Bail hostels to be opened without public consent
By Blaine Williams
A government scheme to open 200 bail hostels in residential areas around the country purposely avoids public scrutiny, the media and local councillors, a leaked memo has suggested.
The scheme, which sets up temporary accommodation for criminal suspects who would have been reprimanded in custody, is being run by the private company ClearSprings.
An unpublished local authority protocol drawn up by ClearSprings shows their hostels can be opened with no public consultation, no consent from councils or the Probation Service.
Residents and neighbours of the area will only be notified after the accommodation has got the green light, leaving no time for appeal.
Edward Garnier, shadow justice minister, condemned the decision not to allow residents a voice.
“Placing offenders in residential properties causes immense aggravation when neighbours suddenly discover what’s going on, only to be told that they are powerless to stop it and the local community didn’t even need to be consulted,” he said.
Hazel Harding, chairman of the Local Government Association’s Safer Communities Board, said: “It is outrageous that some councils are being bypassed and not consulted over the location of new bail hostels in the local area by a private company. This is a direct breach of the government contract with ClearSprings.”
Mr Garnier also believes that this is not the most effective way to solve the crisis of overpopulated prisons.
“The government has failed to provide enough prison capacity so they’ve devised a covert plan to set up what amount to mini-open jails in residential areas while avoiding any consultation with the public,” he said.
“In place of these clumsy emergency measures we need a proper programme of prison reform to focus on rehabilitation and ensure that public safety and confidence is maintained.”
This decision to allow prisoners into residential areas with minimal supervision is likely to cause aggravation and conflict between tenants and neighbours, critics suggest.
