Prolific Offenders Project

In the latest Tameside Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy 888.92 KB document it is reported the misuse of drugs and alcohol is a major concern for 86.5% of residents and communities in the district. That document also indicates 67% of arrestees test positive for drugs and that alcohol and drugs have been identified by offenders themselves as being key influences on their behaviour.

In response Tameside Metropolitan District set up a project in February, 2002 in Borough aimed at reducing the number of crimes committed by some of the district's most frequent offenders by 30%.

The project recognises the considerable part drugs play in prompting offenders to commit crime to subsidise their drug problem. The monies have come from a national group Communities Against Drugs.

The project, known as Operation Rhodes, is primarily a joint initiative between the Police and Probation Services although other agencies e.g. drugs and housing are also involved. The project is based on a carrot and stick principle and aims to re-integrate individuals, who are persistently committing crime, back into communities. In other words to ensure they are socially-included and not socially-excluded.

Anyone who has committed 3 crimes during the previous 12 months whilst s/he has been at liberty is eligible for the project. They are supervised during a community sentence imposed by the court or during a licence from prison. Special conditions are inserted into either the community sentence order or licence and a contract is signed by the offender. The offender is assessed regularly. These assessments involve all agencies who have contact with the offender. S/he attends the assessment meeting and is represented there by the mentor who is part of the project and whose main task is to re-integrate the offenders back into mainstream society. The offenders are expected to see a member of Probation Service or any other agency, including the Mentoring Service, which maybe involved in the project up to 4 times per week, up to 4 times more than normally is the case. Failure to follow strictly-enforced instructions on the programme leads to speedy action and a possible committal to prison.

All those who have been identified for the programme are targeted by the Police and both unplanned and planned visits to an offender's home by the police and/or probation personnel are part of the project. This reminds the offender of her/his obligations to the project and the consequences of failure to comply with conditions in the order/licence.

Prolific offenders projects are beginning in many other parts of the country. Some have been established for some time. Research elsewhere indicates they can play a real part in reducing offending either by putting persistent offenders into prison speedily after they have failed to comply with an order/licence or by bringing those offenders back into main stream society where the need to commit further crime - to subsidise a drug addiction for example - disappears.

Contact us:

Royce G. Franklin, Prolific Offenders Manager, Hyde Probation Office, 2 Simpson Street, Hyde, SK14 1BJ
0161 366 7344