|
'Sarah's Law'
postcode lottery may leave children at risk from sexual predators
CHILDREN may be at risk of harm from
sexual predators as very few Police forces are making full use of 'Sarah's
Law', the NSPCC has warned.
The Child Sex Offenders Disclosure (CSOD) scheme came into force following
public outrage over the savage murder of 8 year old Sarah Payne. It allows
parents and others to ask Police for details about individuals if they suspect
they might harm children.
But since it began in April 2011 just 1 in 6 applications for information has
been successful and in Lancashire, the Police force gave information about
people who pose a risk to children in just 3% of applications (7 out of 235
applications).
NSPCC Freedom of Information requests to Police forces in England and Wales
found that from 2011 to 2014, just 16% of applications under the scheme, known as
'Sarah's
Law', were successful; with vast variations in the numbers of Police
disclosures made across England and Wales.
Between 2011 to 2014, 5,357 applications were made to 33 forces, but only 877
applications resulted in disclosures being made. 5 other forces said they had
received 908 applications but did not provide information about disclosure
numbers.
The new figures reveal wide variation in the proportion of disclosures made by
different Police, indicating a post code lottery when it comes to responding to
public concerns.
Warwickshire Police gave information about people who pose a risk to children in
just 1% of applications (13 out of 1,084 applications). Suffolk Police disclosed
information they held for around a third of applications (31 out of 93 made).
Meanwhile Sussex Police, the force who investigated Sarah Payne's murder, gave
out information for only 7% of applications (14 out of 193 applications).
As well as parents, carers and guardians, any concerned member of the public can
formally ask the Police to tell them if someone has a record for child sexual
offences.
Peter Wanless, NSPCC chief executive, said:- "We are both disturbed and
surprised by this wide discrepancy of figures across the country, revealing that
there is a postcode lottery when it comes to how forces deal with Sarah's law.
Families need to know if there are individuals in their area who pose a risk to
children. How can you expect parents to make the right choices in order to
protect their children if they don't know who is a threat? The
Police need to be proactive in empowering communities to protect
vulnerable children. The wide variation in disclosure numbers doesn't breed
confidence that the scheme is being understood or applied consistently and that
is a concern. While there may be very good reasons for not disclosing
information held to applicants, some forces seem to be too cautious which could
put children at serious risk of harm. We need to see regular independent
evaluation of this vital law to make sure it's working as it should."
The figures come weeks after the NSPCC's State of the Nation report showed a
dramatic increase in child sexual abuse being reported to Police, with 3
offences committed against children every hour. |
