Abuse victim’s film to look into minds of sex offenders
“No one wants to help these people but they also don’t want them to re-offend”
THE subject of what makes sex offenders tick is one that few of us are comfortable to address.
And for good reason - due to the sensitive and emotive nature of what it entails, it seems impossible that it could ever be discussed in a balanced way.
But for Becky Southworth, 26, from Stockport, it is a subject that she was compelled to explore in BBC Three film Can Sex Offenders Change?
The reason why is when she was aged just 13-yearsold, a man was arrested for abusing her and other children and jailed for ten years.
While serving his time the offender completed a sex offenders’ treatment programme. But that treatment was scrapped in 2017 - after it was found that it could lead to re-offending.
Two years ago, the man who abused Becky was released from prison - that phone call to tell her the news was a big shock.
But his release into the community triggered a surprising and courageous response in the filmmaker - to explore herself whether sex offenders can ever really change their behaviours.
“No one wants to help these people but they also don’t want them to reoffend,” Becky said.
“People say, lock them up and throw away the key. But that’s not possible - there are 80,000 people in prison and 160,000 people on the sex offenders’ register. People are quick to say there must be a Plan B, but no one wants the responsibility of taking it on.
“We don’t know much about these offenders. It’s a really taboo subject. That was the most frightening thing about this project.
“It pushes that boundary of what is comfortable.”
In her 55-minute film, Becky speaks to sex offenders face-to-face, asking why they did what they did, discussing what treatment they have had, and whether they are still a risk.
She explains in the film she wants to believe that the treatment programme offenders must complete as part of their sentence is actually working.
“I wouldn’t want to speak to (the man who abused me) now,” she says.
“But I can speak to other sex offenders and meet with organisations running these programmes to see what is being done, and what more can be done.”
In the show Becky speaks to Andrew*, who is on the Sex Offender Register for 10 years for downloading indecent images of children.
Andrew says during an interview that he had ‘trauma’ as a child - but Becky struggles to accept this as a form of excuse due to her own experience.
“This idea of the abused becomes the abuser,” she says in the film. “I just can’t comprehend that.”
She is also concerned Andrew speaks about his attraction to children as a ‘sexuality’.
“For me, sexuality isn’t something that you can change - even with therapy,” she adds.
Becky speaks to Andrew’s therapist, who says that there is evidence those who face trauma can end up ‘reenacting’ the abuse they have experienced.
He adds that he believes the work he is doing with offenders like Andrew is helping to stop them from committing more crimes, and claims that none of his clients have re-offended.
Another offender that Becky meets is 22-year-old Kyle*.
He was 19 when he was arrested for possession of indecent images of children and is on the sex offenders’ register for five years.
He was 13 when he started looking at images of children being sexually abused.
Kyle tells Becky that at the time he ‘didn’t understand’ what he was doing but says that rehab has helped him realise isolation made him ‘depressed’ and that he used the images to make himself feel ‘ good at the time’.
“I knew it was wrong but in the moment, you don’t think rationally,” says Kyle, who adds he regrets his offences.
Becky also spoke to Vicky*, about why she stayed with her partner of eight years Chris*, when she found out about his crimes.
Chris was arrested for downloading and distributing indecent images of children - some of which was viewed as category ‘A’.
“It felt like I had been betrayed,” says Vicky.
“I knew he watched porn...but I didn’t realise it was to the extent where it was deemed an addiction.”
When asked about why she stayed with Chris, Vicky replies: “He is still the person that you loved, but at the same time he’s done this terrible thing.”
“You can call her naive and blame her but you have to respect her even if you don’t agree with her decision to stay with him,” said Becky.
“She definitely lowered his risk of re-offending. I believe that she is the reason that he’s not offended again.”
While Becky experiences a mixture of emotions while speaking to these men - at one point she is seen sitting in a car saying ‘I feel sick. It makes my stomach turn’ - she struggled to believe how some of them did not seem to take responsibility for their actions.
“I could not comprehend why they were not remorseful,” she explained. “It was almost robotic.
“I felt like saying, I’m someone that has been hurt by someone like you, how do you not feel bad?
“They just wanted to tell me that they were good people really. But that’s not why I was there speaking to them. That was quite shocking to me.”
Becky says that following her research she understands how rehabilitation is a big part of integrating sex offenders back into the community, and appreciates the good it does to keep people on the right path.
But looking back at the making of the film, she admitted she sometimes found it uncomfortable that these anonymous offenders did not appear to think twice about the victims.
Speaking of her own experience, and whether the film offered her any answers in relation to the man who abused her, Becky was not so sure.
“I don’t know where he is or what he’s doing so I could not make an informed conclusion about him - but I hope he’s completed all his treatments,” said Becky.
“I think I have got to a point where I feel like I am more than what’s happened to me in the past. I’m better than the person that he is.
“Once I decided that I did not need the remorse or anything from him - that’s really empowering.”
Can Sex Offenders Change? is available on iPlayer now. ●● *Names have been changed.