Sexual Offences Act Report
Guidance on Part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.
This report highlights the key changes to the act compared with Part 1 of the Sex Offenders Act 1997. The document contains guidance on the basic principles of notification requirements and guidance on Civil Orders aswell as highlighting the key amendments to the act. This document also answers many Frequently Asked Questions about the act.
Title: Guidance on Part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003
Author: Criminal Justice System
Number Of Pages: 75
Date Published: August 2006
Availability: Download Full Report PDF 673kb
The Sexual Offences Act 2003 is repealing all of this legislation and re-introducing most of the provisions with some improvements. Some of the key changes are:
- A conditional discharge will now be considered a conviction for the purposes of the notification requirements
- The notification period for a caution will be reduced from 5 years to 2 years
- Offenders will have to notify a change to their notified details (such as name or address) within 3 days of the change taking place (the current period is 14 days)
- Offenders will have to notify any address in the UK at which they reside for 7 days or more, whether that is 7 days consecutive or 7 days within any 12 month period (the current period is 14 days)
- All offenders will have to re-confirm their notified details annually ("Periodic Notification")
- All notifications will have to be made in person and the police may take fingerprints and photographs at initial notification, whenever an offender notifies any changes to his details and at periodic notification.
- Offenders will have to notify their National Insurance numbers at initial notification. Those currently subject to the notification requirements will have to provide such information when they first notify a change to their details after commencement of the 2003 Act or at their first periodic notification (whichever occurs first)
- It will be possible to notify a change of details in advance of the charge taking place
- Schedule 3, which lists the offences which trigger the notification requirements of part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, includes most of the new sexual offences contained in Part 1 of the 2003 Act (some have disposal or other thresholds that must be met before notification is triggered)
- Where a disposal threshold has to be met before the notification requirements are triggered for a specific offence, then the offender will not have to comply with the notification requirements unless he receives a sentence which meets that threshold
- The secretary of state will have a power to amend the thresholds and offences in Schedule 3.
The annexes of the document contain various forms regarding to sexual offences such as Sexual offenders registration form.
Getting a copy
Download Full Report PDF 673kb
Last update: Monday, October 09, 2006