The Electronic Monitoring Service (EMS), part of Capita’s Government Services division, is supporting the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to deliver the first national rollout of sobriety tags across England, as part of the Alcohol Abstinence and Monitoring Requirement (AAMR).
The ankle tags will be fitted by EMS field officers to people who have received a court-mandated alcohol abstinence order. These orders can be given to individuals who commit alcohol-related crime and are designed to help address their past behaviour and support their rehabilitation.
When a person, who has been tagged, requires advice and support, they can contact trained EMS staff on a free phone number. The sobriety tag is one part of the alcohol abstinence order, and individuals who are given one will be provided with further professional support to aid their rehabilitation.
The tags, supplied by AMS, come equipped with sensors that provide around-the-clock monitoring of an individual’s sweat which can tell whenever alcohol has been consumed. Crucially, the tags understand the difference between an alcoholic drink and other substances or liquids which contain alcohol, such as hand sanitiser.
EMS is integral to the functioning of the alcohol monitoring service and the team further supports the probation service by solving any equipment related issues that arise.
The rollout in England follows the successful launch of the programme in Wales in October 2020, which was also supported by EMS. The Wales programme has to date seen more than 100 people with alcohol abstinence orders issued with sobriety tags.
Alistair Murray, Capita’s managing director for Justice, Central Government and Transport, said: “We are proud to be supporting the Ministry of Justice to deliver the first national rollout of sobriety tags in England. This innovative technology will help enable the rehabilitation of individuals who commit alcohol-related crimes in the country and help make our society safer.”
