Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scheme to launch in November

06/07/2010

Launch date announced for Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scheme

The Scottish Government has announced that the Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scheme will commence on 30th November 2010.

From that date any adult taking up a role in Scouting that currently requires an Enhanced Disclosure Check will be required to become a member of the new Scheme. Scheme membership is for life (unless an individual wishes to leave the scheme) and will be portable, putting an end to the requirement to have multiple Disclosures for multiple roles.

Once all the practicalities are ironed out we will issue information on how the new Scheme will be implemented within Scouting. Factsheets will be available as soon as possible to explain the application process, which will not be too dissimilar to that which is currently operated for Disclosure checks. Later in 2011, electronic processing will be introduced which will streamline Scheme administration and further speed up the checking process.

In order to avoid the backlog that was experienced when Disclosure checking was introduced by the Protection of Children (Scotland) Act, transition arrangements have been outlined by Government that should help smooth the process. Once fully clarified for Scouting purposes, information on this will be sent to District and Region Appointments Secretaries and will be more widely available on our website.

In the meantime, existing Disclosure check arrangements remain in place as part of our adult appointment and vetting procedures.

Current information and Guidance on the PVG Scheme is available from the recently published Scottish Government PVG Special Update (pdf).