What is the Sex Offenders Register and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order?
Notifications OFF
What is the Sex Offenders Register (SOR)?
Since 1997, anyone cautioned or convicted for a sexual offence is put on the sex offenders register (SOR). This includes anyone who commits a sexual offence on the internet.
Under the Sexual Offences Act, all those on the sex offenders register must register with the police within three days of their conviction (guilty plea of found guilty at trial) and release from prison. If you are convicted, you will be required to go to your local police station and sign the register. If you do not register, you will be charged with another criminal offence.
Once registered, the public protection team, who are part of the police, will visit the offender at home to check that they are living there and undertake an assessment.
Offenders can expect the police to take photographs of them, and details added to the national police database. The police may make periodic home visits to check that people are where they say they are. The frequency of the visits will depend on the risk level.
You are required to provide the following information at registration:
- Name and any aliases
- Address and any other addresses where they regularly stay
- Whether they live with a child or are staying in a household where a child lives for at least 12 hours a day
- Details of conviction
- Details of bank accounts to which they have access
- Date of birth
- National insurance number
- Details of any passports they may hold
Other requirements for a registered offender
- Registration must be renewed on an annual basis
- Changes of name or address must be disclosed to the police within 3 days
- When spending 7 or more days away from home, the police must be notified within 3 days
- The police must be notified when travelling outside of the UK
What is a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO)?
Sexual Harm Prevention Orders replaced Sexual Offences Prevention Orders (SOPO) and Foreign Travel Orders (FTO) in March 2015 following implementation of the?Anti Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. The purpose of the order is to protect the public from sexual harm by restricting your behaviour. For example, if you have been convicted of an offence of downloading indecent images of children, your access to the internet, or to devices that connect to the internet, may be restricted.
A SHPO can be given to anyone convicted of:
- A sexual offence listed in Schedule 23 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003
- Certain non-sexual offences listed in Schedule 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003
SHPOs may also be given to people in the community who have not necessarily been convicted of a sexual offence, but whose behaviour is deemed by the police to be particularly risky. In these cases, the police or the National Crime Agency can apply to the court to make a SHPO.
Conditions
A SHPO can place restrictions on you, including restrictions on travelling abroad (or to specific countries), but it cannot enforce that you do certain things, such as attending a sex offender programme.
A SHPO will apply for a minimum five-year period, but can also be set indefinitely. If no specific period is set, the SHPO will apply until you appeal it, until it is discharged or a new order is made.
Some conditions (not an exhaustive list) can include:
- Interfering with or bypassing the normal running of any such computer monitoring software
- Using or activation any function of any software which prevents a computer or device from retaining and/or displaying the history of internet use, for example using ‘incognito’ mode or private browsing
- Using any ‘cloud’ or similar remote storage media capable of storing digital images (other than that which is intrinsic to the operation of the device) unless, within 3 days of the creation of an account for such storage, he notifies the police of that activity, and provides access to such storage on request for inspection by a police officer or police staff employes
- Possessing any device capable of storing digital images i.e. a USB stick or external hard drive unless he makes it available on request for inspection by a police officer;
- Installing any encryption or wiping software on any device other than that which is intrinsic to the operation of the device.
- Having any contact of any kind with any person he knows or believes to be under the age of 18, whether directly or indirectly via social media or skype or in any other way, other than:
such as is inadvertent and not reasonably avoidable in the course of lawful daily life, or with the supervision of an adult approved in advance by social services, who has knowledge of his convictions.
Failing to comply with either or both SOR and SHPO is a further criminal offence.
For further information:
https://unlock.org.uk/advice/sexual-harm-prevention-order-shpo/
https://www.nacro.org.uk/criminal-record-support-service/support-for-individuals/advice-prisoners-people-licence-sex-offenders-mappa/advice-people-convicted-sex-offences/
Since 1997, anyone cautioned or convicted for a sexual offence is put on the sex offenders register (SOR). This includes anyone who commits a sexual offence on the internet.
Under the Sexual Offences Act, all those on the sex offenders register must register with the police within three days of their conviction (guilty plea of found guilty at trial) and release from prison. If you are convicted, you will be required to go to your local police station and sign the register. If you do not register, you will be charged with another criminal offence.
Once registered, the public protection team, who are part of the police, will visit the offender at home to check that they are living there and undertake an assessment.
Offenders can expect the police to take photographs of them, and details added to the national police database. The police may make periodic home visits to check that people are where they say they are. The frequency of the visits will depend on the risk level.
You are required to provide the following information at registration:
- Name and any aliases
- Address and any other addresses where they regularly stay
- Whether they live with a child or are staying in a household where a child lives for at least 12 hours a day
- Details of conviction
- Details of bank accounts to which they have access
- Date of birth
- National insurance number
- Details of any passports they may hold
Other requirements for a registered offender
- Registration must be renewed on an annual basis
- Changes of name or address must be disclosed to the police within 3 days
- When spending 7 or more days away from home, the police must be notified within 3 days
- The police must be notified when travelling outside of the UK
What is a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO)?
Sexual Harm Prevention Orders replaced Sexual Offences Prevention Orders (SOPO) and Foreign Travel Orders (FTO) in March 2015 following implementation of the?Anti Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. The purpose of the order is to protect the public from sexual harm by restricting your behaviour. For example, if you have been convicted of an offence of downloading indecent images of children, your access to the internet, or to devices that connect to the internet, may be restricted.
A SHPO can be given to anyone convicted of:
- A sexual offence listed in Schedule 23 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003
- Certain non-sexual offences listed in Schedule 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003
SHPOs may also be given to people in the community who have not necessarily been convicted of a sexual offence, but whose behaviour is deemed by the police to be particularly risky. In these cases, the police or the National Crime Agency can apply to the court to make a SHPO.
Conditions
A SHPO can place restrictions on you, including restrictions on travelling abroad (or to specific countries), but it cannot enforce that you do certain things, such as attending a sex offender programme.
A SHPO will apply for a minimum five-year period, but can also be set indefinitely. If no specific period is set, the SHPO will apply until you appeal it, until it is discharged or a new order is made.
Some conditions (not an exhaustive list) can include:
- Interfering with or bypassing the normal running of any such computer monitoring software
- Using or activation any function of any software which prevents a computer or device from retaining and/or displaying the history of internet use, for example using ‘incognito’ mode or private browsing
- Using any ‘cloud’ or similar remote storage media capable of storing digital images (other than that which is intrinsic to the operation of the device) unless, within 3 days of the creation of an account for such storage, he notifies the police of that activity, and provides access to such storage on request for inspection by a police officer or police staff employes
- Possessing any device capable of storing digital images i.e. a USB stick or external hard drive unless he makes it available on request for inspection by a police officer;
- Installing any encryption or wiping software on any device other than that which is intrinsic to the operation of the device.
- Having any contact of any kind with any person he knows or believes to be under the age of 18, whether directly or indirectly via social media or skype or in any other way, other than:
such as is inadvertent and not reasonably avoidable in the course of lawful daily life, or with the supervision of an adult approved in advance by social services, who has knowledge of his convictions.
Failing to comply with either or both SOR and SHPO is a further criminal offence.
For further information:
https://unlock.org.uk/advice/sexual-harm-prevention-order-shpo/
https://www.nacro.org.uk/criminal-record-support-service/support-for-individuals/advice-prisoners-people-licence-sex-offenders-mappa/advice-people-convicted-sex-offences/
Post deleted