3A: Safe Recruitment Policy

References

The BGA has a Teaching Accreditation Scheme. Amongst other requirements the accredited teacher must provide two references using the BGA reference form. These references should be sent to the Child Protection Advisor who will make telephone contact with the referees as part of an additional safeguarding process. One of these references should be from someone outside the Go community.

How to obtain a criminal records check certificate

The individual is advised to discuss with the Child Protection Adviser whether the proposed involvement with young people falls under the definition of Regulated Activity.

England, Wales and Northern Ireland:

The BGA uses an umbrella organisation (First Advantage) to provide a criminal record checking service. The process is completed on-line and the CPA can support this process.

The individual and a BGA Verifier (see section 1.2) will arrange an appointment for the Verifier to see the original copies of the proof of identity. The Verifier then completes the relevant section of the on-line application stating the level of check required and verifying the identity documents.

Once the applicant has received the outcome of the check they have 19 calendar days from the date of the DBS Certificate to apply for the Update Service. This service allows the BGA and other registered services to check the DBS status of an individual and avoids the need for multiple certificates.

Scotland:

The BGA is registered with Volunteer Scotland Disclosure Services to provide a criminal record checking service for eligible Scottish Go players. An individual who is not barred from working with children may apply to join the Protecting Vulnerable Groups Scheme (the PVG Scheme).

The CPA can support the on-line process and arrange for the identity documents to be checked.

Disclosure Scotland will send a PVG Scheme Record to the applicant and the BGA registered Lead Person (currently the CPA).

Situations where a criminal conviction, caution or warning is shown on the disclosure:

Police information on a disclosure does not necessarily preclude an individual from working with children; this will depend on the nature and context of the offence The CPA will discuss the disclosure with the applicant in order to obtain further information on the context of the offence. The decision as to whether the individual is permitted to undertake the BGA roles as described above will be determined by the Child Protection Adviser in consultation with a Board Member, normally the President. This decision will be made in the light of information about the offence.

Barred List Information. A Barred List check will be undertaken by the Disclosure and Barring Service. If the individual has been barred the CPA will be informed that they are legally prevented from undertaking Regulated Activity.

Enhanced disclosure only - non-conviction Disclosure information may be provided to the BGA by a Chief Constable or Chief Officer of a relevant Police Force in confidence. In such cases, the BGA will not disclose the details of the Disclosure information to the Applicant. If this information affects the recruitment decision then the BGA can inform the Applicant, if asked, that additional information has been provided, but may not provide actual details of this additional information or from where it was sourced.

Suspicion of Inappropriate or Harmful Behaviour

This section covers allegations against a worker or volunteer for the BGA. Allegations of inappropriate or harmful behaviour by a Go player towards a child or young person is covered in the general Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy.

Immediate risk of harm: If it is believed that the young person is at immediate risk of harm, then the concern must be reported immediately to the Police or to Children’s Social Care.

Where the risk of harm is not immediate: If the issue does not reach the threshold for an immediate referral, but is still a concern, doubt or worry, then the Child Protection Advisor should be contacted.

The CPA will inform the Police, and/or local child protection agencies as appropriate. In addition, the CPA will consult with the Local Authority Designated Officer if the allegation is that the individual has behaved towards a child or young person in a way that indicates he or she may pose a risk of harm.

The CPA will also inform the President of the BGA of the allegation.

Undertaking an investigation into the allegation

The situation may arise whereby the behaviour does not reach the threshold for a police investigation or a criminal prosecution, but is considered sufficiently serious to raise questions about the individual’s suitability to work with children.

In such a case the President, in consultation with the CPA will appoint an Investigator.

The Investigator will offer a professional judgement, based on the information available from their enquiries, on whether the allegation falls into one of the following categories:

• Substantiated. A substantiated allegation is one which is supported or established by identifiable evidence or proof;
  
• Unsubstantiated. An unsubstantiated allegation is not the same as a false allegation. It simply means that there is insufficient identifiable evidence to prove or disprove the allegation. The term, therefore, does not imply guilt or innocence;
  
• Unfounded. There is no evidence or proper basis which supports the allegation being made. This might indicate that the person making the allegation misinterpreted the incident or was mistaken about what they saw. Alternatively they may not have been aware of all the circumstances;
  
• False. There is sufficient evidence to disprove the allegation;
  
• Malicious. There is clear evidence to prove there has been a deliberate act to deceive and the allegation is entirely false.

The Investigator will inform the President, the CPA and the individual who is the subject of the investigation of the outcome in writing.

If the allegation is substantiated the CPA will make a recommendation to the President as to whether the BGA should cease to use the individual’s services or whether the individual can continue their role with certain restrictions or with advice or guidance. (In practice this decision is likely to be taken at a three-way meeting involving the Investigator, the CPA and the BGA President).

The BGA President will inform the individual in writing if the decision is made to cease to use his or her services. Alternatively, a decision may be made that the person can continue to work with young people for the BGA so long as further training or other safeguards are put in place.

If the individual resigns from their role while the allegation is being investigated the investigation should still be completed and the relevant parties informed of the outcome.

Informing other relevant parties

Communication with the Board Any allegation of possible child abuse is important and sensitive; it also runs the risk of adverse publicity or possible legal action if the allegation is unfounded and is made public. Accordingly, the Board will not normally be involved in any investigation. At the end of the investigation the President will determine, following consultation with the CPA, how much (if any) information shall be provided to the Board. Such information shall be provided on a “need to know” basis.

Communication with the DBS: In the event that the President’s decision is to cease to use the individual concerned, the CPA is responsible for ensuring that the DBS is informed of any decision to cease to use the services of an individual who is considered to be a risk to children.

Communication within Go clubs and associations within and outside the UK There may be situations where in order to protect the safety of young people it is deemed appropriate to disclose the nature of the allegation or offence to a representative of a UK based Go club or national Go Association. This includes allegations or offences concerning any Go player and is not restricted to those who are workers or volunteers.

Such a decision would involve the BGA President, Chair of the Youth Committee and Child Protection Adviser.

Where the individual is convicted of a sexual offence and is on the Sex Offender’s Register such decisions to disclose must be made in conjunction with the local police force who manage the offender.

In other cases, including cases where the individual does not have a criminal conviction the decision to disclose will be made on a case-by case basis taking into account the following information:

• The nature of the concerns.
• Information regarding the whereabouts or proposed whereabouts of the individual.
• The scope of authority of the Association – for example whether the individual was a volunteer with the BGA.

The subject of the disclosure must be made aware of the intention to disclose.

Specific roles within the BGA

The above Procedures give a specific role to the President, the Child Protection Advisor and the Chair of the Youth Committee. These roles may be undertaken by another Officer of the BGA in the following cases:

• Where the President, CPA or the Chair of the Youth Committee is directly involved in an allegation of inappropriate or harmful behaviour towards a young person, another Officer will take over responsibility.
• Where the President, CPA or the Chair of the Youth Committee has a potential conflict of interest, they may delegate the responsibility to another Officer.