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Gedling Borough Council to consider compulsory DBS checks for councillors

By Latifa Yedroudj, Junior Local Democracy

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Gedling Borough Council will again consider whether elected politicians should undergo additional checks to safeguard children and vulnerable adults.

The policy will be reviewed at the Labour-run authority’s Standards Committee on Thursday, May 22.

Under the plans, all councillors must undergo a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check within two months of the policy being approved, or two months after being elected.

The councillors would be required to request the checks themselves and provide copies to the Monitoring Officer within 28 days, which will be stored securely for six months.

All costs would be covered by the council.

If they fail the checks, the councillor’s roles may be restricted – though they cannot be disqualified from elected office.

Failure to comply with the policy may be considered a breach of the council’s code of conduct, documents say.

The move comes after Gedling councillors rejected a motion earlier in January, asking for all its members to go through the same enhanced checks.

The difference between a standard DBS check and an enhanced one is that it reveals unspent convictions, cautions, warnings, reprimands and other relevant police notes and information.

It also reveals if the current employee is listed on the Children’s Barred List or Adult First list.

The motion was put forward by Conservative group leader, Cllr Mike Adams (Con) to make it mandatory for all councillors to undergo an enhanced DBS check.

In January’s council meeting, Cllr David Ellis (Lab), Portfolio Holder for Public Protection, moved an amendment to send the decision to the council’s Standards Committee.

He said at the time that enhanced checks “raise issues with procedures and policies” and need “greater consideration”.

The council agreed to refer the matter to the Standards Committee, and if agreed this week, the plan would be forwarded to the council for final approval.

A working group was established in March this year to develop proposals, consider legal implications and draft procedures for enhanced checks.

They recommended that all councillors in Gedling Borough Council undergo basic DBS checks, not enhanced checks.

They say this is because district councillors do not carry out “regulated activities” that would require enhanced DBS checks.

Some county councillors do require enhanced checks due to the nature of their roles – which include delivering services such as education, fostering, social care and supporting looked-after children.

The working group developed a draft policy and procedure to be reviewed and discussed at the Standards Committee meeting on Thursday, May 22.