The system for monitoring the 333 registered sex offenders (RSO) in Tayside has been a success, according to a new report.
An annual report into the multi-agency public protection arrangements (Mappa) made for high-risk offenders has praised the initiative.
Between April 1 2013 and March 31 2014 there were 333 RSOs living in Tayside.
Of these four committed further offences in the year and seven were reported for breaches of requirement to notify Mappa.
Tayside has only one female sex offender, and only one offender who is labelled as level three by Mappa.
Jane Martin, chief of Tayside Mappa strategic oversight group, said: “Level three is used for the management of the ‘critical few’ who require a management plan that needs close cooperation of senior management due to the level of risk, complexities or because unusual resource commitments are required.”
The report continues: “Mappa continues to work well in Tayside, and our statistics show that 326 (98%) of the offenders complied with their registration requirements.”
It added that 120 of the offenders in this reporting year were subject to statutory supervision with criminal justice social work and only five were returned to prison for breaching their supervision requirements.
Mappa is the process by which the police, local authorities, Scottish Prison Service and NHS coordinate their efforts to tackle the risks posed by sex offenders and restricted patients living in the community.
A social worker quoted in the report said: “What has been significant is the multi-agency working between all concerned, ranging from joint risk assessments and appointments to sharing information and providing support to colleagues.
“In this instance I feel the Mappa process was an extremely helpful forum to share and analyse information in order to formulate an appropriate and defensible risk management plan.”
The report claims the introduction of Police Scotland in April has resulted in an increase in the number of officers managing offenders across Tayside.
Mappa also deals with restricted patients, people who have usually committed an offence punishable by imprisonment but ordered to be detained at hospital.
There were 14 restricted patients in Tayside as of March 31.