Government ‘to extend vetting of those who work with children’

BACKGROUND checks will be carried out on most people who work with children, the Government is expected to announce today.

The garda vetting unit only carries out checks on health board staff working with children and bus escorts for pupils with special needs.

But almost two years after the Government announced a review of current procedures, Children’s Minister Brian Lenihan will this morning announce an extension of the criteria to other groups working with young people.

While details were not available last night, one source said it would involve extending the current checks system.

The Department of Health said the announcement regards the allocation of major additional resources for garda vetting of people working with children. The review was commissioned in late 2002 by Justice Minister Michael McDowell, who received the report of a group chaired by a garda chief superintendent last March. He asked Mr Lenihan to bring forward measures to implement its recommendations.

Representatives of parents and the youth work sector have called for extensions of the vetting system to include school staff and those working with sports clubs, youth organisations and community groups.

“We want anybody who works with young children to be vetted, and priority should be given to those at primary or pre-school level,” said National Parents Council (Primary) chief executive Fionnuala Kilfeather.

It is understood the delay in the working group’s deliberations was partly caused by difficulties over the extra garda resources required to extend the vetting unit’s brief.

The Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC) and Barnardos have made repeated calls for proper vetting procedures, particularly in the wake of the Soham murders in August 2002.

It emerged after the conviction of school caretaker Ian Huntley that he had been quizzed by police in relation to alleged indecent assaults on several women before being employed at the school of his victims, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman.

The Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) has said it would gladly co-operate with a comprehensive police vetting system. Around 1,400 new teachers begin work in primary schools each year, along with growing numbers of special needs assistants.

The National Youth Federation (NYF) yesterday called for the immediate implementation of a vetting procedure for youth and community workers.