The new Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS came into force on the 12th October 2009 and will be delivered under the Safeguarding and Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. It 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. Existing arrangements will be replaced by stricter controls that will determine who can’t work with children and vulnerable adults in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A separate but similar scheme will be implemented in Scotland in 2010.
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 are:
- 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 Criminal Record Bureau 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.
- 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.
For more information and guidance visit: www.isa-gov.org.uk/Default.aspx?page=402 or if you would like free advice on Criminal Record Bureau or Disclosure Scotland checks contact us at info@agenda-security.co.uk.
