Criminal record Criminal record disclosure rechecksdisclosure rechecks

This leafl et contains the most important things you need to be aware of and think about when preparing to undertake a criminal record recheck on an existing Girlguiding volunteer.

Why do we have to do rechecks?Girlguiding is committed to maintaining a safe space in guiding for young members and volunteers. Therefore, we require all volunteers in ‘regulated activity’ (see overleaf) to undertake a criminal record disclosure check every fi ve years or if transferring into a different County and/or Country or Region.

Dos and don’ts of recheckingDo✔ Make sure you contact the volunteer as soon as you receive the initial email,

reassuring them that there is nothing to worry about.

✔ Ensure they are aware of what ID documentation they need to bring with them and that it must be the original documents. A list of accepted documents can be found by searching for ‘ID Verifi ers’ on www.girlguiding.org.uk.

✔ Bear in mind that they will have already given a lot to guiding, so remember to value their contribution.

✔ Take the opportunity to discuss their guiding journey and check if they have any training needs or are interested in undertaking another role in guiding.

✔ Enter the volunteer’s membership number on their disclosure check application to prevent any unnecessary delays.

Don’t✘ Delay – this could result in the individual being asked to step down from guiding if

the check hasn’t been commenced two months after the renewal date.

✘ Undertake the ID check remotely by asking the individual to send original documentation or photocopies of their documentation – you must meet the person face to face.

Help and supportIf you have any questions about the rechecking process, please read the regularly updated FAQs on disclosure checks and rechecking (search for ‘disclosure checks’ on www.girlguiding.org.uk).

Your County Coordinator for ID Verifi ers can also help with any questions you may have; alternatively please contact disclosures@girlguiding.org.uk.

If you have any concerns about the individual you are rechecking, or if he or she refuses to undergo the rechecking process, please email safeguarding@girlguiding.org.uk.

Essential information for Commissioners

© Girlguiding 2015 www.girlguiding.org.ukRegistered charity number 306016. Incorporated by Royal Charter.

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‘Regulated activity’ relating to children is defi ned in Schedule 4 of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 (as amended). Some Girlguiding roles fall into the category of activity of a specifi ed nature:

� teaching, training, instruction, care for or supervision of children (except if the person undertaking the activities is under regular supervision) if carried out by the same person frequently or overnight

� advice or guidance (except legal advice) provided wholly or mainly for children which relates to their physical, emotional or educational well-being if carried out by the same person frequently or overnight.

To comply with the decision of Girlguiding’s trustees for our volunteers to undergo rechecking, our membership system Go! (Guiding Organiser) will record the updated check on the volunteer’s record.

How does the process of rechecking start?Two months before a recheck is due, Go! will send an email to the individual concerned and to you (as the local Commissioner). There is no need to make any arrangements with the volunteer to start a recheck until you have received this notifi cation email and/or the volunteer appears on the ‘Disclosure check required’ report on Go!.

What do I do next?Once you receive the email, arrange for your local ID Verifi er to meet the volunteer to check their ID and complete an online disclosure check application. As the individual will have also received an email, he or she will be aware that a recheck needs to be carried out. This information will also appear on the ‘Disclosure check required’ report available to District, Division and County users.

What if I have not done/cannot do the recheck two months before the renewal date?If for any reason you cannot do the recheck till the actual expiry date of a disclosure check (ie fi ve years after the last check), a notifi cation email will be sent to the volunteer concerned, you (as their local Commissioner) and the County Commissioner, notifying them that a recheck must be completed as soon as possible.

If you still don’t do the recheck for two months after the expiry date, the volunteer will be told he or she cannot attend residential events or be left unsupervised with children till the recheck is done.

How long will the process for rechecking take?To make the roll-out smooth and manageable in your area, rechecking will be introduced over a fi ve-year period from 1 June 2015, so that by 2020 volunteers will complete a new criminal record disclosure check every fi ve years.

The rechecking processFor volunteers currently in a role that requires a criminal record disclosure check

Go! sends an email to the volunteer and local Commissioner two months before the recheck is due.

Rechecking takes place.

Nothing more to do.

Rechecking doesn’t take place.

Go! sends an email to the volunteer, the local Commissioner and the County Commissioner on the date the recheck is due.

Rechecking takes place.

Nothing more to do.

Rechecking doesn’t take place.

Go! sends an email to the volunteer, the local Commissioner and the County Commissioner two months after the recheck is due.

Rechecking takes place.

Nothing more to do.

Rechecking doesn’t take place.

Volunteer’s role on Go! becomes ‘active-pending’. He or she cannot attend residential events or be left unsupervised with children until a new check takes place.

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