1. Can a Disclosure be Used More Than Once? 

The Criminal Records Bureau no longer facilitates portability.  Portability refers to the re-use of a CRB check (disclosure) obtained for a position in one organisation and later used for another position in another organisation.  There are inherent dangers to this practice.  A detailed explanation appears below but it might be helpful first to consider a common situation.  Someone cleared as a teacher is applying to be a Sunday school teacher.  Additional non-conviction information is issued at the discretion of the Chief Officer of Police.  In this example it might mean that there is no additional information when someone applies to be a day school teacher.  However, when they want to be a Sunday school teacher this might trigger additional information relating to someone in the same household (because a Sunday school teacher might take someone into their own home).  There are many other factors, too, and if you are considering using rechecks then please take into account the following limitations and risks as advised by the CRB. 

Limitations  

• The CRB check may not be at the level you require – there are two different levels of check:  Standard and Enhanced.  If an Enhanced check is needed do not accept a ported Standard check. 
• The CRB check may not have included a check of List 99, Protection of Children Act List (PoCA) and/or the Protection of Vulnerable Adults List Act (POVA).
•   A CRB check carries no formal period of validity and the older a check the less reliable the information, as the information the check contains may not be up to date.  The date of the issue (on the individual's copy) should be used as a guide as to when to request a new CRB check. 
• Information revealed through a CRB check always reflects the information that was available at the time of its issue. 
• You may be required by law to carry out a fresh check with List 99, POCA and/or POVA.  In certain circumstances, portability cannot be used, eg care workers need a new POVA check each time they change employment. 
• An original CRB check, not a photocopy, contains a number of security features to prevent tampering or forgery. 
• You need to understand the meaning of the wording that appears in the information boxed on disclosure. ‘None recorded' means no information was found, ‘Not requested' means that that check was not done. 

 o              BOX 1 – Police Records of Convictions, Cautions, Reprimands and Warnings

o              BOX 2 – Protection of Children Act List information

o              BOX 3 – Protection of Vulnerable Adults List information

o              BOX 4 – Information from the list under Section 142 of the Education Act 2002

o              BOX 5 – Other relevant information disclosed at the Chief Police Officer(s) discretion

Once a recruitment decision (or other relevant decision – eg for regulatory or licensing purposes) has been made, a recipient of a Disclosure must not retain it, or any associated correspondence, for longer than is necessary for the particular purpose.  In general, this should be for a maximum of 6 months.  However:

 o              If you need to show it to the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) you can keep it until the next inspection, then it should be destroyed. 

o              If you are a teaching supply/recruitment agency you can retain CRB checks for up to 3 years. 

Risks

• Using a previously issued CRB check does not constitute a fresh CRB check – the person's criminal record or other relevant information may have changed since its issue.
• Registered Bodies are responsible for the accuracy of the information provided to the CRB and on which it carries out its checks.  By accepting a previously issued CRB check you are accepting the risk that the previous Registered Body provided the CRB with a fully validated applicant's identity on which to carry out its checks. 
• Enhanced checks may contain ‘approved' non-conviction information provide by the police from their local records. In the majority of cases, the CRB will print this information on both the applicant's and Registered Body's copy in the box entitled ‘Other relevant information disclosed at the Chief Police Officer(s) discretion'.  However, occasionally the Chief Police Officer may, if thought necessary in the interests of the prevention or detection of crime, withhold this information from the applicant's copy.  You would not be aware of this if you relay on the applicant's copy and therefore could be appointing someone who is known to be a serious risk to children. 

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2. As a Recruiter, do I need to see a birth certificate if a passport or photo driving license has been supplied? Also what about marriage certificates?

A Recruiter is required to verify as much evidence of identity as possible. If an applicant is unable to do this, the Recruiter should give a brief explanation of the reason e.g. document lost or none held. It is advisable that the Recruiter sees evidence that the birth name of the applicant is the same they have now, unless it has been changed through, for example, marriage or deed poll. In this situation the marriage certificate/decree nisi or Deed Poll certificate will need to be seen and checked. All documents must be originals, not photo copies. Individuals who infiltrate organisations to abuse children have been known to conceal former names and we therefore recommend processing applications with the birth certificate and any additional documents listed above.

