Vulnerable groups and safer recruitment considerations for employers
Cases of unsuitable people working with vulnerable groups, including children are coming to light more and more.
For instance, the recent revelations in the world of football concerning historical child abuse allegations have been truly shocking for so many reasons. The fact that more than 20 former footballers have so far come forward in such a short space of time to tell their story by waiving their anonymity, is worrying enough. It is though, the total number of 850 individuals who have contacted the NSPCC helpline in the first week of its operation, that is even more difficult to comprehend.
The actual scale of the problem of historical and perhaps current child abuse in football and in sport will no doubt emerge in the coming months. These harrowing stories serve as a timely reminder that the safeguarding of their customers and service users must always be a high priority for all employers.
You, the employer needs to be protected also. The current layers of legal protection are developed from the provisions of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. There is a range of regulated activities affecting both children and vulnerable adults contained within this legislative framework.
For children, the principal activities covered are ...
- Certain types of close contact activity carried out frequently, on three or more days in a 30-day period, or overnight. e.g. teaching, supervising, advising, or caring for children. This includes the moderation of internet chatrooms likely to be used wholly or mainly by children.
- Any activity carried out frequently or on three or more days in a 30-day period which gives a person the opportunity to have contact with children in pursuance of the job duties there (e.g. a school secretary).
- Childminding services
- Fostering services
- Children and Family Courts Advisory and Support Services (CAFCASS) support officers and their Welsh equivalent.
- OFSTED, Healthcare Commission and generalist health establishment inspectors.
- School governors, Children’s Commissioners, trustees of a children’s charity and operators of the Information Sharing Index.
For adults the principal activities covered are...
- Certain types of activity carried out frequently, on three or more days in a 30-day period, or overnight. This includes teaching, training, advising, and caring for vulnerable adults.
- Any activity carried out frequently, or on three or more days in a 30-day period in a care home which gives a person the opportunity to have contact with vulnerable adults as a result of his/her duties or anything he/she is allowed to do there.
- The day-to-day management or supervision or a regular basis of any person carrying out the activities mentioned above.
- The inspection of establishments (e.g. a care home) by any organisation e.g. the Healthcare Commission).
- The exercise of a function of a position connected with the above (e.g. the director of adult social services or a trustee of vulnerable adults’ charity).
When is a person deemed vulnerable?
A person is deemed vulnerable by the law vulnerable based upon the context of the setting in which they are situated or the service they receive. The range of services etc is as follows:
- Residential accommodation provided in connection with care or nursing
- Domiciliary care services
- Health care
- Lawful custody or the supervision of a probation officer
- Receiving welfare services of a prescribed description or direct payments from a social services authority.
- Services, or the taking part in activities, by people with disabilities or special needs because of their age or state of health
- Services for people who need assistance in the conduct of their affairs
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) helps employers to make safer recruitment decisions. It aims to prevent unsuitable people from working with vulnerable groups, including children. The DBS replaced the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) and is primarily responsible for processing requests from employers for criminal records checks (DBS checks) and for deciding whether an individual should be placed on or removed from a barred list.
There are three separate lists of persons who are barred from working with children or vulnerable adults. These lists operate under different legislation and with different criteria and procedures. They are:
- the Protection of Children Act (POCA) List (maintained under the Protection of Children Act 1999)
- the Protection of Vulnerable Adults (POVA) List (maintained under Part 7 of the Care Standards Act 2000).
- A list of Disqualification Orders made by a court also bars those individuals from working with children.
Quest HR will advise and assist you with any questions concerning the need to carry out DBS checks on any individuals or roles within your organisation; please contact us for an informal chat.
