Legal Commentary: Children on the sex offenders register: Proportionality, prospect of change and Article 8 rights

When a child is convicted of a sexual offence should the sex offender notifi cation requirements take account of the offender’s young age or should the consequences mirror those that apply in the case of an adult? Should safeguarding provisions – designed to achieve comprehensive public protection – be responsive to considerations based on individual circumstances and the prospect of change through rehabilitation or maturation? Is it valid for consequences to be taken into consideration at time of sentence? This Commentary reports a sequence of recent judgments that have grappled with such questions.