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3. Isn't it rather pedantic of CCPAS to return documents because of a missing week in previous addresses?

The CRB stipulates that all addresses for the previous five years must be declared without any gaps in the dates. If forms are sent to the CRB with an incomplete list of dates and addresses it will be not be processed. The reason for this is that if an applicant has a conviction recorded at an address that is not disclosed, important information could fail to come to light, the applicant's disclosure would be incorrect, and ultimately a child's safety could be put at risk.

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4. What if the CRB form doesn't fit the circumstances?

The CRB form would be much longer if it was designed to include every circumstance and situation but it is important to provide additional notes if the circumstances of the applicant cannot be explained fully from answering the questions on the form.

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5. Are certain individuals legally “disqualified” from working with children?

Those on the Department for Education and Skills list 99 and the list held by the Department of Health: Protection of Children Act 1999 (PoCA list), and those who have committed offences listed in Schedule 4 of the Criminal Justice and Court Service Act 2000 are disqualified from working with children and young people. (Schedule 4 lists offences of a sexual and violent nature against children and adults). A person disqualified will commit an offence if he/she applies for, accepts or continues to work with children. An individual who knows a person is disqualified but nevertheless gives him/her work with children or continues to allow him/her to work with children also commits an offence under the Act. The disqualification is from working with children in the public, private, voluntary and volunteering sectors. Information on those who are disqualified is available through the two higher level disclosures (standard and enhanced checks) from the Criminal Records Bureau/Scottish Criminal Record Office. Access to the CRB/SCRO has to be made via a registered body like CCPAS, which acts as an umbrella organisation for churches and children's organisations. It is the view of CCPAS that any adult who has committed an offence of a sexual or violent nature against children or adults should never work with children or young people again, or be appointed to a position of responsibility where they are seen by children and young people. This is in the interests of children and also past offenders, even where they have been appropriately repentant for the things they have done.

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6. Can you give me clarification in regard to requirements for destroying the information you send us?

CRB Code of Practice only allows you to keep information that a check has been completed – you cannot keep a record of the result. You should destroy the certificate as soon as you have made the recruitment decision. If the information supplied raises queries you can keep the information for up to 6 months. If there is a need to retain the details after this the CRB and ourselves as an umbrella body must be contacted. In ordinary circumstances therefore we advise that you destroy the certificate immediately after checking the details are correct. If you are keeping information unnecessarily then this could be grounds for complaint by an applicant. If you are keeping it beyond 6 months then this will be in conflict with the CRB code of practice and is an offence.

The only exception to the 6 month rule is where the organisation is government inspected e.g. a nursery regulated with OFSTED or a Care Home regulated with CSCI. In these circumstances organisations can keep the certificates until next registration to demonstrate they have undertaken a criminal records check. Once the inspection has taken place the certificates must be destroyed.

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7. Does the suggested Equal Opportunities Policy conflict with our values as a church?

The Criminal Records Bureau/Scottish Criminal Records Office require organisations to have a policy to ensure they do not discriminate against those who have a criminal record. There are many who have offended in the past who should not be denied employment (paid or voluntary). However this does not apply if the nature of their offence(s) means that they might pose a risk to a child or vulnerable adult.

The CRB/SCRO have provided an outline of a Rehabilitation of Offenders-type policy for organisations to consider adopting within a general Equal Opportunities Policy. We have adapted this further to make it more relevant to churches or faith groups. It can be amended but it is important it meets CRB/SCRO requirements and is not illegal.

