Vetting and Barring Scheme review announced
The Government has outlined the terms of a thorough review of the Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS) which will re-examine whether the Scheme is the most appropriate mechanism to protect children and vulnerable people and, if so, how many roles should be covered by it.
The VBS aims to protect children and vulnerable adults by stopping those who pose a known risk of harm from working with them. Registration with the VBS was scheduled to begin in July this year for anyone starting a new job, or moving job who would be working with children or vulnerable adults, but this was halted after the Government announced its intention to fundamentally redraw the system in response to public concerns that in its current form the Scheme was overly bureaucratic and burdensome.
The terms of reference laid before Parliament set out how the review will consider the fundamental principles and objectives behind the vetting and barring regime, including: (i) evaluating the scope of the scheme’s coverage; (ii) the most appropriate function, role and structures of any relevant safeguarding bodies and appropriate governance arrangements; and (iii) recommending what, if any, scheme is needed now, taking into account how to raise awareness and understanding of risk and responsibility for safeguarding in society more generally. The final recommendations for the Scheme will be announced early in the New Year.
November 2010
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