CRB and ISA Legistlation
Jenny Kellber provides information on new legislation that may require guitar teachers by law to register with the Independent Safeguarding Authority...
Many RGT teachers have taken the opportunity to obtain Criminal Records Bureau Enhanced Disclosures through RGT via our CRB umbrella body, Osborne Cawkwell. Guitar teachers applying for freelance teaching jobs in schools and colleges are increasingly being asked to provide evidence of their CRB check, and parents are more likely nowadays to want to know if a tutor holds a current CRB check before booking lessons for their children. RGT has negotiated a special reduced administration fee with Osborne Cawkwell for RGT members of just £8.25 plus VAT (probably the lowest cost for CRB checking available in the UK). The standard, fixed CRB fee is £36 – making a total of £46. This facility and reduced fee is available only to current RGT members. To request a CRB application pack, please ring Jenny Kellber on 01424 222222, or email office@RGT.org
Scotland has its own procedures for disclosure checks, and tutors resident in Scotland requiring disclosure checks should ring the Scottish Disclosure Advisory Service on 01786 825313.
New Legistlation
It is not currently a legal requirement for self-employed guitar tutors to have a CRB check. However, there will be major changes when the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 and the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups (Northern Ireland) Order 2007 come into effect in October 2009. The Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) has been created to help prevent unsuitable people from working with children and vulnerable adults. ISA works in partnership with the Criminal Records Bureau, and will assess every person who wants to work or volunteer with vulnerable people (‘vulnerable people’ being defined as anyone under the age of 18 and anyone over 18 who is considered ‘vulnerable’ under the terms of the Act – such as anyone requiring assistance in the conduct of their own affairs). It will be an offence not to register with the ISA – penalties are a fine or up to five years in prison.
It will become an offence, with penalties of up to five years in prison, for guitar teachers to teach people under 18 and ‘vulnerable adults’ unless they register with the ISA.
ISA will be holding roadshows and information events around the country; you can see more information at www.isa-gov.org.uk. Potential employees and volunteers will need to apply to register with the ISA, (volunteers may not be liable for the ISA registration fee). Self-employed people can apply themselves through the ISA website as the vetting service is phased in. There will be a one-off registration fee, and a personal ISA Registration Number will be given after payment, so that you remain on the ISA database even if you change employers.
Timescale
From October 2009 new job applicants (includes new self-employed guitar teachers) will need to apply for ISA registration. Employers and voluntary organisations will not be able to recruit workers who are not ISA registered as this would be an offence.
From 2010 existing employees (includes all self-employed guitar teachers) and volunteers with no CRB check must apply for ISA registration. Existing employees (includes self-employed guitar teachers) and volunteers with CRB checks will also need to apply for ISA registration, starting with those whose CRB checks are the oldest. Due to the large number of adults that will need to register (over 11 million!!!), there is an implementation period of five years.
More Information
- Where applicants have a record of unsuitability for working with vulnerable groups or have committed certain offences, the ISA may not be able to register them, and they may be put on an ISA Barred List and may not be allowed to work with vulnerable people.
- In Scotland, parallel legislation, the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007, is proposed to come into effect in 2009 but a ‘go live’ date is not yet available. The scheme will be managed by Disclosure Scotland www.disclosurescotland.co.uk
- Further updates on how the new legislation affects guitar teachers will follow in future issues of Guitar Tutor once the information has been made available by the ISA and (for Scotland) the Scottish Parliament.
