Six of Bradford's worst sex or violence offenders were returned to jail in the past year for breaching their licence conditions, according to new figures released today.

West Yorkshire Probation Service said sending the worst offenders back to jail had proved one of the most effective methods of protecting the public.

The service reviewed 1,760 offenders in 2003-4. Of those, 87 judged to be the most dangerous were dealt with by a special panel responsible for assessing the risk they posed and monitoring their behaviour.

The panel - West Yorkshire's Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) - issued its annual report yesterday. It shows that 575 prisoners were sent back to jail in West Yorkshire, but not all were dealt with by MAPPA.

Among those that were, 33 from West Yorkshire were returned to custody for breaching their licences and, in one case, for breaching a restraining or sex offender order. Part of a national strategy since 2001, MAPPA was pioneered in West Yorkshire in 1990.

Licences contain conditions about where released inmates should live, their employment, contact with children, curfews, restricted areas and particular treatments for drugs or sex offending.

The MAPPA report shows how police and probation work closely with the prison service and other organisations, such as victim support, housing, health and social services to determine how best to protect the public from the most dangerous offenders. West Yorkshire Probation's assistant chief officer, Randel Barrows, said: "Victims are at the front of our minds when we assess the risks offenders pose.

"Probation staff are in contact with all crime victims where the offender has been in prison for 12 months or more, informing them of the sentence and taking their views and concerns to the public protection team so they can be taken into consideration."

Mr Barrows said this often resulted in extra conditions being added to an offender's licence, for example, where they could live or work.

Detective Superintendent Mick Hopwood, of West Yorkshire Police's child and public protection unit, said there were a range of options to prevent people re-offending, including close monitoring and electronic tags.

He said restrictions could be placed on their movements or whom they contacted.

"Unfortunately we have to accept that there are people like this in all our communities and we can never fully eliminate the dangers they pose, which is why we must monitor them constantly and tackle these risks."

e-mail: tim.wyatt

@bradford.newsquest.co.uk