Poor recruitment checks
36 items
2 sources
Failure to gather and record all necessary information for recruitment purposes, potentially leading to unsuitable staff being hired.
Cross-Source Insight
Poor recruitment checks has been flagged across 2 independent accountability sources:
9 inquiry recs
27 PFD reports
This issue has been identified by multiple independent accountability bodies, suggesting it is a recurring systemic concern.
Inquiry Recommendations (9)
R27 — Information verification confirmation
Recommendation: Registered Bodies should be required to confirm that they have checked the information on the 'Police Check Form' in accordance with CRB guidance.
Gov response: The Home Secretary made a statement to Parliament on 22 June 2004, the day the Bichard Inquiry Report was published, accepting all 31 recommendations in full. The government stated it was "in principle, accepting Sir …
Accepted
Delivered
R28 — Broader consent on Police Check Form
Recommendation: The consents that applicants currently give on the 'Police Check Form' should be sufficiently broad to enable the requisite checks to be undertaken.
Gov response: The Home Secretary made a statement to Parliament on 22 June 2004, the day the Bichard Inquiry Report was published, accepting all 31 recommendations in full. The government stated it was "in principle, accepting Sir …
Accepted
Delivered
R29 — Incomplete applications returned to Registered Body
Recommendation: Incomplete or withdrawn applications should in future be returned to the Registered Body, and not to the applicant.
Gov response: The Home Secretary made a statement to Parliament on 22 June 2004, the day the Bichard Inquiry Report was published, accepting all 31 recommendations in full. The government stated it was "in principle, accepting Sir …
Accepted
Delivered
R30 — Overseas applicant checking
Recommendation: Proposals should be brought forward as soon as possible to improve the checking of people from overseas who want to work with children and vulnerable adults.
Gov response: The Home Secretary made a statement to Parliament on 22 June 2004, the day the Bichard Inquiry Report was published, accepting all 31 recommendations in full. The government stated it was "in principle, accepting Sir …
Accepted
Delivered
24 — Registration of children's home care staff
Recommendation: The Chair and Panel recommend that the Department for Education introduces arrangements for the registration of staff working in care roles in children's homes. Registration should be with an independent body charged with setting and maintaining standards of training, conduct …
Gov response: The Government agrees in principle that further workforce regulation could provide an effective additional means of protecting children. We are mindful that introducing professional registration for all staff in care roles in children's homes would …
Not Accepted
31 — DBS and training compliance for Church officers
Recommendation: Individuals engaged in regulated activity who have failed to undergo a Disclosure and Barring Service check or complete compulsory training should not be permitted to hold voluntary offices within the Church. Failure by ordained clergy to comply with either requirement …
Gov response: On 27 June 2019, the Church of England agreed that those in regulated roles who have failed to undergo a Disclosure and Barring Service check or complete mandatory safeguarding training should not be allowed to …
Accepted
Delivered
33 — Assessment of potential risks posed by foster carers and residential care staff
Recommendation: Nottingham City Council should assess the potential risks posed by current and former foster carers directly provided by the council in relation to the sexual abuse of children. They should also ensure that current and former foster carers provided by …
Gov response: Nottingham City Council: On 20 December 2021, Nottingham City Council stated that an internal fostering review was complete. External assurance of the review was also complete. The review concluded that no further referrals were required …
Accepted
Delivered
54 — Lambeth foster carer vetting review
Recommendation: Lambeth Council should review the application of recruitment and vetting procedures for all current foster carers directly provided by Lambeth Council, to ensure that the procedures have been followed correctly. In addition, Lambeth Council should seek assurances from external agencies …
Gov response: On 15 December 2021, Lambeth Council stated that staff working with children, councillors and foster carers had appropriate and up-to-date Disclosure and Barring Service certificates. It also stated that it would implement an online Disclosure …
Accepted
Delivered
FR-9 — Greater Use of DBS
Recommendation: The Inquiry recommends that the UK government enables any person engaging an individual to work or volunteer with children on a frequent basis to check whether or not they have been barred by the Disclosure and Barring Service from working …
Gov response: We accept subject to further assessment of feasibility and impact, taking into account the findings of the Bailey Review of Disclosure and Barring Regime published in April 2023.
Accepted in Part
In progress
PFD Reports (27)
Gareth Chumber-Kelly
Concerns: Inefficient prison reception processes lead to lost critical prisoner information, and suicide/self-harm training for staff was suspended despite high rates of suicidal ideation and ligature deaths.
Pending
Peter Anzani
Concerns: Patient observations were not adequately recorded, possibly due to a lack of staff training. Additionally, significant hospital waiting lists and prolonged patient waits for reviews are caused by staffing shortages and insufficient funding.
Responded
Ian Harris
Concerns: The HGV licence medical process allows drivers to use independent GPs without access to full medical history, enabling them to hide disqualifying conditions and pose a road risk.
