notification requirements, during the relevant period, is itself a criminal offence for which a young person can be fined:

–        up to £250 in the case of a child under 14 or

–        up to £1,000 for a young person aged 14 – 17 years.

 

Given the relatively lengthy nature of the registration periods, there is however considerable potential for a young person to be prosecuted for non compliance after his or her 18th birthday. At that point, adult penalties become available – namely an unlimited fine or 5 years imprisonment where the case is dealt with in the crown court. 

 

Where the court originally directed that a person with parental responsibility should register on behalf of a young person, that adult is also liable in the young person’s stead for any failure to comply with the registration provisions and the adult penalties apply.

 

B.        WHEN IS REGISTRATION REQUIRED?

Following the initial registration, young people subject to the requirements are obliged to notify the police again in certain circumstances throughout the relevant period.

 

TYPE OF REGISTRATION

WHEN REQUIRED

HOW TO NOTIFY

OTHER INFORMATION

 

Initial registration:

Name, aliases, address, date of birth

 

 

Within 3 days of conviction, caution, reprimand or warning

 

Must be in person

 

For purposes of calculating the 3 days, conviction is the date of guilty plea or finding of guilt – not the date of sentence

 

Change of address

 

Within 14 days of move

 

In person or in writing

 

 

Temporary residence (for 14 days or more) at any address other than that given at initial registration

 

 

At earliest opportunity

 

In person or in writing

 

Applies to a single continuous period of 14 days or any total of 14 days in any 12 month period. Would for example be satisfied by staying with a relative 2 days a month

 

Intention to leave the UK for 8 days or longer. Minimum information required is: date of travel and point of arrival in country to be visited

 

Minimum information must be given at least 24 hours before departure.

 

Additional information – see ‘other information’ column – must be given in advance of the trip if known at that time or within 8 days of return

 

 

Must be in person

 

Other details of the trip must also be given - in advance if known otherwise on return – see ‘when required’ column

 

These details include:

Details of itinerary, point of arrival in each country visited, means of travel, accommodation arrangements on first night abroad, date of return etc.

 

C.                HOW IS THE REGISTRATION PERIOD DETERMINED?

The length of the registration period is determined by the nature of the disposal rather than the offence. In the case of a child or young person the registration period which would apply to an adult is effectively halved.

 

 

Sentence / Disposal

 

Period of Registration

Young Person under 18

Adult

Life imprisonment / Detention at HMP

 

Indefinite

 

Indefinite

Hospital order with a restriction order

 

Indefinite

 

Indefinite

Custodial sentence of 30 months or more

 

Indefinite

 

Indefinite

Custodial sentence of more than six months but less than 30 months

 

Five years

 

 

Ten years

Custodial sentence of six months or less

 

Three and a half years

 

Seven years

Hospital order without a restriction order

 

Three and a half years

 

Seven years

Any other court sentence

 

Two and a half years

 

Five years

Caution, reprimand or final warning

 

Two and a half years

 

Five years

There are however two additional points worth noting:

1. There is a degree of uncertainty as to whether a conditional discharge counts as a conviction for the purposed of the Sex Offender Act

–        the advice of the Home Office legal section is that it does not generate a requirement to register

–        the justices’ clerks’ society has taken a contrary view.

Leaves open the question as to what position courts adopt in practice.

 

2. Irrespective of the above formula a young person might be subject to registration requirements for a longer period than that generated by the disposal for the original offence:

-         where a young person is subject of a sex offender order, he or she is obliged to register for the duration of that order (a minimum of 5 years) even if the usual registration period is over

-         where a young person is subject of a restraining order (which can be imposed by the crown court for a sexual offence at the same time as a custodial sentence / hospital order), he or she is also obliged to register for the duration of that order.

