Child protection measures to be scaled back

16 Jun 2010

Child protection measures for people who work with children are to be scaled back.

Child protection measures to vet people who commonly work with children have been halted, reports the Guardian.

A scheme to vet up to nine million people who frequently work with children, due to start next month, has been stopped and condemned as “draconian” by the Home Secretary, Theresa May.

Explaining the decision, taken this week, to review and scale back the scheme, she said: "You were assumed to be guilty until you were proven innocent, and told you were able to work with children.

"All sorts of groups were deeply concerned about this and how it was going to affect them. There were schools where they were very concerned that foreign exchanges could be finished as a result of this. Parents were worried about looking after other people's children after school."

Although the Conservative party originally backed the vetting scheme, Mrs May said it was now recognised that it would have “unintended consequences”, was disproportionate, burdensome and infringed on civil liberties.

The scheme was the legacy of the murder of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman by school caretaker Ian Huntley in Soham in 2002.

But a high profile campaign, led by children's authors including Phillip Pullman, has been waged against the measures which would mean that 11 million adults who work with children or regularly visit schools would have to be registered on a database.

The Independent Safeguarding Authority said that regulations that were already in place still apply, and employers should continue to carry out CRB pre-recruitment checks on those involved in a list of "regulated activities".

Commenting to Guardian about Mrs May’s decision to halt the scheme, shadow Home Office spokeswoman, Meg Hillier told the newspaper: “Once again, we see a kneejerk reaction, a symbolic halt and yet another review."

Source: www.guardian.co.uk