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<p>For the most persistent and problematic offenders in the community, Integrated
Offender Management has received a 3-year investment of up to £30 million to ensure
those that commit burglary, robbery and theft offences receive robust cross-agency
supervision by Police and Probation, and to commission services that will seek to
support and address risks and needs of this cohort. We are also piloting three Intensive
Supervision Courts which aim to target the root cause of offending behaviour through
supervision and interventions delivered by a multi-agency team, overseen by a single
judge who will regularly review each participant’s progress.</p><p>The courts have
a wide range of options to deal with this group of offenders and relevant previous
convictions are a statutory aggravating factor which the courts must consider at the
point of sentencing. While custody will often be appropriate for these offenders,
and in fact is the most common sentence given to prolific offenders, it is right that
our courts have the ability to pass an appropriate sentence based on the case in front
of them. Robust research has shown lower reoffending rates for sentences served in
the community when compared to short custodial sentences.</p><p>Through the Better
Outcomes through Linked Data (BOLD) programme, we are also taking steps to understand
better which factors are most important in leading to reduced reoffending for prolific
offenders, in order to help us target our approach for this cohort.</p><p> </p>
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