Registered Sex Offenders’ experiences of home visits in England & Wales: Are the police expected to integrate “risk” with “desistance”?

Purpose
In England and Wales, adult male registered sex offenders (RSOs) are risk assessed and
managed using a tool known as the Active Risk Management System (ARMS); a risk
assessment designed specifically for police management of RSOs and carried out by a
specialist group of police officers known as Management of Violent or Sexual Offenders
(MOSOVO) at the RSO’s home, known as ‘the home visit’. The purpose of this paper is to
explore RSOs views of the home visit and risk assessment and to make recommendations to
MOSOVO as to improve future home visit and risk assessment practice.
Methodology
This study aimed to examine a sample of adult male RSOs’ views of the risk assessment and
home visit process. Three police forces in England and Wales agreed to facilitate sampling
of 10 RSOs who varied in their level of risk - namely, low, medium, high and very high.
Findings
Three themes were developed from the analysis: Anxiety and shame; Perceptions of the
first home visit; and The property search and observations. We discuss these experiences in
light of the growing call for MOSOVOs to both manage risk and assist desistance and present
recommendations for improving both the home visit and risk assessment practice.
Originality
To the authors knowledge, this is the first study to understand and explore RSOs views of
the home visit and risk assessment process.