Transcript Slide 1

Safeguarding & Disclosure and Barring
Workshop
Medway
11th September 2011
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Session objectives
1. To help colleagues understand the changes introduced by
Protection of Freedom Act.
2. To introduce you to Safe Network’s National Core Safeguarding
Standards, online self assessment toolkit and other resources that
have specifically been developed to the support the VCS
www.safenetwork.org.uk
What is Safe Network?
•
A partnership between Children
England and the NSPCC and CAPT
• Funded by the Department for
Education
• Launched June 2009
• Information, advice and guidance for the
voluntary and community sector on:
Child protection
Safer recruitment
Anti-bullying
Reducing avoidable accidents
Website: www.safenetwork.org.uk
Disclosure & Barring Scheme
• To give a broad outline of the first phase of
measures arising from the Protection of
Freedoms Act that may impact on you in
September 2012
• To help you understand how this may affect your
organisation and the organisations you support.
Looking Back
• Coalition Government stated its intention in
May 2010 to scale back regimes to more
proportionate and “common sense” levels
• Government halted the delivery of the
VBS, commissioned an internal review
into the scheme and also an independent
review of the Criminal Records Regime.
Why? Because….
ADD VISUAL
• VBS would have meant 9m people
needed to register, as their work would
fall within the definition of regulated
activity
•
However the Duty to Refer remained.
Disclosure & Barring
Key principles:
Services: The New
Vision
– A proportionate balance between civil
liberties and safeguarding vulnerable
groups including children
– Rebalancing the role of the employer and
the state; reinforcing disclosure and barring
as one part of the wider recruitment and
employment process
ADD VISUAL
– Reducing bureaucracy (e.g., through the
introduction of portable certificates , making it
efficient, quicker and less costly)
– Trusting employers to make rounded
decisions about who they employ, such as
checking references and ongoing
management
Changes from September
2012
– a new definition of regulated activity
– repeal of registration & monitoring; controlled activity; and additional
information
– Introduction of a minimum age (16) at which someone can apply for a
CRB check
– More rigorous relevancy test for locally held and released police
information on an enhanced CRB check , and a new right of review
available for applicants
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Differences between old & new
Regulated Activity – NEW DEFINITION
Regulated Activity – OLD DEFINITION
Regulated Activity- definition for children:
1.) Unsupervised activities: teach, train,
instruct, care for or supervise children, or
provide advise / guidance on well-being, or
drive a vehicle only for children.
Specified nature (e.g. Teaching, training,
care, supervision, advice, treatment and
transportation) that involves contact with
children frequently, intensively and/or
overnight.
2.) Work in a limited range of establishments
(‘specified places’) with opportunity for
contact: schools, children’s homes, childcare
premises. NOT work by supervised
Volunteers.
in a specified place (e.g. schools, care
homes, etc) department, on a frequent or
intensive basis.
Work under points 1 or 2 is REGULATED
ACTIVITY IF DONE REGULARLY AND IS
UNSUPERVISED.
fostering and childcare or a defined position
of responsibility (e.g. school governor, director
of social care, trustees of certain charities).
Making decisions which will have an impact on
lives of groups of vulnerable adults or children
Frequent activity (once a month or more)
or intensive (takes place on 3 or more days
in 30 day period.)
Regular means carried out by the same
person frequently (once a week or more
often), or on 4 or more days in a 30-day
period (or in some cases, overnight 2am6am).
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Rehabilitation
of Offenders
Act
(Exceptions
Order)
Standard
Police Act
1997
Enhanced
New Definition of Regulated Activity
Enhanced
+ Barred
List check
Enhanced
+ Barred
List check
PNC
PNC
Enhanced+
Barred List
check
PNC
PNC
PNC
Police
Information
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Police
Information
Police
Information
+ ISA
(Child)
+ ISA
(Adult)
Police
Information
+ ISA
(Child)
+ ISA
(Adult)
Changes from Sept
(cont)
-Provision of statutory guidance on supervision of children. DfE have just
completed a consultation on this.
-Most people will be barred only if they have engaged, are engaging or
might in the future engage in Regulated Activity (Autobars without
representations will continue to be barred irrespective of whether the
person has a link to RA)
– Greater powers for the ISA to review a person’s inclusion on a barred
list
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What is not changing?
• Continue to make appropriate referrals to the ISA / DBS
• You must not employ in regulated activity someone
whom you know has been barred by the ISA / DBS
• Individuals who previously fell under the definition of
Regulated Activity remain eligible for Enhanced Checks,
and this can be with or without a barred list check
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Scope of Regulated Activity
- Children
Specified nature:
1. Unsupervised activities: teaching, training, instruction,
care for or supervise children, or provide advice /
guidance on well-being, or drive a vehicle only for
children.
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Scope of Regulated Activity –
Children (cont)
• Specified Place
2. Work for a limited range of establishments (‘specified
places’), with opportunity for contact, for example
schools, children's homes, childcare premises (but
not work by supervised volunteers).
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Scope of Regulated Activity –
Children (cont)
• Frequency
Work under (1) or (2) is Regulated Activity only
if done regularly.
Regular means carried out by the same person
frequently (once a week or more often), or on 4 or
more days in a 30-day period (or in some cases,
overnight 2am-6am).
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Scope of Regulated Activity –
Children (cont)
3. Relevant personal care, for example
washing or dressing; or health care by or
supervised by a professional, even if
done once.
4. Registered childminding; and fostercarers
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Not Regulated Activity
Activities
• Activity supervised at reasonable level
• Health care not by (or directed or supervised by)
a health care professional.
