Special Update on CRB and Vetting and Barring

BACKGROUND
In June 2010 the Government announced that the planned implementation of the VBS was to be halted, pending a thorough review.

In its “Programme for Government”, the Coalition committed to reviewing the Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS) to scale it back to “common sense levels”.

The VBS had been created to help safeguard children and vulnerable adults, following the Bichard Inquiry and was designed to check the records of those who wanted to work with vulnerable groups.

People who wished to work or volunteer with children or vulnerable adults would have had to undergo a process before starting work whereby they would have information held on them assessed. If they were assessed to pose a risk of harm to vulnerable groups then they would be barred from working or volunteering with these groups.

In parallel with the review of the VBS, a separate but aligned review of the broader criminal records regime was undertaken. Led by Mrs Sunita Mason, the Government’s Independent Advisor on Criminality Information Management, the first phase of that review has focused on issues concerned with the extent and demands of pre-employment vetting systems and the role of the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), in particular, what information it should be disclosing and to whom.

Announcement February 2011
On Friday 11th February the Government published the Protection of Freedoms Bill and the two reviews (one on the VBS and one on the CRB).
In summary the reviews recommended:

• the merging of the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) to form a streamlined new body providing a proportionate barring and criminal records checking service;
• a large reduction of the number of positions requiring checks to just those working most closely and regularly with children and vulnerable adults (The Government estimate that around 4.8m individuals will fall within the scope of the revised scheme, which is about half of those who would have previously been affected).
• portability of criminal records checks between jobs to cut down on needless bureaucracy;
• an end to a requirement for those working or volunteering with vulnerable groups to register with the VBS and then be continuously monitored and
• stopping employers who knowingly request criminal records checks on individuals who are not entitled to them.
• new penalties for individuals who knowingly request criminal records checks on individuals who are not entitled to them.

The key changes to the Vetting and Barring Scheme as proposed are:

• to maintain a barring function;
• to abolish registration and monitoring requirements;
• to redefine the requirements of ‘regulated activities’;
• to abolish ‘controlled activities’

It is proposed to amend the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, which provides the framework for the VBS, and redefine the scope of the scheme (i.e. reduce the range of posts that fall within ‘regulated activity’ and scrap ‘controlled activity’ altogether) so that only essential posts (from a public protection perspective) will fall within its requirements.

It is expected that the primary legislation to bring about these changes will be in place by early 2012 and changes to the current system will take place thereafter. In the meanwhile the current system will continue. Whilst the Scheme is being remodelled existing duties to make referrals to the ISA remain in force.

The definition of ‘regulated activity’ will be narrowed under these amendments, meaning the range of posts subject to barring decisions will be reduced.

The concept of ‘controlled activity’, where an individual had some contact with children and vulnerable adults, but not as intense, frequent or regular as that deemed a regulated activity, will be scrapped under these amendments.

The proposed amendments following the Criminal Records review are to:

• Introduce provisions to allow an applicant to consent to a system of continuous updating of conviction, police intelligence and barred list information, creating a system of portability whereby an employer could, with the individual’s consent, establish if new information had been recorded since the certificate was issued.
• Remove the provision that requires a copy of a certificate to be sent to an employer so that the certificate is issued to the applicant only, allowing an applicant to dispute and make appropriate representations regarding the information released on the certificate without this information already having been seen by the employer.
• Introduce a provision to allow a dispute over the disclosability of information contained within a certificate to be handled by an independent reviewer.
• Change the relevancy test the police apply to intelligence and other information which they hold from a “might be relevant” test to a “reasonably believes to be relevant” test.
• Introduce a power for the Secretary of State to issue guidance to which the police must have regard in making decisions about the relevancy of information.
• Enable decisions about the relevancy of information to be taken centrally or by a smaller number of “lead forces”, rather than by each individual force as at present.
• Introduce new provisions to limit the age of applicants for certificates to those aged 16 or over.
• Introduce a new standard requiring police to make decisions on the disclosure of non-conviction information within 60 days.

Concern in relation to the VBS review
At CCPAS we have some concerns about the proposed new scheme. In particular the proposal that someone who could be barred from working in regulated activity with children could still gain employment in a paid or voluntary capacity as a helper in Sunday school.

The review gives the following example and explanation:

“It is right that unsuitable individuals should not be working in posts which may involve regular or close contact with children or vulnerable adults - such as a nurse or teacher or someone else employed to work in a school.” The report goes on to say:

“Under these proposals a bar would only apply to people in regulated activity specifically covered by the new system. For example, if somebody was barred from working as a school teacher – a role which provides regular or close contact with children – they would continue to be barred under these proposals.

However, and unlike the VBS, for those individuals who do not work in regulated activity but nevertheless work, paid or unpaid, with vulnerable people the bar would not apply – for example a ……, Sunday School helper, ……”

“We are aware that removing barring arrangements from some activities could give rise to an increase in safeguarding risks. …… It will be up to employers to weigh up the risks involved.”
(Pages 17 - 18 Vetting & Barring Scheme Remodelling Review – Report and Recommendations February 2011)

We are concerned that unsuitable individuals could under these proposals gain access to children building up a relationship of trust through working in positions which fall outside the definition of regulated activity such as in the role of Sunday school helper.

To summarise: The current CRB regime will continue, along with the present arrangements in relation to the ISA. It is unlikely that changes will take place to this until 2012.

Read the report
Read the Vetting and barring scheme remodelling review - report and recommendations

Read the terms of reference of the review.

You can also read Sunita Mason's report: A common sense approach - a review of the criminal records regime in England and Wales