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Checkmate: The Impact of Vetting on Youth Work

By Anonymous - Posted on 20 June 2007

From Autumn 2008, the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act will make it a
crime for a non-CRB checked adult to work or volunteer with children.
Vetting is already putting adults off working with kids; some long-time
volunteers have resigned rather than be CRB checked. Is some vetting
necessary – and when is it going too far? What effect does vetting have on
the relationship between youth workers and young people? Are there
alternative ways for adults to work together to ensure children’s welfare?

This evening event, organised by the Manifesto Club at Spitz, is a forum for
honest discussion about the role and impact of vetting - and for us to start
to think of possible ways forward. We can continue the conversation
afterwards, over a glass of wine in the Spitz bar.

Speakers for the evening include: Tony Jeffs (senior lecturer, University of
Durham, community youth work unit), Viv Regan (youth worker and volunteer,
WORLDwrite), and Mervyn Barrett (communications manager, Nacro).

Date: Thursday 26 July
Time: 7-9pm
Place: The Spitz, 109 Commercial St, Old Spitalfields Market, London E1 6BG
See a map: http://www.spitz.co.uk/location.htm

Tickets are £5. To book a ticket, go to www.manifestoclub.com/youthevent
For more information about this or other Manifesto Club events, email
info@manifestoclub.com

The event will be filmed by the youth education charity WORLDwrite. We hope
to collect some case studies, perhaps for a future publication – and also to
lead on to further discussions within the sector in the run-up to autumn
2008.

The Manifesto Club is a pro-human campaigning network, and is running an
ongoing campaign against the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act.
www.manifestoclub.com

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The Impact of Vetting on Youth Work

Submitted by joolieb1 on Wed, 15/08/2007 - 10:04am.

I will be starting a new job supporting Youth Clubs and their volunteers. My first priority will be ensure all the Clubs are "safe" for young people. Child Protection is vital and no-one should object to having a CRB check. However, I know that in the busyness of running a Club, sometimes people start without the necessary checks. I want to be able to make the process as easy as possible. Of course, some potential volunteers may have some history of offending and may be worried this will show up. However, the type of offence, how long ago it was etc will all be taken into account surely when the person is spoken to after the check. Also, over-reliance on check is dangerous. There are probably people who pose a risk to children, who have never been convicted. It is therefore essential that organisations working with young people have a whole package of working practice to ensure that young people are not at risk. Julie