Apr. 08 2024
Source Page: Wymott Prison: Action PlanFound: B wing – Prisoners convicted of sexual offences and older men. C wing – General population.
Apr. 08 2024
Source Page: Wymott Prison: Action PlanFound: B wing – Prisoners convicted of sexual offences and older men. C wing – General population.
Apr. 04 2024
Source Page: Teacher misconduct panel outcome: Mr Jay PlucknettFound: Offences Act 2003.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to update the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
This government has recently reviewed and made significant changes to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA) 1974. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 amended the ROA to significantly reduce the length of time that someone needs to disclose most criminal records. These reforms will improve access to employment, which we know is a key factor in supporting rehabilitation and enabling former offenders to reintegrate into the community. Serious violent, sexual, or terrorist offences are excluded from these changes and continue to never be spent.
Where a person has a conviction disclosed, we are clear that this should not be an automatic bar to employment. Our guidance for employers states that they should make a balanced judgment on whether someone’s convictions make them unsuitable for a particular job. This should take into account the person’s age at the time of the offence, how long ago it took place, the nature of the offence and its relevance to the position in question, among other factors.
The ROA is kept under review. There are no current plans to make further changes, but please see further the answer I gave on 4 April to Question HL3362.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, excluding sexual or violent offences, under what circumstances can someone subject to an Imprisonment for Public Protection sentence who has completed their license period have earlier, minor offences dropped from their record.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (the ROA) sets out when an offender is considered to be ‘rehabilitated’ for the purposes of the Act and the relevant rehabilitation periods for cautions and convictions (also referred to as when a caution or a conviction become ‘spent’). This does not mean that an offence is dropped from their record, rather that the offender only needs to disclose the spent caution or conviction in some circumstances.
The ROA also provides that where a person commits another offence before the first has become spent, then the rehabilitation periods are extended to the longest period. The ROA sets out that, as with other indeterminate sentences, IPP sentences can never become spent, regardless of whether the licence is terminated or not. The same, therefore, applies to any unspent caution or conviction imposed on the offender prior to the IPP sentence.
We have taken action through the Victims and Prisoners Bill to curtail IPP licence periods to give offenders the opportunity to move on with their lives. Whether the ROA should be reviewed in the light of these changes would require further consideration in the context of indeterminate sentences generally.
Correspondence Mar. 28 2024
Committee: Justice Committee (Department: Ministry of Justice)Found: the senten ce to the individual offender, which will hopefully lead to positive outcomes in terms of rehabilitation
Mar. 28 2024
Source Page: Police workforce, England and Wales: 31 March 2023 (second edition)Found: . • Offender Management includes Offender Rehabilitation. 1d Local Policing Command Team and Support
Mar. 27 2024
Source Page: Police Remuneration Review Body 9th report: 2023Found: Wales and Northern Ireland, including anti-discrimination legislation regarding age, gender, race, sexual
Found: and sexual offences.
Mentions:
1: Alex Chalk (Con - Cheltenham) order unless there are exceptional circumstances, and those convicted of the most serious sexual offences - Speech Link
2: Edward Argar (Con - Charnwood) decade, but that means that those in custody are more complex; 71% of them are detained for violent offences - Speech Link
3: Chris Elmore (Lab - Ogmore) the prison estate, but according to the Prison Officers Association and the Community union, serious offences - Speech Link
4: Alex Chalk (Con - Cheltenham) was a clear sense of pride among prison officers, who were determined to deliver safety, decency and rehabilitation - Speech Link
5: Gareth Bacon (Con - Orpington) of abusive or degrading sexual conduct. - Speech Link