Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scheme
Thursday, 24 February 2011 12:40
On 28 February 2011, the Scottish Government is to introduce a new membership scheme to replace and improve upon the current disclosure arrangements for people who work with vulnerable groups.
PVG Scheme membership will only be available to individuals carrying out regulated work. Organisations recruiting individuals into regulated work should ask them to join the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme. Individuals who are currently in post do not need to do anything at this stage as they will join the PVG scheme retrospectively over the next 4 years.
For those applying to register with the Scottish Social Services Council we require employers to provide details of either an enhanced Disclosure Scotland certificate number and date of the disclosure which should be relevant to when they took up their current job role or a PVG scheme membership number.
From the 28 February anyone who has not had an enhanced disclosure or the employer cannot provide the details of this will require their employee to become a PVG scheme member.
The PVG Scheme provision is outlined in the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) (Scotland) Act 2007. Full details regarding PVG can be found on Disclosure Scotland's website www.disclosurescotland.co.uk.
Information on guidance and training is now available on the PVG progress update number 7. Visit the PVG Scheme Scotland website
Comments
"For those applying to register with the Scottish Social Services Council we require employers to provide details of either an enhanced Disclosure Scotland certificate number and date of the disclosure which should be relevant to when they took up their current job role or a PVG scheme membership number.
From the 28 February anyone who has not had an enhanced disclosure or the employer cannot provide the details of this will require their employee to become a PVG scheme member."
However, Disclosure Scotland will not allow existing staff to become a PVG Scheme member until Feb 2012.
How does an individual overcome this? Or does a new Enhanced Disclosure need to be carried out?
Thank you for your comment.
If an employer cannot provide details of an Enhanced Disclosure outcome for their employee’s application to register with the SSSC, then the applicant will need to become a PVG member. The individual applicant would be due the £59 cost for this.
When an application to register with the SSSC confirms that an Enhanced Disclosure outcome is not available, then the SSSC would expect that the applicant submit a PVG Scheme application to ourselves as part of the application to register. We would supply the PVG form as necessary to our applicants. If membership of the PVG Scheme is necessary for someone to gain registration with the SSSC, then Disclosure Scotland will process the PVG application, regardless of whether the person is already in post.
The PVG application should be submitted to the SSSC to be countersigned, along with the £59 payment to be made to the SSSC. The countersigning of the application would indicate that SSSC registration is dependent on PVG membership and the SSSC would then forward Disclosure Scotland the PVG application fee.
Please note that it is no longer possible to apply for an Enhanced Disclosure check and that the PVG Scheme has now replaced Enhanced Disclosures.
