Government 'no' to sex offender hostel closure (From Crewe Guardian)

Government 'no' to sex offender hostel closure

7:20am Sunday 23rd September 2012 in News By Matthew Taylor

CHILD sex offenders will continue to be housed in Sandbach after the Government rejected calls to close Linden Bank hostel.

Sandbach Town Council had requested that the facility – also known as Elworth Bail Hostel – should be prevented from accepting sex offenders.

A Government spokesman said: “The Government does not intend to close the approved premises in question, or to bar it from accepting child sex offenders. This is because approved premises are a vital resource in the management of high-risk offenders on release from custody.

“Without them, the management of these offenders would be less effective and risk to the public would be greater. Approved premises which are directly adjacent to a school or nursery are barred from accepting child sex offenders. Linden Bank approved premises is not in that category.”

Sandbach Heath & East clr Sam Corcoran said: “The Government response misses the point of our submission: The Linden Bank hostel is actually very close to a school and a nursery, and directly overlooks the Elworth Park playground.”

He added that he thought Elworth Park was ‘nearly always deserted’ due to its proximity to the hostel.

Elworth clr Richard Hoffmann conducted a survey of Elworth residents that revealed 85 per cent of residents wanted sex offenders to be excluded from the hostel, even if it meant an increase in the numbers of other categories of offenders.

He said: “I am concerned to see that the Conservative spokesman used the phrase ‘high-risk offenders’ in relation to Linden Bank; this is precisely the category we are worried about.”