• Legal advice
• “treatment/ therapy” (instead “health care”)
• family arrangements;
• personal, non-commercial arrangements.
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Not Regulated Activity
Establishments:
• Occasional or temporary services, e.g.
maintenance (not teaching etc.)
• Volunteers supervised at reasonable level.
• Office holders (England):
• All “positions” removed, e.g. governors;
• Inspectorates removed.
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Repeal of processes in
previous VBS
• Registration and Monitoring aspects of the VBS
• Controlled activity
• Additional information (or “brown envelope material”) will
no longer be passed by the police through the disclosure
process.
www.safenetwork.org.uk
NEW:
Minimum Age
Introduction of a minimum
age requirement for criminal
records checks.
ADD VISUAL
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Countersigning officers will
no longer be able to sign an
application for someone
under 16.
NEW: Relevancy
•
Statutory guidance will be issued to all Chief
Police Officers that must be referred to in making
relevancy decisions; to promote a consistent
approach across forces
•
Introduction of a more rigorous test for relevancy
from ‘might be relevant’ to ‘ reasonably
believes it to be relevant’
•
Right of review to an Independent Monitor who
can review decisions to include material on
certificates
•
Development and use of a common template to
ensure a consistent level of information is
disclosed to the individual with clearly set out
reasons for that decision
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The Future
• The functions of the ISA & CRB will be merged to form
a single new body in December 2012
• The new body will be called the Disclosure & Barring
Service (DBS)
• Single Certificate
• A new Update Service providing portability will be
introduced early in 2013
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Further information
• E-mail to
[email protected]
• Home Office website at
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/disclosure-andbarring
• CRB website at
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/crb
• ISA website at http://www.isa.homeoffice.gov.uk
• Business Link: www.businesslink.gov.uk
• DirectGov: www.direct.gov.uk
www.safenetwork.org.uk
National Context Setting:
• Munro Review....
• Working Together to Safeguard Children
Guidance (2012)
•
Existing version (2010) sets out the responsibilities for all agencies, including the
Voluntary and private sector to make arrangements for Safeguarding and promoting
the welfare of C&YP with whom they work.
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Local Safeguarding Arrangements
•
Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) were established by the Children
Act 2004 which gives a statutory responsibility to each locality to have this
mechanism in place.
•
(a) To co-ordinate what is done by each person or body represented on the
Board for the purposes of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in
the area of the authority by which it is established; and
(b) To ensure the effectiveness of what is done by each such person or body for
those purpose
•
•
LSCBs will likely have self assessment audit tools in place to ascertain
compliance in meeting safeguarding standards for the organisations listed
under Section 11 of the Children Act 2004. For voluntary and
community sector organisations commissioned to undertake pieces of work for
partner organisations of the LSCB, section 11 audits are also required.
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The Safe Network Standards
Core standards and guidance for the voluntary and
community sector for keeping children and young people safe
Who are they for?
Voluntary and community sector
organisations who work with children
and young people
What is the aim?
To help organisations ensure that the
work they do is:
•as safe as possible
•enjoyable and rewarding for all
involved
•compliant with legislation.
www.safenetwork.org.uk
What’s in the Safe Network standards?
• The standards document itself
• The self-assessment tool
• The resource toolboxes
www.safenetwork.org.uk
What areas do the standards cover?
• Safer staff and volunteers – recruitment,
induction and supervision
• Child protection
• Preventing and responding to bullying
• Avoiding accidents and running safe
activities and events
www.safenetwork.org.uk
The standards document
•
•
•
•
•
Clear statement of each standard
Why it’s important
Essential elements
Additional elements
Involving children, young people and
families
• Further support
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Bullying
• Almost one third of children experience some
form of bullying by their peers.
• Bullying has been consistently reported by
children and young people as their top safety
concern and this includes cyberbullying. Surveys
report that 30-50% of bullying takes place
outside school.
Source: HM Government (2007) Staying Safe: a consultation document
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Causes of deaths, under 5s
England and Wales, 2009
Cause
N
%
Accidents
94
12.3
Assault and neglect
15
2.0
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Leading causes of deaths, 1-14 years
England and Wales, 2010
Cause
N
%
Accidents
147
13.1
Assault and neglect
20
1.8
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The self-assessment
tool
Where
Am I?
•Interactive
•On line
•Can be completed section by
section
•Can be saved for return visits
•Links directly to the toolbox
resources
•Offers links to additional sources
of support
•Provides advice on how to put
missing elements in place
www.safenetwork.org.uk
I’ve done my assessment – what then?
• The tool provides a summary and
generates an action plan to help you
address the elements that need attention
• The action plan can be printed off
• The action plan links to the tools and
resources
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Summary of results
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Action Plan
• The action plan is generated
automatically for you by the
self assessment tool
• It shows your progress against
the standards, and indicates
how many of the elements you
have in place
• It provides advice on what you
can do to address the missing
elements
• It is dated, so that you can take
snap-shots of your progress at
different stages
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The Standards toolboxes
•A toolbox for each standard
•71 toolbox resources altogether
•Resources can be accessed
directly from the self-assessment
tool or downloaded from the
website
•Toolbox resources include
examples of policies, procedures,
guidance, templates for forms,
standard letters, information about
useful posters and leaflets
www.safenetwork.org.uk
Supporting organisations to use the
standards
Safe Network website and core
team
Regional Development Managers
‘Safe Organisations, Safe
Children’
Other Safe Network products
National and local champions
www.safenetwork.org.uk
www.safenetwork.org.uk