Below is the latest guidance from Government on vetting people who work with children:

New Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS)

Children and vulnerable adults are to be better protected from today with the start of the new Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS).

The new scheme will be delivered by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). Its tighter regulations are at the heart of the Government’s strategy for increasing the protection of vulnerable members of our society.

The new VBS was created following the Bichard Inquiry into the Soham murders, which recommended a number of key improvements to the system that bars unsuitable individuals from working with children or vulnerable adults. Stricter controls will begin to replace existing arrangements that determine who can’t work with children and vulnerable adults in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

New entrants and volunteers working with vulnerable groups will need to start to apply to become ISA registered from July 2010.

The following increased safeguards will be introduced from today, further enhancing protection of children and vulnerable adults:

– the existing criminal offence for barred individuals who apply to work with children or vulnerable adults will be extended to a wider range of posts. Employers also face criminal sanctions for knowingly employing a barred individual across a wider range of work;

– the three current barring lists (POVA, POCA and List 99) will be replaced by the creation of two new barred lists administered by the ISA rather than several Government departments. From now on checks of these two lists can be made as part of an Enhanced CRB check;

– additional jobs and voluntary positions will be covered by the barring arrangements, including moderators of children’s internet chat rooms and a large number of NHS and prison service staff; and

– employers, social services and professional regulators have a duty to refer to the ISA any information such as why they stopped or considered stopping an individual from working with vulnerable groups where they consider them to have caused harm or posed a risk.

NOTES
1. The UK already has one of the most advanced systems in the world for carrying out checks on all those who work in positions of trust with children and vulnerable adults.

2. The new VBS will be delivered under the Safeguarding and Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, which was passed by Parliament following the Bichard Inquiry.

3. In January this year, the ISA took over responsibility for the decisions on new cases referred under existing regulations (List 99, POCA and POVA) from Government Ministers.

4.  Further milestones in the new Scheme follow later.  In particular:
– July 2010 – new entrants and employees looking to work or volunteer with vulnerable groups can start to apply to become ISA registered;
– November 2010 – new entrants must become ISA registered before starting work with vulnerable groups; and
– April 2011 – existing workers must start to become ISA-register.
5. The Vetting and Barring Scheme covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A separate but aligned scheme will be implemented in Scotland in 2010.

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