The latest figures, for the year 2009/10, show 86 offenders were part of the Prolific and Priority Offending (PPO) scheme in Brighton & Hove. In the 12 months they were included in the scheme they committed 169 crimes, compared to 322 the previous year – a reduction of 48.5%

The PPO scheme is part of the city’s Integrated Offender Management project, a partnership between Surrey & Sussex Probation Trust, Sussex Police, the local authority, youth offending and other agencies that work with offenders.

It targets repeat offenders who commit a disproportionate amount of crime. It is estimated that approximately 10% of offenders are responsible for half of all crimes, and that a very small proportion of offenders (0.5%) are responsible for 10% of all offences.

Under PPO offenders are subject to intensive supervision when released from prison and in the community. Typically this will involve reporting to a number of agencies up to four times a week to address the reasons behind why they offend. That could include probation, police and substance misuse providers.

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