Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to outline L’Arche Ireland’s policy in relation to Garda Vetting and Police clearance

Scope

This policy applies to all Employees and Volunteers of L’Arche Ireland.

Policy

Garda Vetting/ Police clearance is a procedure that L’Arche Ireland use to certify whether an individual who is being considered for work/volunteering has ever been convicted of committing a crime.

L’Arche Ireland requires that all Employees / Volunteers undertake Garda Vetting / Police Clearance before they engage in activities that bring them into contact with vulnerable adults and in which they assume positions of trust.

To ensure the protection of those who are vulnerable, and to promote family and public confidence and trust in the work and ethos of the Community, L’Arche Ireland is committed to ensuring that only suitable candidates who have successfully completed the process of Garda Vetting / Police Clearance, among other necessary checks, are recruited into those positions of trust. In addition, all posts are subject to re-vetting every 3 years in line with best practise and with the Health Act 2007 and the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012 – 2016.

This policy applies to anyone who is Employed / Volunteers with L’Arche Ireland and who has unsupervised access to vulnerable adults in the course of their employment / activities.

Each Employee / Volunteer whether existing or applying for a position, must disclose to L’Arche Ireland any relevant information relating to the process of Garda Vetting/ Police clearance, to include information relating to periods of residence outside the Republic of Ireland.

International Police Clearance process: If a prospective Employee / Volunteer lives outside the Republic of Ireland or has resided outside said country for a period of 6 months or longer, s/he must also furnish a Foreign Police Clearance Certificate from the country or countries of residence. The exact same process as in Garda Vetting above is then followed.

Information collected as part of this vetting process will be treated as highly confidential and may only be released to other parties as deemed necessary by the Community Director or Deputy, with approval of the CEO.

Definitions

The following definitions apply in this policy:

• A child is defined as someone who is under the age of 18.
• A vulnerable adult is someone who is suffering from an intellectual disability, physical disability, physical impairment or a disorder of the mind.

It is the policy of L’Arche Ireland to adhere to Garda Vetting regulations including the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012-2016. L’Arche Ireland has a duty of care to ensure that current and potential Employees are suitable to work with vulnerable adults. To guarantee this, L’Arche Ireland carries out Garda Vetting with the assistance of the Garda Central Vetting Unit.

Garda Vetting Liaison Person has responsibility for ensuring that all relevant Employees complete the relevant Garda Vetting forms.

If the Employee being Garda vetted is under the age of 18 and over the age of 16 it is a requirement that they have a completed parent/guardian consent form. L’Arche Ireland is registered with the vetting unit. The details received will include information on all prosecutions including

Garda Vetting Officer

There will be one designated person in L’Arche Ireland who deals with issues in relation to Garda Vetting. All completed forms are sent directly to the Garda Vetting Liaison officer. The Disclosure form is then sent to Community leader or the person who requested the Garda clearance.

Peter Brabazon is the Garda Vetting Liaison Officer for L’Arche Ireland.

Refusal

L’Arche Ireland has the authority to terminate / refuse employment to L’Arche Ireland / communities if the material received from the Vetting Unit reveals that:

• The individual has a conviction for or has been charged with an offence that related to the ill treatment of either a child or a vulnerable adult.
• The individual has been convicted of or charged of an offence of a sexual nature.
• The individual has a conviction for or has been charged with ownership, production, or distribution of child pornography.

L’Arche Ireland also believes the following list of offences to be relevant and each case will be judged on a case-by-case basis:

• Breach of trust e.g., fraud
• Offence against a person e.g., assault, harassment
• Offences against property e.g., arson
• Domestic violence
• Offences against the State

L’Arche Ireland will treat each returned Garda Vetting form with convictions on a case-by-case basis.

L’Arche Ireland will treat the applicant / Employee with dignity, respect, and confidentiality.

After consideration, L’Arche Ireland can make the decision to withdraw an offer of employment or terminate the employment of an Employee.

Recruitment and Selection

Although Garda/ Police vetting is an important aspect of the recruitment and selection process, it is also regarded as only one aspect of the process and it is essential to ensure that best practice in the areas of recruitment and selection is followed.

Process

The Garda / Police Vetting process on occasion may on occasion take many weeks. Until this process is complete an Employee is only permitted to do training and induction pending Garda clearance.

All contracts of employment are subject to the successful completion of the Garda Vetting Process.

Storage of Data

L’Arche Ireland will ensure that all completed Garda Vetting forms will be stored in the main office in personnel files and access will be limited to only those who are entitled to see as part of their duties. Data protection legislation will always be adhered to an Employees right to confidentiality will always be respected.

Right to Access Information

Employees have a right under Section 4 of the Data Protection Acts to access information about them kept by L’Arche Ireland. Please refer to the Data Protection Policy for further information.

Review and Re-Vetting

L’Arche Ireland reserves the right to request that any Employee undergoes Garda Vetting at any time during their employment.

In line with best practice Employees will be re vetted every 3 years.