Satellite tracking will keep close tabs on offenders in three areas of the country in a groundbreaking development launched today by David Blunkett, the Home Secretary.
The tracking technology uses a satellite Global Positioning System, backed up by mobile phone technology in some cases, to monitor offenders’ movements and ensure they are complying with the restrictions placed on them.
The new technology will provide an added layer of public protection, by helping deter offenders from breaking the law, while providing extra intelligence to public protection agencies about an ex-offender’s movements to ensure they can intervene swiftly if restrictions are being flouted.
The pilots will take place in Greater Manchester, Hampshire and the West Midlands. They will cover prolific offenders and domestic violence offenders in Hampshire and the West Midlands as well as sex offenders in Greater Manchester.
Offenders will be tracked following their release from custody or as part of their compliance with a new community penalty called the exclusion order which the Courts can impose to prevent an offender going to specific locations. Satellite tracking will also be used as part of the ongoing intensive supervision of persistent juvenile offenders in the community, which combines close surveillance and strict curfews with mentoring and support programmes to keep young offenders out of prison.
Mr Blunkett said:
"The Government is determined to be at the cutting edge of technology in the drive to make our communities safer and ensure more effective sentencing of offenders.
"Thanks to this Government’s sentencing reforms, life now means life for the most heinous crimes. This technology will allow us to be equally tough with offenders released from prison using the latest technology to ensure they are sticking to the conditions of their licence and staying away from crime.
"However, our sentencing reforms were not just about being tougher on the most serious offenders. This technology will allow us to develop and promote the tough community sentences which are vital if we are to prevent re-offending and give non-violent offenders a chance to serve an effective sentence in the community. The public have to be confident that this ‘prison without bars’ works and that it gives the police and probation services the tools they need to protect them. This will build on the success of electronic tagging in monitoring offenders.
"Today is the start of this use of the technology which is why we are beginning with the pilots in three probation areas with a relatively small number of offenders. This is the first time this technology has been used in offender management in Europe and we need to make sure it is robust and reliable if we are to avoid public confidence being damaged by going too fast.
"We will be carrying out close evaluation of the pilots from day one to ensure they are used to their full potential, and other areas can benefit from this new technology as soon as possible."
Steve Murphy, Director General of the Probation Service, said:
"The Probation Service is already successfully managing offenders subject to electronic tagging. Introducing satellite tracking represents the next step in monitoring offender movements whilst they serve the community element of any sentence. This testing of satellite tracking will enable probation staff and police forces to work even more closely in protecting the public."
ACPO lead on tagging and Assistant Chief Constable of Essex Police, Liam Brigginshaw, said:
"We are pleased that satellite tracking is now available to be thoroughly tested and evaluated. All police forces are aware of some individuals whose offending levels can inflict misery on local communities. Having greater levels of information and intelligence about the movements and behaviour of these individuals will be beneficial in preventing and solving crime and protecting the public."
The pilots will test two types of satellite tracking, passive tracking and hybrid tracking. Passive tracking allows an offender to be monitored retrospectively with location data being downloaded at appropriate times including at the end of each day – or more frequently where there is considered to be a risk. Hybrid tracking monitors offenders passively unless an offender enters an exclusion area, at which point the system switches to live monitoring. From this point, the offender’s movements can be tracked in real time - appearing as a location on an ordinance survey map to within two metres - and appropriate action taken.
Notes to Editors:
-
The pilot areas are Greater Manchester (Bolton, Salford, Tameside and Wigan; and for sex offenders the whole Greater Manchester area), Hampshire (Fareham, Gosport, Havant, Portsmouth and Southampton), and the West Midlands (Sandwell and Dudley). These were chosen for a number of reasons including the availability of relevant programmes. They will also enable each of the three electronic monitoring contractors to provide a tracking service in their own area, so that comparisons can be drawn.
-
All three areas will test the technology with prolific offenders and domestic violence offenders, additionally Greater Manchester will test the technology with sexual offenders, and Hampshire will test with young prolific offenders.
-
Greater Manchester will pilot passive and hybrid tracking, Hampshire and the West Midlands will pilot passive tracking only. In all types of tracking, the device worn by the offender determines his location in real time and retains the information. The only difference is how, and when, the information is transmitted to the monitoring centre:
-
In passive tracking, the information is transmitted when the tracking device is connected to a landline telephone. This will typically be at the end of the day, when the device is plugged into a charger unit with a landline attached. But it could be earlier, for example if the offender reports to the supervisor’s office. Passive tracking therefore provides location data retrospectively to show where the offender has been since the last transmission.
-
In hybrid tracking, the equipment works in the same way as for passive tracking, except that when the offender breaches the tracking conditions or requirements, for example by entering an exclusion zone, the tracking device switches to active mode and transmits a real-time alert to the monitoring centre.
-
Satellite tracking technology is global so if an offender moves outside the probation area they are still monitored. Tracking systems also use mobile phone technology (GSM) which relies on the network of mobile phone masts to determine location.
-
The cost of tracking an offender will depend on how intensive the tracking is, on how many offenders are made subject to tracking, and on how the pilots work out in practice. This year the government has put aside £3million to cover start up costs, evaluation and project management. We estimate the average cost per day for each offender tracked to be £68.
-
The pilots will initially run for 12 months. After that the Government will decide whether to extend the use of tracking to the whole of England and Wales. The pilots will be externally evaluated by researchers appointed by the Home Office.
-
The pilots are taking place under the current electronic monitoring contracts. The current suppliers are Securicor, Reliance and Premier.
-
Tracking technology is used to monitor offenders' movements in several American states. Florida is by far the largest user of tracking and introduced the technology in 1998.
Crown copyright material reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the Queen's Printer for Scotland
