COMMENT: Complacency that is truly breathtaking (From Oxford Mail)

COMMENT: Complacency that is truly breathtaking

9:00am Saturday 11th February 2012 in Editorial Comment

THE stories on page two and page five today about the respective failings of the police and mental health services once again raise questions about complacency within our public services.

Thames Valley Police spectacularly failed to discover a man with a court order banning him from contact with children was going to family church services over a period of two years, and do not seem willing to admit there is a problem.

Oxford Health NHS Trust, to its credit, admits its crisis team set-up was flawed, but it has taken the death of Graham Kirtland to realise this.

The worrying thing is that prior to either case, both of these organisations would have patronisingly dismissed any enquiries about the competency of their services. Yet both have been found wanting.

It is madness to us that only the police are involved in monitoring people under sexual offences prevention orders.

The probation service should be involved – but that is the system so the force has to get on with it.

How can it be right for our police force to rely on “managing” these offenders by meeting up and asking them what they are up to, rather than proactively checking up on them?

Paedophiles are hardly going to be the most forthcoming or reliable people when it comes to telling the police what they are up to.

You have to ask whether promises by the police and probation service that they are “robust” (their favourite buzzword) in ensuring sex offenders have little opportunity to molest more victims are just hollow words.

The police say they have a good record. What this case reveals, though, is hardly reassuring.