Making referrals to the POVA list
Please note: The information contained in this guide is now out of date and it should be used for reference purposes only. For current information about the Vetting and Barring scheme please visit the Independent Safeguarding Authority website.
Making a POVA list referral
Practice point: Communication
Good communication is essential at every stage of the POVA process. It can reduce the anxiety inevitable in dealing with difficult situations for both the referrer and the person referred.
Communicating with vulnerable adults
Respond, an organisation representing service users, highlights the importance - throughout the whole process - of keeping vulnerable adults informed as much as possible about what is happening, including the POVA referral.
Communicating with adult protection teams and CSCI (CQC)/CSSIW
Care homes have a legal obligation – under Regulation 37 of the Care Homes Regulations and Regulation 38 of the Care Homes (Wales) Regulations – to notify CSCI (CQC)/CSSIW of significant events and allegations of misconduct. There are similar notification requirements for domiciliary care agencies, and also for adult placement schemes under Regulation 33 of the Adult Placement Scheme Regulations (Regulation 28 of the Adult Placement Scheme (Wales) Regulations). Local adult protection procedures will require similar notification to the local adult protection team when incidents occur.
Therefore, by the time the POVA referral is made, employers and managers will have been in touch with the local adult protection coordinator, in line with the local adult protection procedures, and also with CSCI (CQC)/CSSIW to inform them of the allegations and investigations.
Regulators and the adult protection teams should be informed of the referral; they will also support employers and managers in making referrals and they can be consulted for advice during the referral process. In addition, CSCI and CSSIW will wish to be kept informed of arrangements that have been made to assure the well-being of service users pending conclusion of the matter, and will want to be told the final outcome.
Communicating with the ISA team
The completed form and supporting information should be sent to the ISA at:
Independent Safeguarding Authority PO Box 181 Darlington DL1 9FA
Tel: 01325 953757 or 01325 953794
Communicating with referred individuals
Employers should inform individuals that they are being referred to the POVA list. In some circumstances, employers prefer not to do this, but this should be exceptional. Some employers include in their formal correspondence relating to disciplinary proceedings a statement of their intention to refer the individual to the list.
Example
BUPA tells people that they may be referred to the POVA list at each stage in the investigation and disciplinary process, that is:
- when they are first suspended
- when they are invited to a disciplinary hearing
- when they are dismissed.
Once provisionally listed, the individual will be contacted by the POVA team, and will receive copies of the documentation for their consideration and comment. In this way, the process is transparent and complies with the Human Rights Act.
Communicating with witnesses
Employers should ensure that witnesses are not bullied, intimidated or involved in collusion with a staff member.
For referrals made before 20 January 2009 and until the point of appeal, witness statements and evidence can be kept anonymous. However, if the listed individual appeals to the First-tier (Care Standards) Tribunal (Upper Tribunal if appealing ISA decisions) about their listing, then all the witnesses and those who have made statements may be named.
Employers should take this into account in preparing referrals, and should make accurate assurances to staff and witnesses about confidentiality, anonymity and their likely role in the event of an appeal against the POVA listing.
Employers are responsible for ensuring that witnesses understand that they may be required to stand by their statements right through to a Tribunal. They should also ensure that the witnesses can be contacted by the POVA/ISA team, even if they leave their present employment – for example, by keeping an up-to-date record of their contact details and by providing the Team with their home address.
The ISA will publish their approach to dealing with anonymous witness statements on their website - see: www.isa-gov.org.uk
Communicating with other regulatory bodies
When making a referral to the POVA/ISA team, employers and managers should also consider making a referral to other appropriate regulatory bodies such as the General Social Care Council and the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). This is not done by the POVA/ISA team but is the responsibility of the referring employer or manager.
Example
Where relevant, BUPA makes referrals to the NMC at the same time as the POVA referral.
As soon as a care worker is included on the POVA list, prompt referral to other appropriate regulatory bodies should be considered by the person who has made the referral to the POVA list. Equally, when a worker is removed from the POVA list, the person who made the referral should inform those regulatory bodies of that removal.
The POVA/ISA team will, however, cross-reference referrals to the POCA (Protection of Children Act) list.
