Why Does Football Need CRB Checks?
The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act (2006) (SVGA), was drafted following the death of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in August 2002 and aims to prevent unsuitable people from working with children and vulnerable adults.
This Act had an impact on football for Under 18s and The Football Association has worked hard to ensure the voice of football has been heard and understood by Government. There is an increasing level of awareness about this Act and the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) and Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS) were created by it.
There is also natural anxiety. The FA takes its responsibilities as a national governing body seriously and are providing counties, leagues and clubs with a systematic approach to the requirements of the Act. Government guidance for sport is expected shortly and The FA will provide support, frequently asked questions and training after this date.
The FA is aware that people are anxious about the cost of the new scheme. The Government will not be charging volunteers though, at present, The FA needs to levy an administration charge (currently £15 for the CRB). The aim is to keep this low as possible. It has also been noted there is a lot of information in the public domain which is being misinterpreted at times. However, by following the guidance below, those involved in football will not fall foul of the Act whilst waiting for further information.
Most of the Act doesn’t affect children’s football until July 2010 so, for the season 2010/11, football must:
- continue with the current CRB process
- ensure existing coaches and managers and new starters working with Under 18s are CRB checked immediately if they haven’t already been
- ensure everyone helping in Under 18s football who does not yet have a CRB check has one as soon as possible
- follow FA guidance on reporting concerns. The FA will then report relevant and significant concerns to the new Independent Safeguarding Authority
In addition, grassroots football clubs with youth sections must do the following in ordee to affiliate in 2010/11:
- ensure they have a Club Welfare Officer in place who has an FA CRB Check and has completed Safeguarding Children and Welfare Officer Workshops
- ensure their Club Welfare Officer is familiar with The FA’s Online Safeguarding Children Service - this is The FA’s tool for ensuring Club Welfare Officers can see who has been CRB checked. The system also allows Club Welfare Officers to see who has completed their Safeguarding Children training.
Update on CRB Forms: People completing a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) Check from this moment forward will do so using a redesigned form and the old stock will become void from 30th June.
The new forms cover ISA registration, the Government’s current position is that this has been put on hold, so lines 28-31 need to be left blank. The normal documents will still be required and applicants will now have to disclose whether they have a National Insurance Number and, if they do, they will need to supply the number. All the fields on the form in yellow are mandatory (other than 28 and 30 which refers to ISA).
On the form the verifier marks a box headed “Registered Body Use Only” when seeing the applicant’s documents (opposite line 20 – 25). The verifier also has to complete an additional sheet “ISA registration and Enhanced CRB Checks for Football” Identification Document (ID) Form. We have been asked to stress that applicants read The FA’s statement on the use of Enhanced CRB Disclose and ISA Registrations which is on the guidance notes. In addition, the admin fee has risen from £12 to £15 for volunteers but an online version is still being planned which will cost £10 when available.
Sir Roger Singleton's Review: You may well have seen and/or heard media coverage towards the end of 2009 relating to the anticipated response by the Government to Sir Roger Singleton’s review of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act in light of public concerns and media coverage.
The following statement has been posted onto TheFA.com in response.
"The FA is aware that Sir Roger Singleton has now formally reviewed the requirement to register under the new vetting and barring scheme and has suggested some changes. The FA has not yet received any formal notification of the detail of the review but we hope that this will be shared by the Government, with us in full.
The FA continues to stress that until such time as the details of the scheme are explicit the most important thing football can do is to follow its three part strategy:
- getting the right people involved - carrying out references and CRB checks
- creating a safe environment - Respect codes of conduct, education and best practice
- promoting clear systems - to deal with any concerns, appropriate policy and procedures
Football Clubs and Counties are strongly advised to ensure that anyone working or volunteering with children in football as a coach, referee, welfare officer, manager or hands-on first aider has an FA CRB and that the online Safeguarding Service shows to the club that their CRB is ‘accepted’. Please be assured The FA continues to work closely to identify the requirements of the scheme on football, to anticipate the impact of the scheme and to manage the process through to readiness. NB. The scheme becomes mandatory for certain cohorts in November 2010.”
Go to www.thefa.com/footballsafe for access to the Online Safeguarding Children Service. If you need help with accessing this site contact Helen Hever, ECFA County Welfare Officer, on (01245) 393098 or via E-Mail at helen.hever@essexfa.com.
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