Safer recruitment

Following the Soham tragedy, Sir Michael Bichard was commissioned by the government to report on child safety, with a focus on inter-agency record keeping, recruitment in schools and employment vetting. 

The inquiry concluded that schools must pay more attention to issues about safeguarding children when recruiting and appointing staff. It was recommended that head-teachers and school governors should receive training to help strengthen the recruitment process and procedures.

Further recommendations followed that this should be rolled out to the rest of the children and young people's workforce.

The government launched the ‘Staying Safe' consultation on 17 July 2007. The  resulting Staying Safe action plan set out proposals for a safe workforce to 'promote safe recruitment practices in all sectors working with children and young people, extending the recent guidance issued to education settings'.

We have been asked by the government to:

• Produce training, guidance and CD-rom resources on safe recruitment practices consistent, with other safer recruitment guidance and training produced by the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), for the children and young people's workforce (not schools sector).
• Host online safer recruitment training for the schools sector, formerly delivered and devloped by the National College (previously NCSL).