Sex crime fear as jail treatments slashed

Sex offenders could be freed from prison without changing their behaviour because of cuts to treatment programmes.

The Sunday Post can reveal the number of prison programmes designed to stop offenders’ sexual urges have plummeted by almost a fifth in the past four years.

There are just 963 places on programmes in England’s jails, compared to 1,190 in 2010/11. That’s despite a rise in the numbers of sex abusers jailed.

Critics have accused ministers of risking public safety.

Labour’s shadow justice minister, Sadiq Khan, described the cuts as “truly alarming”. He said: “A cut in the number of programmes could mean many criminals are being released without being properly reformed. Ministers are putting public safety at risk.”

The figures were released by the Ministry of Justice under freedom of information laws.

County Durham’s notorious Frankland Prison which houses Soham killer Ian Huntley, 40 has axed nearly a third of its spaces on sex offender courses. There have also been cuts of almost a quarter in the number of places at Wakefield Prison, dubbed “monster mansion” because it houses some of the country’s sickest cons, including April Jones’s killer Mark Bridger, 48.

The cuts come at a time when the prison population of sex offenders is soaring. They make up about 15% of the total 85,582 behind bars. Average sentences for sex crimes have risen from 40 months to 59.

The situation has become so serious that sex offenders are waiting years or being released without treatment, inspectors said earlier this year.

However, campaigners have questioned the value of jail programmes. They claim victims’ needs are being sidelined in favour of pampering rapists and paedophiles. Some of the courses include modules in “gelling” to help cons’ relationships with others. Another is called “managing my sexy thinking”.

National Victims’ Association founder David Hines, said: “Many offenders will never be cured yet the Government spends millions on treatment. Most are evil they’ve had their chances. As far as I’m concerned it’s a waste of taxpayers’ money.”

Peter Cuthbertson, director of the Centre for Crime Prevention think tank, called for longer jail sentences for perverts. He said: “Money for rehabilitation programmes is less important than making sure offenders get a long sentence, protecting the public for as long as possible.”

A spokesman for the MoJ said the Criminal Justice and Courts bill, currently going through the UK parliament, will end the automatic early release for the most serious violent and sexual offenders.

Prisons Minister Jeremy Wright said: “This Government takes the management of sex offenders in prison seriously. There has been no cut in funding for their treatment.”