header-logo header-logo

A vetting epidemic?

19 July 2007 / Richard Scorer
Issue: 7282 / Categories: Features , Child law
printer mail-detail

Computers shouldn’t replace common sense in child protection procedures, says Richard Scorer

Is there too much vetting going on, or too little? Fears about inadequate checking of people working with children and vulnerable adults are rarely out of the media. In 2006, the issue was sex offenders in schools. In May and June 2007, fears were voiced after a BBC survey found that 68% of health trusts in the UK do not routinely run checks on staff who began work before the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) was set up in 2002.

Other commentators, however, complain of an “over vetted” society in which innocent activities such as dressing up as an elf at a children’s Christmas party are becoming impossible due to a toxic obsession about paedophilia out of all proportion to reality. Do we need more and better checking, or have we gone too far already?

different lists

On any objective view, it is reasonable and necessary to vet those who work extensively with children and vulnerable adults. It is also obvious that the

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Group partner joins Guernsey banking and finance practice

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

London labour and employment team announces partner hire

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Double partner appointment marks Belfast expansion

NEWS
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has not done enough to protect the future sustainability of the legal aid market, MPs have warned
Writing in NLJ this week, NLJ columnist Dominic Regan surveys a landscape marked by leapfrog appeals, costs skirmishes and notable retirements. With an appeal in Mazur due to be heard next month, Regan notes that uncertainties remain over who will intervene, and hopes for the involvement of the Lady Chief Justice and the Master of the Rolls in deciding the all-important outcome
After the Southport murders and the misinformation that followed, contempt of court law has come under intense scrutiny. In this week's NLJ, Lawrence McNamara and Lauren Schaefer of the Law Commission unpack proposals aimed at restoring clarity without sacrificing fair trial rights
The latest Home Office figures confirm that stop and search remains both controversial and diminished. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort University analyses data showing historically low use of s 1 PACE powers, with drugs searches dominating what remains
Boris Johnson’s 2019 attempt to shut down Parliament remains a constitutional cautionary tale. The move, framed as a routine exercise of the royal prerogative, was in truth an extraordinary effort to sideline Parliament at the height of the Brexit crisis. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC dissects how prorogation was wrongly assumed to be beyond judicial scrutiny, only for the Supreme Court to intervene unanimously
back-to-top-scroll