On 12 October, the next stage in the government’s plans to protect children and vulnerable adults came into effect. From this date, it will be a criminal offence for employers or recruitment agencies that knowingly recruit barred
individuals into certain ‘regulated activities’. These include those whose jobs involve contact with

However, this is just the beginning of a series of measures over the next four years (see Key facts, right), with employers who don’t comply with their obligations facing a potential prison sentence of up to six months and a fine of £5,000.

Potential criminal record aside, what are the implications for recruiters, be they agency or in-house? Will it be an improvement on the present system? And what effect will it have on candidates, and on the speed and efficiency of the recruitment process?

Peter Cullimore, managing director of social care agency Universal Care, who supplies staff into a sector covered by the new scheme, is concerned that with huge numbers (possibly as many as 11m) having to go on the new register, the police who will be responsible for carrying out the checks will be insufficiently resourced. “There is a real concern that Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks will take even longer than the current six to eight weeks,” he says.

There has to be a balance to ensure that the procedures are streamlined and more effective and quicker than at present

Stephen Moir, corporate director for people, policy and law at Cambridgeshire County Council, adds: “If the government wants to continue with things like the vetting and barring requirement… and is not going to give any more money, it’s going to slow things down.” This could act as a disincentive to people entering the public sector, Moir suggests. Cullimore has similar fears that the £64 registration fee may put potential workers off entering the social care sector.

While Moir doesn’t downplay the importance of ensuring that those employed in the public sector are properly vetted, he argues that there “has to be a balance to ensure that the procedures are streamlined and more effective and quicker than at present”.

However, some aspects of the new scheme will undoubtedly prove attractive to employers. David Evans, head of HR at homeless charity Shelter, where more than 60% of staff are covered by the new scheme, told Recruiter that the facility for the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) to automatically notify employers when an individual was no longer suitable to work was an advantage over the old system, in which CRB checks “have to be carried out continuously”. One of the main criticisms of CRB reports is that they are only as good as the day they are issued.

John Dunn, a director of Randstad Education Group, says he is worried that the new scheme is incomplete. Recruiters will still need to carry out CRB checks, he argues, as a person could still be registered with the ISA and have a criminal record making them unsuitable for employment. An example might be theft, which doesn’t pose a risk to children or vulnerable adults. However, he says that many recruiters will not be aware of this.

While the new scheme is under review, according to Sue Ashtiany, head of employment law at Nabarro, following a public outcry that up to 11m adults might have to register, it seems likely that the main thrust of the government’s plans will remain in place. If that is the case, recruiters will need a lot of convincing that with the exception of the odd improvement, the new scheme won’t just be more of the same.