Known sex offenders are living unchecked in the community because there are too many of them to be monitored regularly, according to research commissioned by the Home Office.

The rapidly growing number of people registered as violent criminals or sex attackers is threatening to overwhelm the police, probation officers and social workers who have to keep them under supervision.

The new study identified three key areas of concern:

— A “severe shortage” of approved accommodation for offenders;

— “Insufficient” treatment programmes and lengthy waiting times for them where they do exist;

— A lack of public funds to deal with the increasing caseload of offenders.

Figures published this year under the Freedom of Information Act disclosed that police forces had lost track of 322 registered sex offenders.

The mismatch between the number of offenders and the level of resources available to keep track of them was disclosed as ministers discussed plans to expand the monitoring of sex offenders still further. ITV News reported that it had obtained a leaked Home Office paper outlining plans to clamp down on websites that failed to protect children online.

The number of people on the sex offenders register in 2005-06 was 29,973, a 4 per cent increase on the figure for the previous year. In the same year there were 14,317 violent offenders who were supposed to be subject to regular supervision, a rise of 13 per cent on the 12 months before. Another 3,363 offenders were deemed to require supervision after sentencing or after release from prison.

The number of offenders required to register is certain to increase, with ministers widening the scope of the sex offenders register to include more sexually motivated crimes.

In December several offences were added to the watchlist - including outraging public decency, theft, burglary with intent, child abduction and harassment where it could be proved that the crime was sexually motivated.

The job of keeping offenders’ behav-iour under observation and preventing reoffending falls to Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (Mappa). But the study into the work of Mappa in three areas of Britain found that those in frontline supervision roles felt that they were being overstretched.

Written by Jason Wood and Hazel Kemshall, from De Montfort University, Leicester, the report praised much of the work of Mappa but highlighted the fears of practitioners. It says: “A key concern was how to respond to the inevitable growth in the number of offenders subject to registration, and there were grave concerns that resources were not increasing as the registration list does.”

The direct consequence was that supervision visits to offenders deemed to be medium or low risk would occur once a year, rather than the recommended three to six-month interval.

The authors say that staff perceived the problems with supervised housing, increased caseloads and too few treatment programmes as “a hindrance to effective supervision”.

The report’s authors also highlighted strong opposition among caseworkers to any “Megan’s law” - publicly identifying sex offenders in the community. One worker described the idea as “an absolute nightmare” for those in supervisory roles.

The report says: “Participants expressed concern about increases in workload which they felt would be an inevitable consequence of any public disclosure requirements. Of particular concern was the potential impact on police resources and the diversion that issues such as offender ‘outing’ and subsequent rapid relocation of offenders to places of safety, and other related public disorder might mean for the supervision of cases.”

The Government has ruled out plans for public disclosure after studying research from the United States which suggested that it had driven 25 per cent of offenders underground. Police will target 130 known paedophiles as part of a renewed drive to protect young children. Scotland Yard said that officers from the child abuse protection unit would increase monitoring of child sex offenders in London and do more spot checks on their homes. Computers and data storage devices may also be inspected.

The plan, which is contained in a draft strategy, highlights the need to protect young people.

Times Recommends

• Shrinking violet Gordon turns into raging bull
• Eddie Izzard: 'I keep thinking if I do all these things she'll come back'
• Is sex for the disabled the last taboo?