Alarm at Labour plans to house criminal suspects near family homes

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Irene Blake
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1 Reeased by: Gurcharan Singh PPC, Eaing Southa Date: 2nd February 2009 Aarm at Labour pans to house crimina suspects near famiy homes Controversia bai hostes to be imposed without consutation as prisons overfow Concern was raised this week at Government pans to expand the use of controversia bai hostes effectivey sma open prisons in residentia neighbourhoods. The hostes, used to house eary reease prisoners and crimina suspects, are being opened across the country by Labour Ministers because of insufficient prison paces. They hostes are being imposed on oca communities without consutation. The bai hostes, funded by pubic money and run by a private company caed CearSprings, house offenders reeased before the end of their sentences, and peope on bai awaiting tria for crimina offences who otherwise woud be remanded in custody. A eaked memo reveas that hostes can be opened without pubic consutation and do not even require the consent of councis or the Probation Service. The hostes neighbours wi ony be informed about the pans by etter once the hostes have been given the goahead. Pariamentary Questions have forced Labour Ministers to revea the ocations of existing bai hostes, isting a partia postcode and the Pariamentary constituency Eaing Southa. But Ministers have faied to revea precise street names. The offenders or crimina suspects are free to come and go with ony imited supervision. The Government is panning to expand these bai hostes across Engand and Waes potentiay incuding Southa. Cr. Gurcharan Singh, prospective Pariamentary candidate for Eaing Southa said: Today, bai is too easiy granted, frequenty breached and weaky enforced. Now, because Labour Ministers have faied to provide enough prison capacity, they have devised a covert pan to set up mini open-jais in residentia areas, avoiding any consutation with the pubic. This is not a responsibe way to assist offenders, who receive minima supervision and support, when what they need is a ong-term programme of resettement.

2 Conservatives wi immediatey suspend this programme. In pace of these cumsy emergency measures, we need a proper programme of prison reform to focus on rehabiitation and ensure that pubic safety and confidence is maintained. Notes to Editors CONTROVERSIAL USE OF BAIL HOSTELS Three year scheme introduced without fanfare: In 2007, the Ministry of Justice quiety announced that the Nationa Offender Management Service woud be introducing a new Bai Accommodation and Support Service (BASS) to enabe the courts and prison governors to make greater use of bai and eary reease on a strict curfew. The BASS service is provided on a regiona basis and the contract with CearSprings is for three years (Hansard, 16 May 2008, co. 1830W). The atest figures show that CearSprings has been paid at east 2.4 miion by taxpayers for bai accommodation services up to December 2007 (Hansard, 21 January 2008, co. 1645W). Pans for 200 hostes: A eaked Protoco reveas that CearSprings contract is for the provision of 600 bed paces or around 200 hostes. The properties are used to house prisoners reeased eary on Home Detention Curfew ( tagging ) or defendants on bai who woud otherwise be remanded in custody. Cients can be housed for up to 9 months, and receive housing benefit whist in the property. The Protoco confirms that the properties are not secured, or manned. It states: The accommodation is not staffed; the cients are sef-governing with foating Support Officers (p.1). A copy of the eaked protoco is avaiabe at: With more bai hostes to come: The Government is panning to open even more bai hostes and expand the scheme, due to the ack of prison paces. BASS is assumed to continue indefinitey, and its effect on the number of prisoners hed on remand is assumed to increase as the scheme matures (Ministry of Justice, Prison Popuation Projections, , September 2009, p. 7). Loca representatives not consuted: Athough CearSprings are required to consut oca authorities via the head of housing and the Chief Executive, the Protoco reveas that eected counciors are not informed: CearSprings is not required to consut with poiticians or residents groups (p.3). Neither probation officers nor the oca authority can veto CearSprings choice of property. The Protoco suggests that: A positive response wi aways be required from the poice. Neither has [the Counci] any ega powers to restrict or contro the provision of accommodation by CearSprings other than to ensure that the housing is fit for occupation and meets panning and housing egisation. If CearSprings beieves an objection to an address is unreasonabe the oca authority wi discuss the concerns with them. If no resoution is reached the matter shoud be raised with the [Ministry of Justice] Regiona Offender Manager (p.3). No repy is taken as permission to proceed. If CearSprings do not receive a response from counci or probation officers within five working days, CearSprings can assume that a ack of response constitutes acceptance: CearSprings can assume acceptance if no response is forthcoming from Probation or the Loca Authority after 5 working days. Residents informed after decision has been taken. Neighbours are ony informed not consuted once the fina approva for the property has been agreed, and the property is avaiabe for use: Once the fina inspection has taken pace, CearSprings wi notify a senior stakehoders that the property has gone ive and is avaiabe for use. Once the fina inspection has taken pace, CearSprings wi introduce themseves to immediate neighbours and provide 24-hour contact detais. If unabe to make contact CearSprings wi eave an introduction etter detaiing the same (p.2). This confirms an earier admission by the Government that residents are not consuted: [T]here is no requirement for CearSprings to consut oca residents about the provision of properties in their ocae to peope who are defendants on bai or offenders reeased on home detention curfew (Hansard, 19 March 2008, co. 1194W).

