The New Vetting and Barring Scheme

The new Vetting and Barring Scheme, involving the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA),  came into force in October 2009.  Details of scheme and its implications can be found below.

The Vetting and Barring Scheme

The new Vetting and Barring Scheme, involving the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA), will have a major impact on the recruitment and monitoring practices of people working or volunteering with children and young people as well as vulnerable adults.

Created under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, the new Vetting and Barring Scheme will replace the current List 99, PoCA, PoVA and Disqualification Orders regimes. The ISA will decide who is unsuitable to work or volunteer with vulnerable groups. It will base its decisions on pulling together information held by various agencies, government departments and the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB).

Once the scheme is fully rolled out, it will be illegal to hire someone in regulated activity who is not registered, and has therefore not been checked by, the ISA. The new scheme will cover employees and volunteers in the education, care and health industries, affecting some 11.3 million people.

To register for updates on the new scheme or obtain further guidance and information on who will be affected, go to the ISA website.

Why were the ISA set up?

Following the murders of Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells by Ian Huntley (a school caretaker) in 2002, the Bichard Inquiry was commissioned. One of the issues this Inquiry looked at was the way employers recruit people to work with children, young people and vulnerable adults.

It asked whether the way employers check the background of job applicants is reliable enough. It also asked whether employers should be responsible for deciding whether a job applicant can be safely employed.

The Inquiry’s recommendations led to the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, which recognised the need for a single agency to vet all individuals who want to work or volunteer with vulnerable people.

The ISA was created to fulfil this role across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The Role of ISA

ISA’s role is to help prevent unsuitable people from working with children and vulnerable adults.

They will assess every person who wants to work or volunteer with vulnerable people. Potential employees and volunteers will need to apply to register with the ISA.

Applicants will be assessed using data gathered by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), including relevant criminal convictions, cautions, police intelligence and other appropriate sources.

Using this information a decision will be made on a case-by-case basis whether each person is suitable to work with children, young people or vulnerable adults.

Information about people’s ISA status will be stored securely for employers and voluntary organisations to use when they are recruiting.

Only applicants who are judged not to pose a risk to vulnerable people can be ISA-registered. Once the scheme has been fully rolled out, employers who work with vulnerable people will only be allowed to recruit people who are ISA-registered.

Employers and volunteer organisations

Employers and volunteer organisations who deal with children and vulnerable adults always need to check a person’s ISA status before employing them. Employers cannot take applicant’s word for it and they will not be allowed to commence in post – even supervised – before the outcome of the check is known.

The basics

From October 2009, when organisations recruit someone new to work with children or vulnerable adults they will need to check their ISA status. This will determine whether or not organisations can employ them or take them on as a volunteer, and may affect what activities they can undertake.

The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 defines the scope of the Vetting and Barring Scheme. Work with vulnerable groups is divided into two categories: controlled and regulated activities.

What is regulated activity?

Regulated activity is any activity which involves contact with children or vulnerable adults. This could be paid or voluntary work. Only an ISA-registered person can undertake regulated activity. An unregistered person means that a person has either not applied to register with ISA or that they are on an ISA Barred List

Employers’ duties and responsibilities

• It will be a criminal offence for an employer to allow a barred person, or a person who is not yet registered with the ISA, to work for any length of time in any regulated activity and can result in imprisonment or a fine of up to £5000.
• It will be a criminal offence for an employer to take on a person in a regulated activity if they fail to check that person’s status.

What is controlled activity?

Controlled activities include:

• Frequent or intensive support work in general health settings, the NHS and further education settings.
• People working for specified organisations with frequent access to sensitive records about children and vulnerable adults.
• Support work in adult social care settings.

Employers’ duties and responsibilities

It will be an offence for an employer to take on an individual in a controlled activity if they fail to check that person’s status.

An employer can permit a barred person to work in a controlled activity as long as safeguards are put in place

For certain organisations and posts employers will also need to carry out a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check on applicants e.g. leadership posts in organisations that work with children/young people or vulnerable adults.

Existing employees/volunteers

Organisations will also need to ensure that existing employees are ISA-registered on a phased basis.

The principles that will be used are that firstly those existing employees/volunteers who have not been previously checked by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) should be asked to apply for ISA registration. Next will be those who have been CRB checked, beginning with staff whose CRB checks are the oldest. Detailed guidance on the timing of this process will be available on the ISA website in due course.

Registering with ISA

It is the individual applicant’s responsibility to apply to register with the ISA. If they have not applied for registration, organisations can’t employ them. It is an employer’s responsibility to check a potential employee or volunteer’s status. If an applicant is not ISA-registered they have either not applied or are on an ISA Barred List.

Employers will not be charged for checking someone’s ISA status.

Once organisations have registered an interest in an individual as their employer, they will automatically be contacted should their status change – that is, if new information leads to an ISA decision to bar them.

Responsibilities for referring information to ISA

In order to continuously monitor ISA-registered individuals, any new information from employers is needed.

Employers, professional and regulatory bodies, and child/adult protection teams in local authorities will be under a duty to refer relevant information to the ISA.

All other employers of those working with children or vulnerable adults may provide information to ISA.