Chelmsford Crown Court has heard how multiple-offender Rory Griffin raped a lone woman in Northlands Park, Pitsea.

At the time this sickening crime was committed, Griffin was based at the nearby Felmores bail hostel. He is the third Felmores inmate in recent months to commit or attempt to commit a serious crime locally.

MP John Baron has been fighting to move the hostel from Pitsea to another, less populated, place.

We wish Mr Baron luck - he will need it.

The fact is nobody, rural or urban, wants a Felmores in their midst.

In any case, the exact location of a bail hostel is of secondary significance. Felmores appears to have been run in a cavalier fashion.

The trial showed up a lack of adequate records and a failure to check bail conditions were being monitored. Such a situation clearly fuelled the confidence of Griffin and others that they could get away with their crimes.The first thing that needs to be addressed at Felmores is not its location, but its internal discipline.