The Post Sentence Authority's 2022-23 Annual Report

As of 30 June 2023, there were 126 serious offenders subject to a post sentence order. Of these offenders, 92 are serious sex offenders, 21 are serious violent offenders and 13 are both serious sex and serious violent offenders.   

Notably, in 2022-23, 14 offenders had their orders expire and three orders were revoked. This evidences that change is possible in some offenders, who have been able to satisfy a court through cogent evidence that they no longer pose or will pose an unacceptable risk to the community. It also shows that offenders are not on an order for any longer than they need to be, and fears of the scheme warehousing offenders has not been realised – rather it is a scheme genuinely focussed on harm minimisation, risk reduction, rehabilitation, and reintegration.  

Despite a slight reduction in the number of people on orders from the previous year, the work of the Authority did not decrease. There was a 19 per cent increase in the number of serious offender hearings held (224), a 14 per cent increase in the number of interviews conducted (130), and 321 coordinated service plans reviewed.

The Authority’s Chair, Michele Williams KC, notes that five years into its operations, it is apparent that the post sentence scheme is meeting its aims of protecting the community and rehabilitating serious offenders.

The effectiveness of the post sentence scheme can be evidenced from some key measures.  First, the low rate of recidivism, with convictions of either a serious sex offence or a serious violence for offenders subject to an order under the post sentence scheme being under 2 per cent. Second, in 2022-23 there was an increase in the number of offenders who either had their order expire or revoked (17) which means those offenders have been able to reduce their assessed risk of serious reoffending to the point they no longer pose an unacceptable risk to the community.