Prisoners: Offences against Children
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether convicted child sex offenders can be housed in open prisons.
Answered by Jake Richards
Determinate sentence prisoners, including those convicted of sex offences, are eligible to be considered for a move to open prisons when within five years of their earliest release date. Before they can transfer, however, their risk must be assessed as low enough to be safely managed in open conditions. The assessment looks at a wide range of factors, including risk of harm to the public, risk of continued criminality, and risk of abscond.
To be eligible for re-categorisation to open conditions, prisoners serving an indeterminate sentence must have their suitability assessed by the Public Protection Casework Section of HM Prison & Probation Service, on behalf of the Secretary of State.
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