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Vetting and Barring Scheme safeguards

From 12 October 2009, certain employers may face fines of up to £5,000 if they fail to refer an employee who harms or poses a risk of harm to children or vulnerable adults, under the new Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS).

The VBS is being delivered by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) (Access Northern Ireland in Northern Ireland) 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 Scheme is one of the Government’s key responses to the Bichard Inquiry which followed the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman by Ian Huntley. The events in Soham focused public attention on the way people who work with children are vetted. The resulting inquiry recommended a new scheme that would ensure that everyone working in regulated activity with children or vulnerable adults is checked and registered.

After full consultation, the Bichard Inquiry led to the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 (SVGA) and the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups (Northern Ireland) Order 2007 (SVGO), which provide for the establishment of the Scheme. The Scheme has been developed by the UK Government in conjunction with the Welsh Assembly Government and the Northern Ireland Executive.

The Scheme is not simply a robust reaction to the single tragic event in Soham. Already the ISA receives around 400-500 referrals per month from employers who have concerns that individuals who are or were in their employment could pose a risk to vulnerable groups. The Scheme offers a common sense, proportionate approach to safeguarding and it is what we believe the public would rightly expect.

Changes from 12 October 2009

Stricter controls now replace existing arrangements that determine who is unsuitable to work with children and vulnerable adults in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Increased safeguards based on a new system featuring ‘regulated activity’ come into being to further enhance protection of children and vulnerable adults. It is now a criminal offence for barred individuals to work or apply to work with children or vulnerable adults in a wide range of posts. Employers also face criminal sanctions for knowingly employing a barred individual across a wide range of work.
The additional jobs and voluntary positions that are now covered by the barring arrangements include most NHS jobs, Prison Service, education, childcare and moderators of internet chat rooms wholly or mainly for children.
Barred individuals seeking to undertake work with vulnerable groups may face a prison sentence or a fine. Employers in regulated activity who knowingly employ barred individuals may face a prison sentence or a fine.
The three former barred lists (POVA, POCA and List 99) are being replaced by two new barred lists, one for people prevented from working with children and one for those prevented from working with vulnerable adults, 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.
Employers are now eligible to ask for enhanced disclosures with barred list checks on anyone they are taking on in regulated activity. In Northern Ireland this eligibility also extends to controlled activity. However employers are not required to ask for an enhanced disclosure if they have no reason to believe that an existing employee is barred, unless there is a mandatory requirement to do so (e.g. Ofsted registered childcare).
In certain circumstances, employers, local authorities, education and library boards, health and social care bodies and professional regulators have a legal duty to refer to the ISA, information about individuals who they believe have harmed or may pose a risk of harm to children or vulnerable adults.

The VBS has introduced genuine improvements to the safeguarding process together with duties to refer. People who pose a risk to children or vulnerable adults will now be taken out of the workplace.

Supporting materials are available from the ISA website including: Referral forms and Referral guidance and VBS Guidance which covers the increased safeguards introduced from 12 October 2009.

New employees and those changing jobs in regulated activity do not need to start applying for ISA-registration until July 2010and ISA-registration does not become mandatory for these workers until November 2010. All other staff will be phased into the scheme from 2011. Further information on how to apply for registration will be provided in due course.