OPPORTUNITIES to mitigate the risk posed by registered sex offenders towards children are being missed by Gwent Police according to a new report.
Gwent Police were also criticised in the report for detaining children in adult cells.
Registered sex offenders are required by law to notify the police in person at a prescribed police station in the area where they plan to live.
However, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) inspectors saw some cases where registered offenders failed to notify a change of circumstances or register an address within three days, as the law demands.
The report found: “Their manager would phone them to remind them, then visit them at home and deal with the notification. This does not comply with the law.
“The failure to notify was often not recorded as a crime and did not result in an interview or further investigation.”
"As a result of this, offences are not investigated or recorded.
"Offenders’ behaviour will also not be fully understood locally if they move to another area.
"Nor will it be known to sentencing courts if future offences are committed."
The inspectors recommend that, within three months, Gwent Police acts to improve its management of registered sex offenders, paying particular attention to:
- how it deals with those offenders who do not comply with notification requirements; and
- how it engages with partner agencies to protect children at risk from managed offenders.
Also included in the report are concerns over the detention of children in police custody.
HMICFRS inspectors reported that neither of Gwent Police’s custody facilities – Ystrad Mynach and Newport - has a separate custody area for children or other vulnerable people.
The report found: “The force has set aside a room to receive vulnerable prisoners for processing in Newport but not at Ystrad Mynach.
“We saw through our audits that children were usually held in cells in the same areas as adult detainees, rather than in detention rooms.”
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Inspectors also reported entries within custody records which suggested a child had been removed from a cell, possibly for interview, but the reason was not recorded.
However, the report did note that arrests were usually appropriate and necessary and that there was evidence that custody officers do challenge some arrests of children.
Many children brought into police custody have complex needs. They are likely to be vulnerable and in need of support to keep them safe. In many cases, a referral to children’s social care services is needed.
But the report did also find that the submissions of referral forms for children in custody to be inconsistent in number and quality.
HMIFRCS inspectors recommended Gwent Police should undertake an immediate review - jointly with children’s social care services and other relevant organisations - of how it manages the detention of children.
They stated that this review should include how best to make sure that children are detained only when necessary, and for the absolute minimum amount of time; make sure that appropriate adults attend the police station promptly; and to make sure that officers consider the needs of the child and make referrals to children’s social care when necessary.
The HMIFRCS report concluded by saying: “Senior leaders in Gwent Police show a clear commitment to making sure that child protection and safeguarding the vulnerable are priorities.
“We found that the force was committed to improving its services for children. The force has put a lot of time and effort into understanding the demands on the PPU and to increasing capacity for that demand.
“However, we found that further work was required to make sure that the decisions made about and for children took account of their views and considered carefully the impact on them.”
The Police and Crime Commissioner for Gwent (PCC), Jeff Cuthbert, said: “Protecting the most vulnerable in our communities is one of our key priorities and I am extremely proud of the work Gwent Police do.
“I acknowledge that some recommendations for improvement have been provided by HMICFRS.
“Gwent Police have already begun to implement some of these recommendations. I will continue to monitor progress.”
Gwent Police’s Head of CID and Protective Services, Detective Chief Superintendent Nicky Brain, said: “Although Gwent Police has been found to have made significant improvements in our response to protecting children in recent years, we take the recommendations highlighted seriously and plans are in place to address these concerns.”
HMICFRS will carry out a further inspection of Gwent Police's child protection capabilities within the next six months.
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