FAQ’s

The Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007 (PVG Act)

For more information on the PVG Act please click here or please contact a member of our enrolment and assessmentteam on 01786 849777 (option 1).

No. The Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007 creates two main offences. One for organisations who employ a person who is on the barred list for the type of regulated work they are doing and one for barred individuals who put themselves forward for regulated work while barred. This means that it will be an offence for a barred person - and for an organisation to permit that person - to undertake work with children or protected adults if they are barred from that type of regulated work.

When an application to join the PVG Scheme is received, Disclosure Scotland will first check that the individual is not already barred from doing regulated work. If the individual is barred, they will be refused PVG Scheme membership.

Being barred means the inclusion of an individual on the PVG children’s list or PVG adults list, maintained by Disclosure Scotland. Listing is the outcome of a consideration for listing process where it is determined that an individual is unsuitable to work with one or other vulnerable group or the result of automatic listing. Barring is the consequence of being listed.

The PVG Act establishes two lists, as opposed to a single list for all work with vulnerable groups, in recognition of the differences in what makes an individual unsuitable to work with children or protected adults. Some types of cases, such as those involving physical or sexual violence, indicate unsuitability to do either type of regulated work. But in other cases, for example involving thefts from care home residents, may indicate unsuitability to work with protected adults but may not mean the individual should be barred from regulated work with children. A single list system would need to have a higher threshold for listing than a two list system, where the criteria can be tailored for each list.

Regulated work means regulated work with children or regulated work with protected adults in relation to the Protection of Vulnerable Groups Act 2007 (PVG Act). Regulated work with children is defined in schedule 2 of the Act and regulated work with protected adults is defined in schedule 3 of the Act. If an organisation is asking an individual to do regulated work they can ask that individual to apply for either a PVG Scheme record or PVG Scheme record update.

The PVG Scheme ends the use of standard and enhanced disclosure checks under the 1997 Act for work with children and adults at risk. They have been replaced by new types of disclosure records under the PVG Act.

The PVG Scheme ends the use of standard and enhanced disclosure checks under the 1997 Act for work with children and adults at risk. They have been replaced by new types of disclosure records under the PVG Act, for positions that involve regulated work with children and/or protected adults.

Your organisation must be a qualifying voluntary organisation to be eligible to access PVG disclosure records

qualifying voluntary organisation is an organisation which

• is not a further education institution, a school, a public or local authority, or whish is not under the management of a public or local authority; and
• is not conducted primarily for profit, and any profit generated is used to further the objectives of the organisation and not distributed to its members

Child means an individual under the age of 18.

A person (aged 16 or over) protected by the PVG Act because they are receiving certain services

A registered care service, a health service, community care service or a welfare service

This includes a support service, an adult placement service, a care home service and a housing support service.

This is a service provided or secured by a public health body concerning the treatment, care and support of, and provision of advice and assistance to individuals in relation to health and well-being, or similar services provided by an independent health care service provider.

This is social work and mental health services provided or secured by a council, or self-directed support paid for by a council

This is a service which provides support, assistance, advice or counselling to individuals with particular needs, meeting the following conditions. The service must be a service that:

• a) Is provided in the course of work to one or more persons aged 16 or over,
• b) Is delivered on behalf of an organisation
• c) Requires training to be undertaken by the person delivering the service
• d) Has a frequency and formality attached to the service, and
• e) Either
  • i. Requires a contract to be agreed between the service provider and the recipient of the service prior to the service being carried out, or
  • ii. Is personalised to an individual adult’s needs