The report revealed that, on March 31, there were 298 registered sex offenders in Tayside, including nine considered to be at the highest risk level.

Four people on the register — all considered to be at the middle level of risk — were convicted of a further crime of sexual harm or non-sexual violence.

Seven offenders were returned to custody for a breach of their statutory conditions.

The report also showed that four people breached their statutory conditions but were not returned to jail, while four were sent back to prison for breaching a civil sexual offences prevention order.

Deputy Chief Constable Bill Harkins said, “Managing offenders who pose a high risk of harm is not an exact science and the agencies are learning from each case.

“We value our close relationship with government, which has provided the opportunity to trial new techniques such as the Sex Offender Disclosure Pilot, which we anticipate will help to protect children and empower parents,” he said.

The Tayside pilot allows parents and carers to find out if adults with access to their children have a record of sexual offences. It got under way last month and runs until summer 2010.

It is one of a number of measures outlined in the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) annual report for Tayside, a detailed account of how the authorities are managing sex offenders.

MAPPAs came into force in April 2007, ensuring the police, prison service and local authorities share information about and manage certain offenders in the community.

Mr Harkins said MAPPA had helped cement the relationships between various authorities and agencies.

As of March 31, there were 2967 sex offenders registered across Scotland.

Forty-four were charged with a further sexual or violent offence — a rate of one in 68.

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said, “Sexual offences are not a modern day phenomenon.

“The sad reality is that sex offenders and the threat they pose have existed for all of human history. But what has improved is the way in which they are managed.

“Since devolution, three expert reviews and a cross-party inquiry have led to significant reforms to how these individuals are managed and only last month Tayside Police began a pilot project that will entitle parents to know if a sex offender has access to their children.

“MAPPAs have strengthened how police, social work and other agencies work together to assess, monitor and reduce risks posed by convicted sex offenders.”