Vetting and Barring Scheme a brief guide for Foster Carers

The Independent Safeguarding Authority’s (ISA) role is to help prevent unsuitable people from working with children and vulnerable adults. They assess those individuals working or wishing to work in regulated activity that are referred to us on the grounds that they pose a possible risk of harm to vulnerable groups.

The ISA will assess every person who wants to work or volunteer with children or vulnerable adults. They will do this by working closely with the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB).
The CRB will receive applications to the ISA and will gather and monitor information. It will also use the information previously found in:

• the Protection of Vulnerable Adults (PoVA) list;
• the Protection of Children Act (PoCA) list; and
• List 99 (a list of people considered unsuitable for work with children, held by the Department for Children, Schools and Families).

If you are referred to the ISA
ISA’s decision-making has been developed to ensure all ISA barring decisions are fair, rigorous, consistent, transparent and legitimate.
The decision-making process has five stages. At each stage a decision is required for the case to progress to the next stage. If the criteria for the case to progress to the next stage is not met, the case is closed and no further action taken.

• Stage 1: Initial Assessment
• Stage 2: Information Gathering and Assessment
• Stage 3: Structured Judgement Process (risk analysis)
• Stage 4: Representations
• Stage 5: Barring Decision

How cases come to the ISA
There are two main ways that a case can come to the ISA:
• CRB / Access Northern Ireland provide police information including; cautions, convictions and soft intelligence (the same information as provided in enhanced CRB disclosures). This information also includes ‘auto-bar’ cases where a person has been cautioned or convicted for a serious offence. In these cases the person is ‘automatically’ barred (by law) from working with children or vulnerable adults. For some ‘auto-bar’ offences a person is permitted to make representations to the ISA as to why they should be removed from the barred list(s); and

• Referrals from regulated activity providers (mainly employers), personnel suppliers, local authorities and professional regulatory bodies where there is a duty to make a referral to the ISA in certain circumstances.

Stage 1: Initial Case Assessment
The ISA determines whether the case is something that the
ISA can and should consider using its legal powers under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.

If the initial case assessment criteria is met the case proceeds to Stage 2, Information Gathering and Assessment.

Stage 2: Information Gathering and Assessment
The ISA considers all the facts it has on a case and may seek additional material from a range of other sources to ensure it has all known relevant information on the individual. It is important to remember that the ISA has no investigatory powers and relies upon information provided to it by other organisations.
The ISA considers referral and other relevant information that may be provided or requested from regulated activity providers, the police, personnel providers, regulatory bodies or local authorities. The information gathered may include relevant cautions, convictions or competent body findings (all treated as findings of fact). Competent bodies are regulatory bodies such as the General Teaching Council or the General Medical Council. The ISA will also consider information on the person that it may already have from previous referrals. This could provide evidence of cumulative behaviour indicating a safeguarding risk. When all relevant information is gathered and assessed the ISA determines on the balance of probability whether there has been conduct that has harmed or may harm a child or vulnerable adult.

If so, the case progresses to Stage 3, Structured Judgement Process.

Stage 3: Structured Judgement Process (risk analysis)
A risk assessment using the ISA’s Structured Judgement Process (SJP) is undertaken. The SJP is a risk assessment tool developed by the ISA to determine whether, based on all relevant information, there is a future risk of harm to children or vulnerable adults. If following the SJP, a risk of harm to children or vulnerable adults is determined, the ISA is ‘minded to bar’ the person. 

However, this information is subject to Representations at Stage 4. If it is not considered appropriate to bar a person then the case is closed.

Stage 4: Representations
The ISA writes to the person advising them that it is ‘minded to bar’ them from working with children or vulnerable adults (or both groups) and invites them to make representations as to why they should not be barred. The ISA outlines the legal powers and reasons for the decision and also provides the person with all the information that the ISA has relied on in making its ‘minded to bar’ decision.
The person has eight weeks to provide written representations to the ISA. The person may be assisted with their representations by other people or organisations e.g. friend, adviser, trade union, solicitor.
Following representations, the case is reassessed by the ISA and the barring decision is reviewed in light of any new information provided. A final barring decision is then made.

Stage 5: Barring Decision
If no representations are received, the person is barred by the ISA. If representations are received then the case is reassessed and a final decision is made. If barred, the person is notified in writing including their right to seek an appeal. Once barred it is illegal for a person to work in regulated activity with children and/or vulnerable adults.

ISA does not accept referrals from the public, only through organisations such as the Police, Local Authorities or Professional bodies. Also its rigorous decision making scheme is designed to prevent ‘false’ or ‘malicious’ allegations and referrals. Any person found guilty of submitting a false or malicious referral to the ISA can be subject to defamation and damage claims and Criminal Sanctions relating to wasting Police time, conspiracy and perjury.

Appeals – if a person is barred they have the right to appeal on the grounds of ‘an error in law’ or and ‘error in finding of fact’ this can be done through the Administrative Appeals Chamber in the Upper Tribunal – (details on the ISA website)

People who are on an ISA Barred List
If you are on the ISA Children’s Barred List or the ISA Vulnerable Adults Barred List it is a criminal offence for you to seek or to undertake paid or voluntary work with children and/or vulnerable adults.

For more information please go to

http://www.isa-gov.org.uk/default.aspx

or

http://www.crb.homeoffice.gov.uk