Plea over work experience for social care students

Social care students are losing out on valuable work experience due to the state’s poor vetting system for those working with children, it was claimed today.

Olwyn Enright, Fine Gael’s spokeswoman on education, claimed there was a lack of access to the stringent vetting procedures necessary for third-level students to have on the job experience in many facilities.

She said the state’s inadequate vetting systems were threatening the viability of some college courses involving work experience.

“The lack of access to vetting for third-level students is already causing difficulties for some third level colleges,” the Laois and Offaly TD said.

“Courses in social care and early childhood education rely, to a considerable extent, on the finding of an appropriate placement for the third-level students.”

Ms Enright claimed the vetting system in Ireland is far behind the procedures in place in Northern Ireland and in the European Union.

She said third-level students cannot be vetted through the Central Garda Vetting Unit – forcing many agencies to decline them experience.

The Education Department said the Central Vetting Unit, which is run by An Garda Siochana, was responsible for vetting requests for prospective employees of around 900 organisations.

It stated: “At present in the education sector, vetting is available in respect of requests for clearance from the Department of Education and Science in relation to bus escorts and special needs assistants provided to children with special educational needs, and to staff working in children detention schools.”

In September of last year, Brian Lenihan, the Junior Minister with responsibility for children, said there would be a major increase in the resources provided to the vetting unit to improve the level of checks available.

Ms Enright said residential children’s homes and other facilities were currently expected to accept students without any background checks.

“Without these placements, students on social care courses cannot gain the valuable experience that they require as part of their education and training,” she said.

Ms Enright said the placements could vary from one day a week to full-time work for three months – in residential children’s homes, special schools, women’s refuge or other facilities.

“This is an unacceptable situation, and is resulting in an increasing number of agencies refusing to offer placements to students,” she said. “Whilst it is very important that these students have access to placement to further their education, facilities that are responsible for the care of children and vulnerable adults should not be expected to have to compromise on safety.”

Ms Enright claimed the Government’s progress on the vetting issue was slow.

“None of the legislative changes recommended have taken place, and the establishment of a register of persons considered unsafe to work with children has made no progress in the last two years,” she said. “Recent promises to improve vetting are welcome, but it is clear that there is so much more to be done.”

Ms Enright said vetting should be extended to third-level students on social care and other courses before next September, to allow those who need work placements to be accommodated.