New Safeguarding Regulation

[mrsbat]

this worries me to heck when I read about this yesterday so I emailed my early years support lady - who is fantastic btw

 

I got this reply

 

The Vetting and Barring register comes in this September for new people into childcare and becomes effective for everyone from January next year, but settings will have a run-in period, which I believe will be three years, in which to get registered. It will be compulsory.

I'll be mentioning it again at our next cluster meeting and will bring some bits in writing too. Don't panic though, you don't have to do anything straight away

[Guest]

I have just had this reply from them

 

 

The new joint ISA-registration/CRB check application form will be available to customers from 3 months prior to the launch of the new Vetting and Barring Scheme. We are working towards implementation of the Vetting and Barring Scheme from October 2009; further announcements and guidance will be provided as implementation plans progress, but there will be a 5 year period over which the system will be phased in. Registration process will be released shortly. Individuals in paid employment will pay £64 when applying for registration with the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). The one-off application fee is composed of two elements- £28 to fund the running of the ISA and £36 to pay for Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) administration and, in most cases an Enhanced Disclosure will be included. Those involved only in unpaid voluntary activity will pay no application fee. The responsibility for paying this fee legally falls on the employee. It is at the discretion of employers if they choose to pay the fee for their staff, and we know from our consultations that many will, either in full or part. The Scheme is a mandatory addition to safeguarding not intended to replace CRB Checks. Where CRB Checks are a statutory requirement, they will remain so.

 

 

 

Kind regards

 

Hmm, from this (highlighted in bold above), it basically seems that all prospective new employees will have to pay for their CRB (CRB already a requirement when changing posts or new to childcare) and an additional £28 to go on the ISA list. Although a bit vague in saying 'in most cases an enhanced disclosure will be included'.

So my question is...if I have a current (whatever that means) CRB do I only have to pay the £28 for ISA registration. I can only guess that they will say no, the £28 is for CRB 'admin' costs to respond to ISA regarding my registration. Does this then mean that CRB are doubling their income? £28 to get a CRB and £28 each time ISA checks someones CRB with the bureau?

 

This will certainly need to be included in all your Employment policies so yet another 'policy' review eh!

 

Peggy

[aliamch]

I went on a Designated Person Safeguarding Children course today and this was the info they gave us on ISA -

 

Independent Safeguarding Authority

What it means to employers

• The scheme 'goes live' on 12 October 2009
  
• New entrants to the workforce and those moving jobs will be the first to go through the scheme
  
• Members of the existing workforce will be phased into the scheme over a five year period
  
• Employers will be required to ensure that any staff working with children are checked by the ISA and have gone through the registration process with the Criminal records Bureau (CRB)
  
• Once their worker is registered, the employer will receive a certificate showing the person's ISA status (plus any information revealed during CRB searches)
  
• All ISA-registered individuals will be subject to continuous monitoring
  
• It will be a criminal offence, punishable by up to five years in prison, for a barred individual to take part in a regulated activity for any length of time
  
• It will be a criminal offence for an employer to take on an individual in regulated activity if they fail to check that persons status
  
• it will be a criminal offence for an employer to allow a barred individual, or an individual who is not yet registered with ISA, to work for any length of time in any regulated activity
  

Further guidance on volunteers and parent helpers will published in April 2009

 

Time Lines

Jan 2009 - ISA begin to make Barring decisions

Apr 2009 - Sector specific guidance published

July 2009 - CWDC Safer Recruitment Guidance & On-line training launched

 

Karrie

[Guest]

Thank you for these pieces of information. I have asked the questions I wanted to at LA and am awaiting a reply, but then that's not news now is it! Specifically I asked about covering the cost of the ISA check and whether there would be any support for this in the way Ofsted currently stand the cost of the CRB check. If I get anything on this (ever!) I'll let you know but if anyone else hears I would be very interested.

[Guest]

Thanks for that Karrie, very useful.

 

Peggy

[aliamch]

Thank you for these pieces of information. I have asked the questions I wanted to at LA and am awaiting a reply, but then that's not news now is it! Specifically I asked about covering the cost of the ISA check and whether there would be any support for this in the way Ofsted currently stand the cost of the CRB check. If I get anything on this (ever!) I'll let you know but if anyone else hears I would be very interested.

 

We were told the onus was on the individual to pay the cost, as the ISA would follow you setting to setting; but if your employer or committee were willing to pay that was their choice. They also said that while Ofsted currently bare the cost of the CRB checks, there's no guarantee this would continue past the five year time frame, when all existing staff should have been phased into the scheme, as technically CRB's would be redundant.

 

Karrie

[lynned55]

Last week & this week I was on an Updating safeguaring children course. I asked on Weds about ISA and got a big fat zilch!

She said things still han't been finalized so no info to give. I was also at a Daycare forum this week, asked about this there and was told that they (our EY's) had heard nothing on this yet.

 

Karrie, if you read the FAQ on the ISA website, they say that CRB's are still needed.

Edited March 20, 2009 by lynned55

[Guest]

Safeguarding: implementation of vetting scheme delayed again

 

Posted: 19 March 2009 | Subscribe Online

 

writes Mithran Samuel

 

 

The government has delayed the implementation of its vetting and barring scheme for staff working with children and vulnerable adults for the second time, it announced today.

 

The Independent Safeguarding Authority-run scheme was due to come into force in October 2009, after ministers announced last April that the original target of October 2008 would be missed.

 

At the time, the chief executive of the ISA, Adrian McAllister, explained the delay by saying that the scheme needed to be got right from "day one".

 

Delayed until 2010

 

However, the Home Office said today that the scheme would not come into force in full until November 2010, to "ensure robust testing and maximise the safety of vulnerable groups".

 

http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles/20...ayed-again.html

 

 

Looks like they are having some teething trouble

[Guest]

That was my understanding too Karrie about costs but I was hoping they might rethink a bit. My setting would struggle to pay for all staff (not to mention committee if they are included) but to ask a member of staff to pay a weeks wages to keep working in their job might be more than my staff could take. The setting would also be reluctant to pay the fee with the registration being transferable from setting to setting. I feel we could become a softtouch for people wanting to get registered and then move on.

[chicken]

This has been delayed from rolling out in October 09, to July 2010.

 

I wonder if it will actually happen at all