Our amended version emphasises the fact that services are provided by churches to the wider community regardless of their beliefs. Some churches have mistakenly thought that an Equal Opportunities Policy is intended for church membership or can be applied in all aspects to appointing someone to the ministry. A church may provide services to a range of people of different faiths, but this does not imply that the Minister or Church Leader does not need to be a Christian! Clearly, s/he would need to be able to sign up to the tenets of faith in order to do the job. The CRB/SCRO are more concerned there is no discrimination against past offenders unless it is necessary to do so.

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8. How do we check overseas students/volunteers?

The Criminal Records Bureau does not generally have access to overseas criminal records. Some countries, including most in the EU, operate a system whereby a citizen can obtain a Certificate of Good Conduct or extracts from their criminal record to show to a prospective employer. However, the level of information varies from country to country and any Certificate of Good Conduct is unlikely to be to the same standard as Criminal Records Bureau/Scottish Criminal Records Office checks. Y ou will also need to bear in mind that in many countries an awareness of the issues surrounding sexual abuse and its effects is limited. Situations may not come to light so readily or be investigated in the same way as in the UK. The CRB has developed a service to assist with checks on workers from overseas called the Overseas Information Team and can be contacted on 08700 100 450. Be aware that the quality of information received by the Overseas Information Team will vary and the result of a criminal records check may be returned in a different language.

Even though the Police National Computer holds limited information on overseas convictions, for someone who applies to work in the regulated childcare sector with a substantial record of overseas residence, employers must still check the Protection of Children Act list via the Criminal Records Disclosure Service.

In many cases you may well be able to use an overseas worker as an occasional helper (see above), ensuring that the person concerned is never left alone with children and is always in the company of an approved worker.

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9. Our church has linked with a local organisation (care home) to carry out Criminal Records Checks. However, a question has been raised whether we can satisfy the CRB requirement that those involved in the recruitment process are suitably trained to identify and assess information about offences and correctly interpret relevant legislation regarding the employment of ex-offenders.

A number of churches and organisations have discovered that their umbrella body is only able to provide a basic processing service and have little or no understanding of church child protection related matters or the particular issues arising from offenders in churches. 

Very few churches are equipped to meet the legitimate demands of the CRB but churches linked with CCPAS will receive advice and support in all these areas. If a Recruiter needs to be advised of information that comes to light during a check, they will be linked with a member of our staff who will provide advice and support.  This person will be someone who is not involved in the disclosure process in order to ensure that we meet the demands regarding confidentiality.  This is fully explained in the information sent to Recruiters.

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10. The CRB/SCRO require recruiters to be suitably trained to assess the relevance of past offences which might be revealed. How can we as a church meet this requirement?

As part of our disclosure service we provide consultancy and advice in individual situations through a worker we will assign for this purpose. You are therefore covered if you are part of our scheme. If you are registering directly with the CRB/SCRO (or through someone else, e.g. your own denomination/umbrella or local group) then make sure you/they are equipped to provide this. It is your responsibility to make certain that this is in place. It is not optional. If you are not part of our service but would want to use this support, then you must register this interest with us. Requests should be made via e-mail or letter.

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11. I am a self-employed freelance worker. Can I apply for a CRB check as I work with children?

The checks currently made via the CRB are to enable employers to make appropriate recruitment decisions and are therefore not available to people who are self-employed. Voluntary workers with children can wear several “hats” and it may well be that they would qualify for a check in another capacity, e.g. as part of a church. For the check by the church to have any value in a self-employed/freelance capacity, their roles as a self employed worker and their role within the church would have to be broadly similar. It should also be remembered that a clear certificate does not necessarily mean there are no concerns. See question 9 (page 9) regarding the portability of criminal records checks.

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12. I want to find out whether the police hold any information about me on the police national computer and local police records.  How can I do this? 

Under the Data Protection Act 1998 individuals can ask for information held about them. This applies to paper records as well as computer data. It is proposed that enquiries about information held on the Police National Computer will eventually be administered by the Criminal Records Bureau. However until this happens, individuals must apply direct to their local police station. Further information on data protection can be obtained from:  The Information Commissioner, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF. Website:www.dataprotection.gov.uk

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