Care services failing on vetting and recruitment procedures, says new report
15 June 2006
Care homes and other social care services are still failing to
apply consistently safe vetting procedures and sound recruitment
practices, says a new report from the Commission for Social Care
Inspection (CSCI).
“Safe and Sound?: Checking the suitability of new care staff in
regulated social care services” is the latest in CSCI’s series of
best practice bulletins. It looks in depth at the reasons why
certain services are failing to meet the national minimum
standards.
The analysis of the inspection reports of the 150 poorest
performers indicated that these services do not consistently
implement adequate employment checks and references for all staff
or have robust recruitment policies and procedures in place.
Although overall there has been improvement in meeting the
recruitment and vetting standard since 2002-03, the latest figures
show that only 59% of care homes for older people were meeting the
standard.
Dame Denise Platt, Chair of the Commission, said: “While there
has been progress in the last couple of years, many care providers
are still not meeting the minimum standard. Employers need to be
more rigorous in their recruitment and vetting practices, so that
people who use services can have confidence that their care is
safe.”
David Behan, CSCI’s Chief Inspector, said: “The best providers
are the ones who verify the safety, competence, integrity and
skills of potential candidates before they are employed, then train
and support staff after they have been recruited.”
The bulletin found that children’s services are failing to meet
the minimum level of care because of inconsistencies in the vetting
of staff and poor recruitment procedures.
Children’s homes (57%) and fostering services (64%) performed
significantly better at meeting the recruitment and vetting
national minimum standards than adoption agencies (35%). However,
this means a significant percentage of services are not meeting the
standard.
While nearly half of domiciliary care agencies (47%) are failing
to meet the standard, performance is slightly better in older
people’s care homes (41%) and younger adults’ care homes (39%),
although two fifths of homes are still failing to meet the national
minimum standard.
The bulletin argues that getting people who use services
involved in recruitment can help employers attain a greater insight
into what is needed. Providers need to be creative and innovative
to ensure involving people who use services in the process is well
supported and valued.
The bulletin provides recommendations and information on how to
improve practice in the following areas:
- Consistently verifying the suitability of staff by carrying out
thorough employment checks and references
- Evidence of robust, written recruitment policies and
procedures
- Thorough and evidenced application and interview process
- Thorough checking of the candidate’s employment history
For more details on CSCI and Safe and Sound?: Checking the
suitability of new care staff in regulated social care services,
visit the Commission’s website at www.csci.org.uk
Ends
Notes for editors
- The CSCI is the single inspectorate for social care in England,
responsible for regulating and inspecting all social care providers
– whether in the public or independent sector.
- The Commission’s primary aim is to improve social care by
putting the needs of people who use care services first.
- The Commission is chaired by Dame Denise Platt DBE and has five
Commissioners. The Chief Inspector is David Behan CBE. CSCI staff
work across nine regions in England – aligned with the government
offices of the regions.