SEX offenders released from prison are queuing up for more volunteers to step forward and aid their reintegration with society in Swindon.

Circles South West, an organisation which provides a group, or circle, of four or five support workers to monitor the offender’s reintegration, is appealing for more people to come forward.

The project was backed last year by the Police & Crime Commiss-ioner for Wiltshire and Swindon (PCC), Angus Macpherson, with a £78,739 commission for training of more volunteers.

And now, with at least four offenders, known as core members by Circles, on a waiting list, a call has been put out for more volunteers to step forward.

Circles is working towards a target of setting up seven circles, which is between 25 and 35 volunteers, before next March in order to meet the PCC’s next target for the next funding instalment.

“There’s not a specific difficulty with recruitment, it’s an ongoing process throughout the whole of the South West,” said Sara Radford, co-ordinator in Avon and Wiltshire.

“We want community-minded adults, rational people from all walks of life. They need to be fairly non-judgemental and emotionally stable.

“They have to have a maturity and life experience. They really have to be committed to protecting their local communities.

“Our tagline is: no more victims. The volunteers are going to be mentoring somebody who has been convicted of a serious offence, so their role is important, not just in reintegration for the offender, but also in flagging up any concerns for reoffending.”

Volunteers are expected to make themselves available for a couple of hours per week for up to 12 months, after being trained and assessed by Circles for their suitability.

The risk of sex offenders being shunned by their immediate communities and isolating themselves as a result, is what prompted the creation of Circles.

“That’s where this model is so effective,” said Sara.

“Isolation drives people underground if they don’t feel part of the community or accepted.

“They will keep themselves to themselves and that sometimes means their behaviour might cause concerns for our volunteers to raise with the police.”

Angus Macpherson said: “We will continue to look at what Circles has achieved. They are doing something which wasn’t being done in Wiltshire before, which is why I supported them through the Innovation Fund.

“I read a report of theirs in September and they are already having some success. None of those initial offenders they have supported have reoffended.”

If Circles fails to meet its target of seven extra groups by next March, the instalment of funding will be held.

“The fund is not there to support failure,” said Angus. “Equally, it is there to encourage success.

“If it continues to work into the future then we will look at what we can do to continue with support.”