to ask how I can find out if the man down the road is a pedophile?

[Robyrollover]

Potentially this is just gossip, but I have been told that there is a man in my road that is on the sex offenders register for looking at indecent images of children.

I have 3 young DC.

Is there a way to find out?

Why do you need to find out?
Were you planning to let him babysit?

Wouldn’t you want to know?

Once you find out then what?

No idea to be honest. What does google say? Failing that ring your local police number and ask their advice.

In reality though what difference would it actually make? Assuming you take standard safeguarding precautions and encourage your kids to be safe would they really be likely to have access to your kids?

I'd want to know if it was someone who would come into close contact with my kids, or potentially an immediate neighbour given kids and nudity for waterfights but a few doors down? What would you do with the info? What would a yes or no change?

Cross post!

You could be living next to anyone. Where does it stop? What benefit is there in knowing?

If you are in a relationship with him you can ask the police about Claire’s law, but you can’t just find out the criminal history of every random stranger, unless you’re in America.

It would be better to spend your time educating your children about keeping themselves safe against sexual abuse and be vigilant at all times if they are online.

Most abusers have never been caught and therefore are on no registers.

Think about all the pervs that have never been caught. Probably loads of them living near schools/parks. You need to make sure your children are aware of stranger danger (plus those a lot closer to home).

No, I wouldn’t necessarily want to know. There’s nothing you could do with the info. I protect my DC and don’t leave them alone with relative strangers/neighbours several doors down anyway. What is it that you would plan to do differently if you knew?

There's probably registered SO down the road from lots of us. The register is there for a reason; people on the register have to regularly check in with the police and inform them if they are going out of the country or moving house. Usually their internet activity continues to be monitored. I wouldn't let gossip or otherwise bother me and what if he's not?

A neighbour of ours was caught, and jailed for having almost 50,000 images of child abuse on his computer.

Our back gardens back on to a school playground.

Another neighbour went to the police to ask if he could be stopped from moving back when he was released from jail (IIRC he got 18 months).

The answer was no, not unless the school were to complain, which they hadn’t. Incidentally there were 12 known sex offenders living in close proximity to the school.

In any case, our charming neighbour, who despite his crimes, wasn’t deemed to be a danger to children, moved away.

Paedophiles have to live somewhere too.

Why would you want to know? Are you planning to hound him mercilessly and want to just make sure your illegal actions find the right target?

Unless the man has a close relationship with/access to your children, the police won't tell you anything.

If you hire him as a nanny, or move him in, you could ask to your heart's content.

So u find out he has a conviction- what about all the other sex offenders who aren’t convicted?

Knowing won’t make any difference

Are you wanting to know because you fear he is a danger to your children? Or just out of curiosity/ prurience?

Would you be so interested if he'd been convicted of a violent or sexual crime against an adult? Because arguably that type of offender would pose a greater risk.

What would you do with the information?

No. Idle gossip about a man down the road is not sufficient enough reason for the police to divulge information about him to you.

You just treat him, and tell your DC to treat him, as you would any other adult you know little or nothing about. They mustn't accept gifts from him or go into his house or garden, even if he says to them that you wouldn't mind.

Well you could google him. There might be old news articles from when he was sentenced.

It could just be stupid gossip though. Someone may be out for him.

I'm not sure it is necessary to find out. I can guarantee you that at least a few houses within a few hundred meters radius of you house men who have accessed child abuse images. You just don't know about them all.

The stats are high in the UK for unique users of child abuse images. Shockingly high. I think I worked it out once as 1 in 34 men between 16-85 in the U.K. Or close to that.

If you find out then what? Report back to the gossips that it’s true?

I read once that statistically there’s a nonce living in every street in the Uk. You’ve probably socialised with one at some point in your life. Concentrate on teaching your kids the tools they need instead.

If you’re concerned that ‘the man down the street’ might have access to your children or others by virtue of being a Scout leader (just an example) then this is covered by Sarah’s Law. You can formerly ask the police to disclose the information if you have concerns about a specific individual. I don’t think it would apply if you just wanted to know about random people living in your street though.

If it was a no - I could carry on chatting to him and being friendly - if it was a yes then I’d know to avoid.

As it stands, I don’t know what to do!

“Why would you want to know? Are you planning to hound him mercilessly and want to just make sure your illegal actions find the right target? “

wow to that response!

The chances are you're probably already chatty/friendly with a pedophile, but you just don't know it.

I suppose you could find out his name and Google it.

Other than that I don't see the point really.