Only one in eight sex offenders being released from Irish prisons have taken part in the state’s main treatment programme, according to new figures released to RTÉ.
Between 2017 and the beginning of last year, there were 443 sexual offenders released from prison, of which only 55 took part in the “Building Better Lives Programme”.
The programme is voluntary therapy designed to help offenders understand the aspects of their behaviour and thinking patterns that lead to their crimes, which in turn will hopefully help them from doing them again.
In recent years, there has been a noticeable decrease in the amount of people taking part in the programme. Currently it’s at 12.4pc per year, but when compared to 2014, it was up at 21pc.