Keeping Children Safe?

The Government announced today that the Keeping Children Safe scheme, a result of the Sarah's Law campaign, will be extended following a successful pilot. Having read the documentation (http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/everychildmatters/_download/?id=2208), I am of the opinion that the scheme as it operates at present, would theoretically allow a parent to ask the police for information about a tutor as a tutor may have unsupervised contact with a child.

Tutors' Alliance advocates that no child should be left alone unsupervised with a child in the first place. Unfortunately, in some households with a tutor, tutors "double up" as occasional or regular babysitters. This is particularly true where the tutor is already known to the family before he or she is engaged.

We have seen a number of recent scandals involving child protection - one of the most shocking being the case of Ugochukwu Okorie (see previous blog posts and Tutors' Alliance website for more details). It is hoped that a scheme like this would allow parents to ask for a disclosure of relevant information in circumstances similar to those in the Okorie case.

This new scheme is to be welcomed to protect children who, as a result of the unsupervised contact they have with a person with previous relevant convictions, are most vulnerable to abuse. However, prevention is better than cure and parents are advised to ensure that tutors are not left in a position where they have unsupervised contact with children in the first place. Likewise, tutors should refuse to be responsible for a child on an unsupervised basis. This protects both the child and tutor.