Summary and Background How will the new scheme work?
9.These paragraphs provide a very brief overview of how the new scheme will work and will help to put into context the overview of the legislation given above. They need to be read in conjunction with the diagram at annex B.
10.Those who are closely working, or applying to work, with children or vulnerable adults will be required to make an application to the Secretary of State to be “subject to monitoring” (see the glossary at Annex A). This will cover everyone engaging in what the Act refers to as “regulated activity” with the permission of a “regulated activity provider”. (The intention is that employers engaging individuals in “controlled activity” will also in most cases need to ensure that they are subject to monitoring, although this requirement will be placed on employers through regulations). The Act allows for the phasing in of applications from existing members of the workforce.
11.The Secretary of State, using the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), will then search the Police National Computer for cautions and convictions and make enquiries of local police forces to obtain other relevant information.
12.Where the Secretary of State’s enquiries reveal that a person satisfies one of the criteria that lead to automatic inclusion in a barred list, he will refer the matter to the IBB so that the person can be included in the relevant barred list. The Secretary of State will also pass details of relevant cautions and convictions together with all information received from local police forces to the IBB, which the IBB can then consider in relation to inclusion in a barred list. Where a person is included in a barred list, he ceases to be subject to monitoring (if he was previously) and is not able to engage in regulated activity. Except in the most serious cases, individuals will have the opportunity to make representations about why they should not be barred on the basis of this information.
13.At appropriate intervals, the Secretary of State must repeat the searches and enquiries referred to above. If new information comes to light about a person who is subject to monitoring, the Secretary of State will give the information to the IBB as outlined above. The IBB may also have cause to consider including a person in a barred list on the basis of referrals from employers, local authorities, professional bodies and supervisory authorities (see diagram at annex C). An employer may register to be notified if an employee ceases to be subject to monitoring. Where this is the case the employer will then be informed of this by the Secretary of State, in the guise of the CRB.