This Act provides the legislative framework for a new vetting and barring scheme for people who work with children and vulnerable adults. The purpose of the new scheme is to minimise the risk of harm posed to children and vulnerable adults by those that might seek to harm them through their work (paid or unpaid). It seeks to do this by barring unsuitable individuals not just on the basis of referrals but also at the earliest possible opportunity as part of a centralised vetting process that all those working closely with children and/or vulnerable adults will need to go through.
The then current system for vetting people who wished to work with children or vulnerable adults operated through employers obtaining criminal record certificates issued by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) for new job applicants. CRB disclosures give employers information about an individual’s criminal records history, which informs their assessments about the individual’s suitability to work with children or vulnerable adults.
There were three separate lists of persons who were barred from working with children or, as the case may have been, vulnerable adults. These lists operated under different legislation and with different criteria and procedures: List 99 (a list of those in respect of whom directions under section 142 of the Education Act 2002 have been made), the Protection of Children Act (POCA) List (maintained under the Protection of Children Act 1999) and the Protection of Vulnerable Adults (POVA) List (maintained under Part 7 of the Care Standards Act 2000). Disqualification orders made by a court (under Part 2 of the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000) also barred individuals from working with children.
The Bichard Inquiry Report (June 2004) identified systemic failures in current vetting and barring systems. These included the following factors:
Due to these shortfalls, the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 was drafted to enable greater protective measures for children and vulnerable adults.
