Keeping children safe in Out of School Settings
With the announcement of funding for ‘catch up’ for education recovery - Huge expansion of tutoring in next step of education recovery - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk), there is a need for colleagues to demonstrate due diligence in terms of supporting keeping children safe. Tutors and tutoring agencies technically come under the remit of an ‘Out of School settings’. In December 2020 the government published non-statutory guidance Keeping children safe in out-of-school settings: code of practice - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
This applies to other organisations who maybe providing other forms of supplementary education. Actions to consider:
Settings acting as commissioners:
- You have ensured that appropriate checks are carried out to ensure that individuals are not disqualified under the Childcare (Disqualifications) regulations 2018 (para 152, KCSIE 2020)
- You have obtained written notification from any agency, or third party organisation you use that the organisation has carried out the checks (in respect of the handed DBS certificate, written notification that confirms the certificate has been obtained by the employment business or another such business), on an individual who will be working at the school or college that the school or college would otherwise perform (para 174, KCISE 2020)
- You have mechanism to check that the person presenting themselves for work is the same person on whom the checks have been made (para 174, KCSIE 2020).
- If you are commissioning a setting/tutor as an alternative provider – do consider reading BCC advice and guidance. Which includes a check list of factors which contribute towards ensuring quality provision.
Supporting out of school settings:
Support for parents and carers:
