The Independent Safeguarding Authority

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The Independent Safeguarding Authority
Presented by Matthew Tagney Department for
Children, Schools and Families
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What is the ISA Scheme?

• New, improved checking and monitoring scheme
  aiming to prevent unsuitable people from working
  or volunteering with children and/or vulnerable
  adults.
• New Non Departmental Public Body (NDPB) which
  will decide who is barred from working with
  these groups.
• Supported by the Home Office, DCSF and DH.

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Why has it been created?

• Bichard Inquiry into 2002 Soham murders
• Supported by Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act
  2006, which defines
• regulated activity
• controlled activity

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Scheme overview

• Once the ISA Scheme has been fully rolled out, it
  will be illegal for employers to engage anyone in
  regulated or controlled activity without
  checking their registration status with the ISA
  Scheme first.
• Employers will be notified if an individual is
  de-registered from the scheme.
• Information-sharing framework is enshrined in law
  and at the heart of the scheme.
• Domestic employment different circumstances.

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Who does the scheme extend to?

• Paid workers
• Volunteers
• Current workforce
• Including workers from overseas

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What is regulated activity?

• Involves contact with children or vulnerable
  adults and is
• of a specified nature (e.g. teaching, training,
  care, supervision, advice, treatment or
  transport) on a frequent, intensive and/or
  overnight basis.
• in a specified place (e.g. schools, care homes,
  etc), frequently or intensively.
• fostering and childcare or
• a defined position of responsibility (e.g. school
  governor, director of social services, trustees
  of certain charities).

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Define frequently and intensively

• Frequently once a month or more.
• Intensively is where an activity takes place on
  3 or more days in any one 30 day period.
• Further guidance about this will be issued.

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Key features of regulated activity

• Expected to apply to almost 11 million workers
  and volunteers.
• It will be illegal for barred individuals to
  undertake or apply for positions.
• After full roll out, anyone undertaking it must
  be ISA-registered.
• It will be illegal for organisations to engage a
  barred or non ISA-registered person.
• Employers must check that prospective employees
  are ISA-registered.
• Does not extend to personal and family
  relationships.

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What is controlled activity?

• Expected to apply to roughly half a million
  workers and volunteers.
• Tightly defined
• Ancillary support workers in FE, NHS and adult
  social care (e.g. cleaner, caretaker, catering
  staff, receptionist) with frequent or intensive
  contact with children or vulnerable adults.
• Those working for specified organisations (e.g.
  Local Authorities) with frequent access to
  sensitive records about children or vulnerable
  adults.
• Barred people can be employed in controlled
  activity, providing safeguards are in place.

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Domestic employment

• Those employed (e.g. nannies and care workers)
  by domestic employers (e.g. parents and carers,
  direct payment recipients).
• The self-employed (e.g. music teachers).
• It will not be mandatory for employers in
  domestic
• circumstances to check the registration status
  of their employees, but for the first time they
  will be able to.
• Illegal for barred people to undertake this
  activity.

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Employer duties - referrals

• Employers, professional and regulatory bodies,
  and child/adult protection teams in Local
  Authorities must refer information to the ISA in
  certain circumstances.
• In other circumstances, employers may refer
  information regarding an individuals conduct to
  the ISA.
• Parents/private employers should go to a
  statutory agency who can investigate and refer if
  appropriate (e.g. social services or the police).
• The Independent Safeguarding Authority will
  inform professional/regulatory bodies if it bars
  someone, so that their professional registration
  can also be reviewed.

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When does it start?

• The ISA Scheme goes live on 12 October 2009.
• New entrants to the workforce those moving jobs
  will be the first to go through the scheme.
• Members of the existing workforce will be phased
  into the scheme over a five year period.

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What will it cost?

• Individuals in paid employment will pay 64 when
  applying for registration with the ISA Scheme.
• The one-off application fee is composed of two
  elements - 28 to fund the running of the ISA and
  36 to pay for CRB administration and, in most
  cases and Enhanced Disclosure will be included.
• Those involved only in unpaid voluntary activity
  will pay no application fee.

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Will this replace the CRB?

• No the ISA Scheme is a mandatory addition to
  current safeguarding systems, not a replacement.
• Statutory requirements for CRB checks in certain
  sectors will remain.
• The ISA will filter out those who pose an obvious
  risk.
• ISA registration does not guarantee that an
  individual has a clean criminal record but that
  it has been checked by the ISA, which does not
  consider it to mean the individual is a risk.

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How it will work Barring decisions

• The Independent Safeguarding Authority will
• comprise a balance of different expertise.
• Decide who to place on and maintain the barred
  lists.
• Consider representations.

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How it will work continued

• Barring Routes
• Auto Bar without representation
• Auto Bar with representation
• Bar based on case assessment

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How it will work Operations

• The Criminal Records Bureau will
• Receive applications to the scheme.
• Gather and monitor information for the
  Independent Safeguarding Authority.
• Administer automatic inclusions on the list and
  cases where there is no information.
• Provide the facility for online checks and
  continuous updates.

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Scheme operation Barring and online status

• The status of individuals will be continuously
  updated on receipt of new information, such as
  new convictions or referrals from employers.
• Employers will be notified, where they have
  registered an interest, if the status of their
  employee changes.
• Scheme membership is transferable.

Not barred
ISA Registered
Online status checking
Not applied
Voluntarily withdrawn
Not ISA Registered
Left scheme
BARRED
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Our Next Stages

• Transfer of cases and files from the current
  PoVA, PoCA and List 99 systems to the ISA.
• The ISA is advising Ministers on who to place on
  the current barred lists (but Ministers still
  make the decisions).
• ISA will include or consider all current barred
  individuals, with a view to transferring them to
  the new ISA barred lists.

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Benefits of the ISA Scheme

• The most inclusive and largest system of its kind
  in the world, with more roles and people covered
  than with current systems.
• Barring decisions will be taken by independent
  experts.
• Once the scheme is fully implemented, anyone who
  wants to work or volunteer with children or
  vulnerable adults in regulated activity will
  legally be required to register with the ISA.
• Conversely, employers will be legally required to
  verify a persons registration status and ensure
  those they place with vulnerable people are on
  the scheme.
• Better information sharing - employers, other
  statutory, business and public organisations will
  have a legal duty to refer appropriate
  information to the ISA.
• Employers will be informed if an employee becomes
  de-registered from the scheme.
• Parents will be able to check that the
  individuals they employ in a private capacity in
  regulated activity are registered with the ISA.

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What do I have to do?

• Keep in touch our website (www.isa-gov.org)
  will be frequently updated with advice
  guidance.
• Evaluate the impact think about likely
  budgetary requirements, staff training needs
  process updates.
• Play your part - continue with best practice
  recruitment and employment procedures.

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For further information please
visitwww.isa-gov.org
Thank You
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