Responded
Nicholas Harrison
Concerns: The Approved Mental Health Practitioner service repeatedly failed to conduct legally compliant Mental Health Act assessments, including insufficient collateral information gathering and inadequate medical attendance, despite family requests.
Responded
Barbara Rymell
Concerns: Care staff with insufficient English proficiency pose a risk to vulnerable patients by hindering effective communication with emergency services, potentially delaying urgent medical attention.
Overdue
Emma Morrissey
Concerns: Health tourism company failed to adequately assess patient fitness for surgery abroad, using unclear pre-assessment questions. There was no investigation into the operating table death, and embalming and medical reporting were inadequate.
Responded
Ivan Ignatov
Concerns: A detainee's mental health assessment was missed in police custody, and an act of self-harm was misjudged. Critical risk information, including first-time custody status, was not properly recorded or collated, hindering comprehensive risk assessment.
Responded
Amy Henderson
Concerns: Delays in private hospitals accessing NHS records prevented crucial information, like prior ligature practice, from being immediately known. There was also staff confusion regarding responsibility for removing banned items on admission.
Overdue
Liam Lyes-Watson
Concerns: An untrained call handler failed to properly escalate a critical call, leading to inadequate action despite receiving important information. There was a systemic failure to appropriately handle and discuss the case.
Responded
Richard Franks
Concerns: Critical information regarding a prisoner's suicidal intent expressed at court was not communicated to prison staff, leading to inadequate monitoring and a lack of necessary support measures.
Responded
Caden Stewart
Concerns: Prison staff were unaware of relevant policies, and there was a critical lack of communication among officers regarding a prisoner's unwell status and need for healthcare, leading to missed checks and handovers.
Responded
Angela Best
Concerns: A high-risk individual's critical discharge condition, requiring disclosure of intimate relationships, relied solely on his self-reporting despite known untruthfulness, with no independent verification mechanism.
Responded
Jane Jowers
Concerns: The absence of statutory international criminal background checks allows unsuitable individuals with foreign convictions to work with vulnerable adults and children, posing a significant risk.
Responded
Arthur Hughes
Concerns: A lack of protocol for assessing locum staff's practical skills and managerial reluctance to thoroughly check references created risks that locums might perform tasks beyond their capabilities.
Responded
Kamil Iddrisu
Concerns: There is a critical need to screen all non-UK military selection candidates for sickle cell trait, both before and after selection, due to the significant risk of collapse or death during military exercise.
Responded
Polly Drew
Concerns: The recruitment process for a doctor with access to anaesthetic drugs and significant responsibility was completely inadequate, leading to her working alone and posing risks to patients.
Overdue
Kevin Miles
Concerns: The diver medical certification process is flawed as it doesn't require GP records, enabling misreporting of health issues and risking divers' and potential rescuers' lives.
Responded
Mark Berry
Concerns: Hospital staff delayed police notification of a suspicious death due to procedural confusion. Additionally, ambulance handover and private ambulance communication lacked critical patient location details, hindering investigation.
Overdue
Ivy Atkin
Concerns: A regulatory loophole allows individuals with criminal convictions to become "Nominated Individuals" for care homes without independent suitability assessment, particularly in small, family-owned companies.
Responded
Jeff Miles
Concerns: Prolonged occupational exposure to white spirit, involving both direct skin contact and vapour inhalation over 13 years, caused the employee's death.
Overdue
Peter Lawrence
Concerns: The initial screening process for new prisoners lacked a robust method to identify and comprehensively record less obvious risk factors, particularly with limited background information.
Overdue
Derek Thomas
Concerns: Prison reception procedures failed under extreme pressure, leading to suicide risk information being overlooked due to staffing issues. Additionally, there was poor communication and conflicting understanding between prison and escort staff regarding critical safety form procedures.
Responded
Rubel Ahmed
Concerns: Detainees were locked in rooms overnight against recommendations, staff lacked robust detention awareness and refresher training, and crucial information like removal directions was not shared.
Overdue
George Hulme
Concerns: Care home agency staff lacked resident identification information and adequate induction. Rooms were not clearly marked, leading to confusion during emergencies and incorrect patient file retrieval for treatment.
Overdue
William Hafele
Concerns: Inadequate training and communication between police and hospital staff on missing persons procedures led to critical information omissions, misclassification, and a complete failure to investigate Mr. Hafele's whereabouts.
Responded
Thomas Warren
Concerns: The employing Trust failed to adequately vet a locum doctor, missing critical information about previous concerns and investigations from other healthcare bodies, and relying solely on basic GMC restriction checks.
Overdue
James Boylan
Concerns: Unidentified ligature points, inadequate patient searching for contraband, poor communication of escalating risks, and incomplete GRIST assessments contributed to the patient's death in a mental health unit.
Overdue