No warning for neighbours over bail hostels
FOUR bail hostels – housing suspects and criminals – have been set up in Nottingham without telling residents living nearby.
The hostels have been running for around 18 months with up to four suspects released on bail and tagged former prisoners with no set address.
-
Their exact location is not known – but three are in the Nottingham East constituency and one is in Nottingham North.
Justice officials have admitted residents are not given prior warning when the hostels are moved in to neighbourhoods.
And they say the public "should not" know when former convicts and suspects are living nearby.
At the moment the company running the hostels, ClearSprings, only has to consult police, probation services and council officials – but not councillors or residents.
Councils can only object to the sites if the housing is not fit for occupation or breaches planning legislation.
City councillor Gerry Davey, who represents Bulwell Forest, said the hostels should be discussed openly.
He said: "Elected representatives should absolutely be given prior knowledge when something like this comes into the neighbourhood.
"Politicians should prepare themselves for the uproar that follows."
Opposition MPs claimed the Government was trying to covertly introduce more hostels into neighbourhoods and that they were only needed because prisons were overcrowded.
Shadow justice secretary Nick Herbert said: "The Government has failed to provide enough prison capacity so they've devised a covert plan to set up what amounts to mini-open jails in residential areas while avoiding any consultation with the public.
"Placing offenders in residential properties causes immense aggravation when neighbours suddenly discover what's going on, only to be told that they are powerless to stop it."
Meanwhile Justice Minister David Hanson explained that no sex offenders or people that posed a threat to the public were held in the hostels.
He said that residents in the accommodation were no different to those who had been legitimately released into the community to return to their own homes.
"Those held in ClearSprings accommodation are deemed not to require close supervision or support," he said.
"More than half of those held in this accommodation are on bail and are therefore innocent until proven guilty.
"Those on Home Detention Curfew are assessed as low risk before entry, monitored during their stay, and are liable to recall to prison if they break the terms of their release."
Last year a former ClearSprings employee warned that public safety was at risk in a television news report.
But Government officials argued yesterday that the hostel locations should not be released.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: "If a person who is on bail or tagged returns to their home address we do not inform their neighbours.
"Similarly, when people take up residence at the hostel neighbours are not made aware."
4 Comments
by Anonymous Employee, England
Sunday, November 29 2009, 9:58AM
“I am a Clearsprings support officer. The public must be made aware of the risks and the type of people being housed in ClearSprings accommodation. I have dealt with people who have a string of offences, including threats to kill, GBH, robbery, burglary, ABH etc. Many of the referrals we receive are poor, ie they have drug or alcohol issues or mental health issues. As support officers we are given no protection at all by management, other than a solo protect device, which would arrange for police to attend if activated during an attack. I have been told off by my manager on a number of occassions for getting the police involved with various things and support officers are frequently bullied by managers. We all work well over 60 hours a week completing meaningless paperwork and often we only get to visit the residents in the house once or twice a week for a couple of hours. Houses have been used as brothels, one house was blown up last year, this case in the north of england.....it is disastrous from that perspective. I could think of many simple solutions to improve the standard and safety of the scheme, but support officers are frequently undermined by management. without the support officers, the scheme would be dead in the water and yet we carry the can when things go wrong!!!
On a side issue, the scheme has worked fantastically well for many others and even neighbours would have to agree to how some service users have been a genuine pleasure to live next door to. Unfortunately too many poor referrals are being accepted into the scheme. There is no longer a "low" risk policy of acceptence, it is frequently medium to high risk referrals being taken on.
I often feel a part of the deception that is being perpetrated on the police and public, by having to lie or be economical with the truth to residents who are genuinely concerned. Pressure from management is such that the moment a staff member speaks out, they are sacked. I am my colleagues have wanted to "blow the whistle" on what is going on for a long time, but we all need jobs and unfortunately, there is never the protection you deserve for being a whistleblower.
The scheme has been good and has been bad. With the right things in place, a change of management attitude and more transparency and a definate change back to "low" risk offenders, ie soft crimes, such as fraud, shoplifting, criminal damage, motoring offences, will ensure that the scheme can succeed and more importantly that the support officers and the public get the protection they need.
Anonymous”
by fred, the wood
Friday, January 09 2009, 7:36PM
“DOES ANY BODY KNOW WHERE THESE HOTELS ?? ARE.....”
by William, The Park
Friday, January 09 2009, 9:37AM
“Disgusting. This is New Labour's Distributed 'Cloud' Prison System. Prison in the Community if you will.”
by kelly, notts
Friday, January 09 2009, 9:16AM
“joke complete joke ....”