Following the Bichard Report, Safer Recruitment procedures are now a vital aspect of the employment process for all schools and will be examined by inspectors on a regular basis.
The revised DfES guidance published in January 2007 – Safeguarding Children and Safer Recruitment in Education consolidates best practice and sets out procedures for:
- Recruitment of staff and volunteers
- Dealing with allegations of abuse and
- Undertaking disciplinary action and dismissals relating to child protection concerns
We provide specialist training in Safer Recruitment which is available to all schools and can be tailored to meet your school's specific requirements.
During the past 18 months delegates from over 350 schools nationwide have attended our training. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive and delegates have described how our Safer Recruitment Pack has transformed their procedures.
Training options
We can deliver a half day seminar for 20-30 delegates from groups of schools through your local or professional associations. Each session draws together specialist knowledge of employment law, education law, child protection and HR to assist schools in achieving compliance.
The seminar is designed to be interactive with a mixture of presentations, group work and case studies. We have a flexible approach to training and are happy to travel to the most convenient venue for you.
We can also provide in-house sessions for the senior management team of your school, training all staff who are involved in the recruitment process. This has proved very successful.
Each session covers:
- The law surrounding recruitment: avoiding the pitfalls
- The statutory guidance: Safeguarding Children and Safer Recruitment in Education
- The vital components of a Safer Recruitment Policy
- Safer recruitment and interviewing
- Pre-employment checks - CRB, the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) barred lists and overseas checks
- What to do about volunteers, agency workers, contractors and peripatetic staff
- Requesting references and interpreting replies
- Offering employment and rejecting the unsuccessful candidates
- Safer termination: the Police, Social Services and your reporting obligations to the ISA
More than just a seminar...
Included in the cost:
- Each school receives a CD copy of the Veale Wasbrough Vizards Safer Recruitment Pack which contains the documents, forms, checklists and correspondence needed to comply with the Guidance
- Each delegate is provided with a comprehensive file of notes and guidance
- A record of attendance
- All delegates will receive our Safer Recruitment Update issued whenever there are significant developments to report.
The online training provided by the National College for School Leadership (NCSL) has ceased. Since 1 November 2009 this has been provided by the Children's Workforce Development Council (CWDC). The training is similar to that provided by the NCSL except it is available through the CWDC website. This is the only safer recruitment training accredited by the DCSF and is open to as many people as a school requires. As of 1 January 2010, it is mandatory for at least one member of an interview panel to have completed the CWDC training (or to have completed the NCSL training).
We have consistently advised schools to complete the accredited training in addition to the Veale Wasbrough Vizards Safer Recruitment Training Programme. Our training supplements the CWDC training as it is a practical workshop and actively addresses delegates queries and concerns. We also provide a comprehensive suite of documents in our Safer Recruitment Pack for all your recruitment needs.
The Safer Recruitment Pack can also be purchased separately. Click here for a sample.
For further information, please contact Richard Hewitt or Karl Deakin in our Education department on 0117 925 2020.
