A WORCESTERSHIRE council is reviewing its strategy on dealing with sex offenders after problems re-housing a pervert.

Malvern Hills District Council has admitted that a convicted sex offender is living in the area and housing officers have experienced difficulties finding somewhere suitable.

"We have one case which we've been experiencing difficulty with," said Colin Davis, the council's corporate director.

"We no longer have any housing stock so we have to be particularly careful finding somewhere suitable.

Mr Davis refused to go into further detail about the offender, including their gender, but said the person - who has connections with the Malvern area - was being housed in the private sector.

He said MHDC was now working on a "protocol" with the police, the probation service and housing associations, to formulate a strategy ensuring cases are monitored as closely as possible to reduce the risk posed to the public.

"The matter is confidential, but we're doing all we can to monitor the situation as closely as possible, as we would in all cases of this nature," said Mr Davis.

Malvern Hills was a safe place for people to live, but the actions were borne out of common sense.

"It's better to know where these people are so they can be monitored," added Mr Davis.

The case follows a huge public outcry following the abduction and death of Sarah Payne, the eight-year-old Sussex girl.

The News of the World published pictures of convicted sex offenders, leading to innocent people being hounded out of their homes, and the inhabitants of a Portsmouth housing estate to take to the streets.

Eventually, the newspaper stopped its campaign following anger from the police that paedophiles were being driven underground by its actions.