Parents, Carers and Families
Surveillance
A form of surveillance, such as tagging, can be part of some sentences. If so,
surveillance equipment may need to be installed in the young person’s home with the agreement of a responsible householder, who will often be their parent or carer. The necessary equipment is usually connected to a phone line and checks whether a young person is at home during set times.
If a young person on licence is unable to comply with a court requirement to wear a tag because the householder refuses to allow surveillance equipment to be installed, the accommodation is unlikely to be considered ‘suitable’ under homelessness laws and so the young person will have to live elsewhere.
However, if the young person is on the Intensive Supervision and Surveillance Programme (ISSP) and there is a problem installing the equipment at home, alternative methods of surveillance will be sought. For example, if there is no phone line, one can be installed for the use of surveillance equipment only.
If your child is required to be placed under some form of surveillance, your local youth offending team (YOT) will be able to explain more about what this will mean and the benefits of agreeing to the installation of equipment at home.