D.                IMPLICATIONS OF REGISTRATION FOR THE YOUNG PERSON

 

It is difficult to generalise about the implications of registration:

 

§         Generates a flag on the police national computer

§         It may (but may not) lead to home visits

§         The information may (but may not) be shared with beat officers

§         It may lead to disclosure to third parties such as schools, employers, community groups etc

Guidance on this issue suggests that the police should:

-         Start from a presumption of confidentiality

-         Be able to justify any decision to disclose

-         Base any decision on a proper risk assessment

-         Consider the risk of further offending

-         Take account of the implications of disclosure for the young person as well as others.

 

D.                   IS REGISTRATION A GOOD THING?

 

There is an argument for considering that the registration procedures, insofar as they apply to young people, are unnecessary and unhelpful. The Home Office has acknowledged some of these concerns.

 

§         Children and young people are more amenable to change and the rationale for registration is accordingly weaker than is the case with adults

§         The majority of young people identified as sexual offenders do not commit further offences of a sexual nature

§         The potential for life long registration in this context is extremely onerous

§         Some sex offending by teenagers is more in the way of experimentation which has gone too far

§         Labelling young people as sex offenders may be counterproductive in terms of risk reduction.

§         Young people who commit sexual offences usually receive a higher degree of supervision from YOTs, in any event, than would be afforded by registration

§         It is inappropriate to have the same process of registration for children and young people as that intended for the most serious and persistent adult sex offenders ‘who have been causing long lasting harm to their victims over decades’.

 

E.                    PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS?

 

1. Need a knowledge of:

 

§      Legislation and relevant offences

§      Local prescribed police stations

§      Any local policies and protocols

§      Any local guidance on disclosure

§      Likely implications of registration

§      The difference between SOA registration and schedule 1 procedures.

 

2. What view does court take locally of issue of conditional discharge?  Should the YOT attempt to influence the court in this respect?

 

3. YOTs may want to develop an agreed local position on parents / carers being given the duty to register on behalf of the young person.

 

4. Negotiate a local arrangement with police to ensure that the YOT is in a position to influence decision to disclose to third parties.

 

5. Monitor / encourage compliance to avoid breach.

 

§           In the case of reprimands and final warnings, promote immediate registration if at a prescribed police station.

§           In case of conviction with an adjournment make sure that young person registers within 3 days rather than after sentence

§           Make appointments on behalf of young person to register

§           Attend with them?

§           Monitor changes in circumstances that require further notification.

 

6.  Others?

Tim Bateman

November 2002

 Offences listed in schedule 1 to the Sex Offenders Act 1997

 

Offences under the Sexual Offences Act 1956

Contrary to:

 

 

Rape

Section 1

Intercourse with a girl aged under 13

Section 5

Intercourse with a girl aged between 13 and 16 where the offender was aged 20 or over

Section 6

Incest by a man where the victim was aged under 18

Section 10

Buggery where the victim was aged under 18 and the offender was aged 20 or over

Section 12

Indecency between men where the victim was aged under 18 and the offender was aged 20 or over

Section 13

Indecent assault on a woman either: where the victim was aged under 18; or the offender was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment or more or a hospital order with a restriction order (irrespective of the age of the victim)

Section 14

Indecent assault on a man either: where the victim was aged under 18; or the offender was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment or more or a hospital order with a restriction order (irrespective of the age of the victim)

Section 15

Assault with intent to commit buggery where the victim was aged under 18

Section 16

Causing or encouraging prostitution of, intercourse with, or indecent assault on a girl aged under 16

Section 28

 

 

Other Offences

Contrary to:

 

 

Indecent conduct towards a young child

Section 1 of the Indecency with Children Act 1960

Inciting a girl aged under 16 to have incestuous sexual intercourse

Section 54 of the Criminal Law Act 1977

Taking, distributing or publishing indecent photographs of children

Section 1 of the Protection of Children Act 1978

Possession of indecent photographs of children

Section 160 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988

Being in possession of or being concerned in the importation of prohibited indecent or obscene articles which include indecent photographs of a person under the age of 16

Section 170 of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979

Abuse of a position of trust in relation to a person under the age of 18 where the offender was aged 20 or over

Section 3 of the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000