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POCSA InformationProtection of Children (Scotland) Act 2003 (POCSA) Updates The Protection of Children (Scotland) Act 2003 allows Scottish Ministers to maintain a list of persons deemed unsuitable to work with children. The Act covers both employed persons and volunteers.
The list will be known as the Disqualified from Working with Children List. It will help strengthen safeguards already in place to protect children. The definition of a child in this legislation is a person under the age of 18 – the same as Part V of the Police Act 1997.
All organisations that work with children, including volunteer organisations, will commit an offence and be liable for prosecution if they do not comply with this legislation. Access to this list will only be available through the Disclosure process, thereby making registration for police checks on new staff and volunteers mandatory.
Implementation of the Protection of Children (Scotland) Act 2003 was on 10th January 2005. Section 11(3)(b) of the Act, which would trigger the need for retrospective checking, has been deferred. The commencement date has not yet been fixed (click here for more information). Full details of any updates will be provided within this page, when they are made available by the Scottish Government.
The list will not only provide organisations with the names of persons who are disqualified from working with children because they have committed an offence against children but will also provide information on persons who have been referred to Ministers and subsequently placed on the list because of the evidence supplied in the referral.
All organisations that work with children will have a duty to make a referral to Scottish Ministers when any person (paid or unpaid)
harms a child, or puts a child at risk of harm and
is dismissed is moved away from children as a consequence.
Both sets of criteria must be met before a referral can be made.
All organisations will also have a duty to make a referral to Scottish Ministers when any person (paid or unpaid)
harms a child, puts a child at risk of harm and
would have been dismissed if they had not
resigned retired been made redundant left at the end of a temporary contract Therefore, even if the person moves on of their own accord, and the organisation would have taken further action, if they had stayed, the organisation must still refer that person to Scottish Ministers. Click here for details on what should be included in referrals.
It will also be an offence if an organisation knowingly
employs a person to a position working with children or procures work for a person to a position working with children or fails to remove a person from a position working with children
and
they are named on the “Disqualified from Working with Children List”.
There is also a requirement for individuals to adhere to the legislation i.e. individuals will commit a criminal offence if they apply to or work with children. They will be informed if they are included on the list.
If a person applies for a position to work with children and they are already included in the list they will be committing an offence.
The list will only be available by checking persons through the Disclosure scheme i.e. when a Disclosure check is applied for, if the applicant’s name appears on the Disqualified from Working with Children List the information will be shown on Enhanced Disclosure Certificates.
If your organisation is not registered for Disclosure checks it will not have access to the list. If you engage staff or volunteers who are named on the List your organisation will be liable for prosecution. Section 20 of the Act allows for "individuals who exercise control within an organisation, as well as the organisation itself, to be proceeded against and punished where the organisation commits an offence of offering childcare work to disqualified individuals; failing to remove individuals; or moving them into positions involving such work". Note - if an organisation is prosecuted under the Act, the courts will determine who is responsible. More InformationPlease look in our documents section However, if you would like to discuss the legislation further, please call CRBS Compliance and Training Team on the following Direct Dials:
Additionally an information leaflet, Protection of Children (Scotland) Act 2003 – Information Note, has been compiled by the Scottish Government and can be viewed in the publications section of the Scottish Government website www.scotland.gov.uk. Hard copy, booklet or paper version is also available by contact Hazel Warne on dwcl@scotland.gsi.gov.uk or 0131 244 3735.
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