Criminal records checks for schools (FOI)

Request

A

How many people have entered school rooms in Jersey without CRB checks? This includes teachers, support staff, teaching staff, visitors, parents.

B

What is the procedure for teachers, supply teachers and teaching assistants getting their CRB checks before they work in Jersey schools?

C

How many complaints have been made about teacher in Jersey in the past 10 years?

D

How many of these complaints have been of a sexual or inappropriate or abusive nature?

Response

A

The Education Department has determined that to gather the data required to respond to this request would exceed the cost limit as prescribed in the regulations of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011.

Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks have been replaced by Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks. The Education Department’s policy on whether or not visitors to schools require a valid DBS check has been established as follows:

It is not necessary to obtain a DBS disclosure for:

a) visitors who will only have supervised contact with children on an ad hoc or irregular basis for short periods of time, or

b) secondary pupils undertaking voluntary work or work experience in other schools.

However, it is good practice to ensure that visitors sign in and out and are escorted whilst on the premises by a member of staff.

DBS checks can only be carried out where the subject is at least 16 years old.

B

Procedures relating to obtaining or renewing DBS Checks for staff working in Jersey Schools is set out in the attached documents:

Checks required for Internal Candidates: Appendix 1 grid from Education’s Safer Recruitment Policy

Recruitment Process Flowchart: Appendix 7 Education’s Safer Recruitment Policy

DBS Disclosures

The DBS is an executive agency of the (UK) Home Office which conducts criminal record checks on potential employees on behalf of organisations and recruiters throughout England and Wales. It works to help organisations identify candidates who may be unsuitable to work with children or other vulnerable members of society.

Enhanced DBS Checks

The majority of roles in the Education Department needing a DBS check, will require an Enhanced DBS with Barred List check because the post holder will be classified as undertaking regulated activity.

HM Government has defined regulated activity in relation to children. Regulated activity is work that a barred person must not do.

The new definition (from September 2012) of regulated activity in relation to children comprises, in summary:

(i) Unsupervised activities: teach, train, instruct, care for or supervise children, or provide advice / guidance on well-being, or drive a vehicle only for children;

(ii) Work for a limited range of establishments, with opportunity for contact, eg. Schools, children’s homes, childcare premises. Not work by supervised volunteers.

Work under (i) or (ii) is regulated activity only if done regularly. Regular means carried out by the same person frequently (once a week or more often), or on four or more days in a 30-day period (or in some cases, overnight).

Where a DBS disclosure is required, it should be obtained before an individual begins work. In exceptional circumstances only, the Chief Education Officer, or his specified nominee, has the discretion to allow an individual to begin work within the Education Department pending receipt of the DBS disclosure and will ensure that the individual is appropriately supervised and that all other checks have been completed. HR at the Education Department, will provide a risk assessment to the Chief Officer to aid his decision making as to whether to allow an individual to commence work.

Further information can be found in the attached Education Department policy:

Commencing Employment Prior to the Completion of all Pre-Employment Checks: Appendix 4 Education’s Safer Recruitment Policy

Supply Teachers

Before taking on a member of supply staff provided by an agency, the school must obtain written confirmation from the agency that the checks the school is required to carry out for its own employees have been undertaken by the agency. In relation to the DBS Disclosure the written notification from the agency must confirm that relevant DBS Disclosures have been requested for that individual, whether or not the Disclosure has been received, and if received, whether it included any disclosed information. Where there is disclosed information, the school must obtain a copy of the DBS Disclosure from the agency before the individual starts work.

The Department is complying with the requirement to complete a renewal DBS check after a three year period.

C and D

The Education Department has determined that to gather the data required to respond to this request would exceed the cost limit as prescribed in the regulations of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011.

However, some relevant information was provided as part of a previous Freedom of Information  request regarding complaints against secondary school teachers. This response can be accessed at:

Assaults on teachers, weapons in schools and complaints against teachers 2010 to 2015 (FOI)

The Education Department’s policy: Dealing with Allegations Against Staff and Volunteers can be found under ‘Safeguarding’ on the following link:

Education policies

Exemptions and articles applied

Article 16 – A scheduled public authority may refuse to supply information if cost excessive

(1) A scheduled public authority that has been requested to supply information may refuse to supply the information if it estimates that the cost of doing so would exceed an amount determined in the manner prescribed by Regulations.

(2) Despite paragraph (1), a scheduled public authority may still supply the information requested on payment to it of a fee determined by the authority in the manner prescribed by Regulations for the purposes of this Article.

(3) Regulations may provide that, in such circumstances as the Regulations prescribe, if two or more requests for information are made to a scheduled public authority –

(a) by one person; or

(b) by different persons who appear to the scheduled public authority to be acting in concert or in pursuance of a campaign,

the estimated cost of complying with any of the requests is to be taken to be the estimated total cost of complying with all of them.