Safe Recruitment
Safer Recruiting
Recruitment Procedures for Paid Employees and Volunteers
The most important aspect of Safeguarding is the vigilance of the whole community and the safe recruitment of staff and volunteers.
I is the responsibility of the P.C.C. to establish a system so that those who are recruited to work with children, young people or vulnerable adults are recruited safely.
• The P.C.C. should use the guidelines below to establish procedures for recruitment and appointment of any parish workers, paid or voluntary, and decide who will be involved in this process. It should be decided who is responsible for taking up references, seeking a confidential declaration, and validating the identity of those applying for a CRB disclosure. These need not be the same person and need not be the same person for children’s workers as for workers with vulnerable adults. All those undertaking a pastoral role within the parish should be assumed to be working with vulnerable adults and follow the recruitment process.
• When groups identify potential new recruits for work with either children or vulnerable groups they should be referred at an early stage for the above procedures to be followed.
• In general people should be involved in the life of the church for at least six months before being asked to help with children or vulnerable people. This can be waived in specific circumstances where people have a track record in another parish or have a professional post in similar work.
• People may visit groups on an occasional basis where it would be unrealistic to recruit them using this process. They should be supervised and in no circumstances should they be responsible for the group.
• Young people between the ages of 14 and 16 assisting as helpers should be treated as visitors to the group: they should be supervised and supported and should not be responsible for the group.
For fuller guidance please see Section 4 of the Diocesan Child Protection Guidelines.
Also:
Safeguarding Guidelines relating to Safer Recruitment. For all who work on behalf of the Church of England.
Dignity at Work
CRB APPLICATIONS: for disclosures
CRB applications for all volunteers in parishes in Newcastle Diocese are administered through Church House. Contact Margaret Robertson, CRB Administrator at m.robertson@newcastle.anglican.org or call 0191 2704145.
All licensed Clergy, Church Army Officers and Readers must have CRB disclosures, and these are administered through Bishop's House.
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