UK Launches October GPS Restriction Zones for Violent Offenders, Threatening Prison Recall for Breaches
Updated
Updated · bbc.co.uk · Aug 23
UK Launches October GPS Restriction Zones for Violent Offenders, Threatening Prison Recall for Breaches
3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Aug 23
Summary
October will mark the start of UK "restriction zones" that let probation officers confine serious sexual and violent offenders to areas only a few miles wide after release.
GPS monitoring will track tailored boundaries set with victims, and offenders who leave those zones can be quickly identified and recalled to prison.
The scheme goes beyond current exclusion zones around places such as a victim's home or workplace, aiming to reduce chance encounters outside those specific sites.
Alex Norris is also preparing proposals next month to further curb early release, after ministers already excluded people convicted of rape, serious child sex offences and grooming on 4 August.
Supporters called the approach a stronger victim focus, but charities, survivors and critics said enforcement, probation capacity and prison overcrowding still threaten its effectiveness.