3 CearSprings seeks to avoid media scrutiny, and encourages oca authorities to do the same: It is agreed [between CearSprings and the oca authority] that any enquiries with the media wi be treated caution. Where at a possibe, discussions wi be hed between both parties prior to any statement being made by the oca authority. It shoud be noted that CearSprings have a poicy to refer a media enquiries to the press officer for the Ministry of Justice (p.3). Loca councis raised concerns about ack of proper consutation: The Loca Government Association has sammed the Government for setting up bai houses across the country without proper consutation with oca authorities (LGA press reease, 11 August 2008). NEW LOCAL INFORMATION Answers to Pariamentary Questions by Conservatives have forced the Government to pubish the (partia) postcodes of each bai hoste currenty in use, and the number by Pariamentary constituency. Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) if he wi ist the address of each property used for the Bai Accommodation and Support Service; (2) how much has been paid to CearSprings for the provision of bai and home detention accommodation since June 2007; (3) if he wi ist the outward part of the postcode of each property used for the Bai Accommodation and Support Service; (4) how many Bai Accommodation and Support Service properties there are in each Pariamentary constituency in Engand and Waes; (5) how many (a) offenders on home detention curfew and (b) defendants on bai have used the Bai Accommodation and Support Service since June Mr. Straw: CearSprings has been paid 8.3 miion for the provision of the Bai and Accommodation Support Service from June 2007 to the end of November Lists of the outward part of the property post code for each property currenty in use for this service and of the numbers of properties by constituency are set out in the foowing ists. However, we do not discose the private addresses of defendants or offenders. The properties used in the Bai Accommodation and Support Service are the private rented homes of those receiving the service. As at 12 January, 1,051 offenders on home detention curfew and 1,338 defendants on bai have used the Bai Accommodation and Support Service since June Post codes: B18 B18 B18 B21 B21 B21 B67 B67 BA2 B69 BB10 BB11 BB2 BB9 BH10 BH8 BL1 BL2 BL8 BL9 BS16 BS24 BS5 BS5 BS5 CF11 CF3 CF5 CR7 CR7 CR7 CV6 DE22 DE23 DE23 DH1 DH1 DN17 DN32 DN5 DN7 DY1 DY2 DY2 DY4 E17 E6 E6 E9 EN8 GL1 HD2 HP12 HU5 HX5 IG1 IP4 2 L11 L14 L21 L7 LE2 LE3 LE3 LE3 LE4 LL11 LL13 LN6 LS12 LS7 LS8 LU2 LU3 LU4 M18 M24 M26 ME1 ME4 ME7 MK14 N12 N18 N22 NE24 NE32 NE4 NE4 NE63 NG2 NG6 NG7 NG7 NN1 NN18 NN2 NN2 NN3 NN5 NP19 NP20 NP20 NR1 NR5 NR5 NR6 OL1

4 OX3 OX3 PE2 PE2 PE4 PE4 PL2 PL4 PL4 PO2 PO2 PO4 PR1 PR2 RG1 RG2 RG6 RM10 RM13 RM8 S45 S65 S65 S75 SA1 SA1 SE23 SE25 SE25 SE6 SN1 SO15 SO18 SR3 SR4 ST3 ST4 ST4 ST5 ST5 ST6 ST6 SW16 SW16 TF1 TS17 TS18 TS4 TS5 TS5 UB1 WA10 WA4 WF1 WF13 WF13 WF2 WF9 WN2 WN7 WN8 WS2 WS2 WV3 Number of BASS Constituency properties at 13 January 2009 Barnsey West and Penistone 1 Bath 1 Batey and Spen 1 Birmingham, Ladywood 4 Birmingham, Perry Barr 2 Backburn 1 Byth Vaey 1 Boton North East Boton West Boote 2 Bournemouth East 1 Bournemouth West 1 Bristo East 3 Broxbourne 1 Burney 2 Bury North 2 Bury South 1 Cader Vaey 1 Cardiff South and Penarth 2 Cardiff West 1 Chatham and Ayesford 1 City of Durham 2 Corby 1 Coventry North West 1 Croydon Centra 2 Croydon North 3 Dagenham 1 Dagenham 1 Derby South 3 Dewsbury 1 Doncaster North 2 Dudey North 2 Dudey South 1 Eaing, Southa 1 East Ham 2 Edmonton 5 Finchey and Goders Green Giingham Goucester

5 Number of BASS Constituency properties at 13 January 2009 Great Grimsby 1 Hackney South and Shoreditch 1 Hemsworth 1 Heywood and Middeton 1 Hornchurch 1 Hornsey and Wood Green 1 Huddersfied 1 Iford South 1 Ipswich 1 Jarrow 1 Kingston upon Hu North 1 Kingswood 1 Leeds East Leeds North East Leeds West Leicester South Leicester West 4 Leigh Lewisham East Lewisham West Lincon 1 Liverpoo, Wavertree 2 Luton North 2 Luton South Makerfied Manchester, Gorton Medway Middesbrough 3 Newcaste upon Tyne Centra Newcaste-under-Lyme 2 Newport East 1 Newport West 2 North East Derbyshire 1 North East Miton Keynes 1 North West Cambridgeshire 2 Northampton North 4 Northampton South 1 Norwich North 1 Norwich South 3 Nottingham East 3 Nottingham North Odham East and Saddeworth 1 Oxford East 2 Pende 1 Peterborough 2 Pymouth Devonport 1 Pymouth Sutton 2 Portsmouth North 1 Portsmouth South 2 Preston 2 Reading East 3 Rotherham 2 Scunthorpe 1 South Swindon 1 Southampton, Itchen 2

6 Number of BASS Constituency properties at 13 January 2009 St. Heens South 1 Stockton South 2 Stoke-on-Trent Centra 2 Stoke-on-Trent North 2 Stoke-on-Trent South Streatham 2 Sunderand North Sunderand South 1 Swansea East 1 Swansea West 1 The Wrekin Tyne Bridge 1 Wakefied 2 Wasa North 2 Wathamstow Wansbeck Warey 2 Warrington South 1 West Bromwich West 2 West Lancashire 1 Weston-super-Mare 1 Woverhampton South West Wrexham 2 Wycombe Hansard, 15 January 2009, co. 911W. ENDS

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