7.2.2 Safety Checking Procedure

Safety Checking must be completed as per Playcentre Aotearoa’s Child Protection policy and in accordance with relevant legislation. Safety Checking procedures here outline ‘how to’ complete safety checks for students intending to enrol in our Playcentre Education Programme, Centre based paid roles and various volunteer or paid roles as required by Playcentre Aotearoa’s Child Protection policy.

This overview aims to provide a bird’s eye view of the components of safety checking.

Who/When/Where – For Employees

Applying the regulations for safety checking children’s workers to our Playcentre context, we have

determined the following:

Core “children’s workers” at Playcentre are

• all those in paid Playcentre positions working with tamariki in Centres (at least once a week or 4 times a month)
• all volunteers engaged in formal training that requires them to do practical work on session
• any students from another training or education provider attending Playcentre as part of a placement or experience for their training programme

Non-core “children’s workers” at Playcentre are

Regional employees who visit Playcentres regularly (at least once a week or 4 times a month) as part of their role, who will not have primary responsibility for tamariki.

Exempt from safety checks are

• all other members, whānau, and

We may request a safety check be conducted on anyone volunteering to attend the Centre

regularly without bringing tamariki, and who have not been part of the Playcentre’s community

within the last 6 months.

We also note that any employees who may work in Centres less often than once a week or 4 times a month, and any contractors, or their employees, who may have unsupervised access to tamariki during normal opening hours of the Centre will be Police vetted (but not Safety Checked).

Prior to the start date, all employees must:

1. Have an Playcentre Aotearoa employment agreement for the role they are working in that is signed and dated. (For Centre- based employees this is supplied by the Regional Support Lead or Whānau Programme Lead
2. Have a completed safety check if they will be on session

NOTE: Police Vets are required as part of the safety checking process and results can take up to 6 weeks from submission.

Centre

and

Regional Support Lead or Whānau Programme Lead

When seeking to employ a Centre-based employee – “Employment Procedures” must be followed.

1. Applicants are asked to complete:

• • the top section of the “Playcentre Aotearoa – Safety Checking for Intending Students/Employees” form
  • A Police Vetting Service Request and Consent form 

       b. All potential employees that will have regular contact with tamariki must be                           interviewed before they can be employed

Centre

with

Centre Advisor,

Regional Support Lead or Whānau Programme Lead

Students should be provided an enrolment pack including the documents required for safety checking at or before their first workshop

Individual completes first section of “Safety Checking form for intending Students/Employees” (within the bold border).

Individual provides original documents and a photocopy of two forms of ID (at least one of which is photographic)

1. Primary ID – Passport, Full NZ Birth Certificate (issued on or after 1998) or NZ Citizenship Certificate.
2. Secondary ID – NZ Driver Licence, Kiwi Access Card (previously 18+ card) or a Community Services Card.

If documents are in different names, a change of name document will be required e.g. NZ Marriage or Civil Union Certificate, or name change certificate. (This may also be useful if their National Student Number (NSN) is in a previous name.)

See Appendix A for full list of possible Identification documents.

Playcentre Aotearoa manager or employee delegate verifies identification (ID) by;

1. Checking photo ID matches
2. Sighting original documents and confirming it matches the
3. Signing and dating photocopy of
4. Where a change of name document is required (as in 2.5.2), steps b and c above are followed for that as well.

Attaching these verified photocopies (of two forms of ID) to form.

Playcentre Aotearoa manager or employee delegate:

1. Checks form is completed, signed and dated by Individual.

Completes “Safety Checking Identity Confirmation” section of form.

Playcentre Aotearoa manager or employee delegate:

1. Checks form is completed correctly
2. Is signed and dated by Individual

Potential employees will be informed that this will only be processed if they are the preferred candidate and it will be destroyed or returned to them if they are unsuccessful.

One of the following;

1. Centre Advisor
2. Facilitator

Playcentre Aotearoa manager or employee delegate then:

1. Collates;
   1. Playcentre Education Enrolment Form
   2. Safety Checking for Intending Students/Employees Form (See 5 above).
   3. New Zealand Police Vetting Service Request and Consent Form
   4. Verified copies of ID
   5. Interview Worksheets for potential Employees

Sends to Regional Office.

The authorised third-party agency will contact the referees of the preferred applicant and will include questions related to the Safety Checking requirements – such as whether the person poses a risk to children.

They will record the responses to these questions, along with the more general referee questions and load them into the website where they can be accessed by the Human Resources team.

Safety Checking Form, Police Vetting and copies of ID received.

If an intending employee, then interview notes & referee notes are also received.

If an intending student, enrolment form received

    a) Where these documents are received by the Student Support Coordinator, they will hold and process the Education                 Enrolment form, but pass all other documentation to Human Resources for processing.

Regional Support Lead or Whānau Programme Lead

Or

Student Support Coordinator

Safety Checking information is gathered, using the “Safety Check form for Intending Students and Employees” to track:

1. Submission of Police vetting consent form and Safety Checking consent form into Human Resources database
2. Submission of police vetting request in online system
3. Submission of Safety Checking information into authorised third party website and check ordered
4. If either: Review work history provided
5. If either: Check Playcentre systems, and any relevant professional bodies for records.

If additional concerns raised by Police Vet or other results, a further referee may be requested and contacted with additional questions.

Human Resources And

Student Support Coordinator, Regional Support Lead or

Whānau Programme

Lead

Once all the information has been collated a Risk Assessment is undertaken. The Risk Assessment will consider:

1. Any concerns raised
2. The relevance of any convictions/concerns to the role – be it as a student or employee
3. How long ago the convictions or concerns raised occurred.

Where the assessment is that the person is low risk:

Regional Support Lead, Whānau Programme Lead or Student Support

Coordinator will:

1. Record in the Human Resources database that the Safety Check has been completed
2. For an employee:
   • File the completed Safety Check form, Police Vet form & result & copies of ID with the individual’s personnel file

• • Advise the Regional Support Lead or Whānau Programme Lead that the Safety Check was clear

       3. For a student:

• • Give the completed Safety Check form, Police Vet form & result & copies of ID to the Student Support Coordinator to file with the student’s enrolment records

       4. Destroy any police vet forms of unsuccessful job applicants.

Where concerns are raised

The Regional Support Lead, Whānau Programme Lead or Student Support Coordinator will refer the case to the and HR Lead to decide on the next steps.

1. The National Support Manager and Regional Managers may be consulted with to come to a decision and will check for precedence using anonymised data.
2. In the case of indecision, the Human Resource Lead’s decision will be
3. If any actions are required to mitigate risk this will be kept as confidential as possible, taking into account the privacy of the individual, but keeping safety of tamariki as paramount.
4. We may request the individual to engage with us in creating an action plan that they will sign, outlining how any risk to tamariki will be

Any risk mitigation will be recorded on the Safety Check form, and the appropriate record-keeping steps in 3.4 will also be followed.

Regional Support Lead, Whānau Programme Lead, Student Support Coordinator, Regional Manager, National Support Manager, HR Lead

Rechecks

The Human Resources database provides notice to Human Resources when rechecks are due for both students and employees to start the processes to;

1. Complete new Police Vet
2. Complete a Safety Checking Renewal Form (for the new Risk Assessment)
3. Obtain verified copies of Identification (ID) –where a person’s name has changed.
4. Complete a Risk Assessment

Records pertaining to Safety Checking will be retained for:

• Student: 12 months following their last engagement with the education programme (attending a workshop/ submitting an assignment) or once they have completed their qualification
• Employee: 3 years – until the next safety check is completed or until they leave the service.

Ministry of Social Development