SCIE Guide 12: Making referrals to the POVA list

Published May 2006

Updated January 2009

About this guide

Context

The good practice guidance in this document and on this website does not replace previous guidance. It builds further on the experience of those who have made referrals in the Protection of Vulnerable Adults (POVA) scheme’s early years of operation and who have been able to suggest what works best in these important, and often sensitive, procedures. It also explains the role and responsibilities of the Independent Safeguarding Authority in the transitional arrangements to the Vetting and Barring scheme to be fully administered by the Authority from October 2009.

Any referrals made before the new arrangements come into force on 20 January will continue to be handled by the POVA team employed by the Department of Children, Schools and Families. After that date referrals should be made to the Independent Safeguarding Authority. References to the team dealing with referrals have therefore been described as POVA/ISA team to reflect the changes.

Using practice examples, the guidance aims to clarify the referral process and
support people making referrals to the POVA /ISA team. There are also links to relevant sources and websites.

Aims of the guide

This guide aims to support people making referrals to the POVA team under the Care Standards Act 2000 and to the Independent Safeguarding Authority under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. It will help employers and managers to make referrals that can be processed efficiently, leading to accurate and timely decisions on listing by the Secretary of State for Health prior to 20 January and by the Independent Safeguarding Authority thereafter.

The guide does this by:

• addressing practice issues relating to referrals to the POVA list
• providing practice points
• giving examples and illustrations from practice
• providing references
• referring to relevant legislation, guidance and standards
• providing further information and useful web links.

Who is the guide for

This guide is designed for people making referrals to the POVA team/ISA. These will usually be social care employers and providers of care in residential, domiciliary and adult placement services, including employment agencies and businesses that supply individuals to these care providers. While the guide refers to ‘employers’ throughout, it should be noted that this includes those providing voluntary services, and self-employed adult placement carers. While the employment circumstances for adult placement carers may differ from those of other care workers, the process for making referrals to the POVA list is the same, and the same principles of good practice apply. In this guide, action or inaction which has harmed or placed at risk of harm a vulnerable adult is referred to as ‘misconduct’.

Exceptionally, the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) and the Care and Social Services Inspectorate for Wales (CSSIW) may refer individuals to the POVA list when they find evidence of misconduct that has not been referred to the Secretary of State by the employer, including some circumstances where the employer is the subject of the referral.

The guide will be useful for local adult protection teams and staff who are
responsible for implementing local policies for vulnerable adults. It may also be of interest to staff, commissioners, carers and people who use social care services, and professionals from other organisations concerned about the well-being of vulnerable adults.

Guide topics

The guide topics have been developed with stakeholders including individual care providers, representatives of care providers’ associations and service users’ organisations, CSCI and CSSIW officers and officials from the Department of Health(DH) and the Department for Children Schools and Families (DCSF) [formerly Department for Education and Skills (DfES)]. Discussions with a wide range of stakeholders have shown that, while existing guidance is clear, its implementation can be challenging, with complex decisions having to be made at various stages of the referral process. This guidance is intended to support the referral process by addressing topics in the order in which they are likely to be undertaken in making a referral.

What the guide does not cover

The guide does not cover employment law for the conduct of disciplinary procedures and investigations. References and links to the ACAS website are included for further information about employment practice, and particularly to the ACAS code of practice in relation to disciplinary and grievance procedures.
The guide relates specifically to the process involved in making referrals for possible inclusion in the POVA list. It does not cover procedures relating to checks against the POVA list and the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks. Existing legislation and related guidance can be found at the DH website. Information about the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 is also available there.

Guide structure

Topics are divided into the following sections:

• Key questions for employers Key questions to consider under each section
• Expectations A brief statement of the expected procedure in existing guidance
• Practice overview A brief statement about the key issues in implementing this procedure
• Practice points under key headings Specific practice points to follow when implementing this part of the procedure.

Examples from practice

Where available, practice ideas and examples are included that show how agencies have tried to improve practice and solve problems. These have been self-reported and remain unevaluated. Many of the examples are provided by the POVA team at the DCSF from their experience of working with referrals in the initial years of the POVA list. We are grateful to individuals and agencies for their contributions, acknowledge that other agencies may also be doing similar work and welcome other practice ideas for inclusion.

Your feedback

SCIE welcomes comments on any aspect of the guide, which will inform future updates. We are also very interested in collecting examples of good practice. Please send us your feedback.