Providers must ensure that adults looking after children, or having unsupervised access to
them, are suitable to do so.
Specific legal requirements
Safe recruitment
Providers other than childminders must have effective systems in place to ensure that practitioners
and other people aged 16 or over likely to have regular contact with children (including those living or
working on the premises) are suitable to do so. (In the case of childminders, Ofsted is responsible for
checking the suitability of all those aged 16 or over living or working on the premises.)
Providers other than childminders must obtain an enhanced Criminal Records Bureau (CRB)
Disclosure in respect of every person aged 16 or over:
- Who works directly with children;
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- Who lives on the premises on which the childcare is provided;
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- Who works on the premises on which the childcare is provided (unless they do not work on
the part of the premises where the childcare takes place, or do not work there at times when
children are present).
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This requirement will be deemed to have been met in respect of all people whose suitability was
checked by Ofsted or their local authority prior to October 2005.
Providers must not allow people whose suitability has not been checked to have unsupervised
contact with children who are being cared for.
Providers other than childminders must keep records of the information they have used to assess
suitability to demonstrate to Ofsted that checks have been done. Such records must include the
unique reference numbers of CRB Disclosures obtained and the date on which they were obtained.
Providers must also meet any requirements of the new Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA)
scheme once it has been implemented. For more information about the ISA go to
www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/independentsafeguardingauthority and www.isa-gov.org/index.htm
Statutory guidance to which providers should have regard
Disclosures should be handled in accordance with the CRB’s Code of Practice and Explanatory Guide.
Providers should make decisions of suitability using evidence from:
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- Any other checks undertaken, for example medical suitability.
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Providers should notify all people connected with their provision who work directly with children that
they expect them to declare to them all convictions, cautions, court orders, reprimands and warnings
which may affect their suitability to work with children.
Further information about responsibilities for carrying out CRB checks and about disqualification is
provided in the Practice Guidance for the Early Years Foundation Stage.
The Early Years Foundation Stage 00267-2008BKT-EN
30 Statutory Framework © Crown copyright 2008
Providers must ensure that adults looking after children, or having unsupervised access to
them, are suitable to do so.
Specific legal requirements
Registered providers must notify Ofsted of the following:
In the case of all registered early years providers:
- Any change in the address of the premises on which childcare is provided;
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- Particulars of any proposal to change the hours during which childcare is provided which will
entail the provision of overnight care;
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- Particulars of any significant event which is likely to affect the suitability of the early years
provider or any person who cares for, or is in regular contact with, children on the premises to
look after children.
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In the case of early years childminders:
- Any change in their name or address;
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- Any change of the persons aged 16 years or older living or working on the childminding
premises (a person is not considered to be working on the premises if none of their work is
done in the part of the premises in which children are cared for, or if they do not work on the
premises at times when children are there).
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In the case of early years providers other than childminders:
- Any change to the person who is managing the early years provision;
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- Where the early years provision is provided by a company, any change in the name or
registered number of the company;
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- Where the early years provision is provided by a charity, any change in the name or registration
number of the charity;
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- Where the childcare is provided by a partnership, body corporate or unincorporated
association, any change to the ‘nominated individual’;
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- Where the childcare is provided by a partnership, body corporate or unincorporated association
whose sole or main purpose is the provision of childcare, any change to the individuals who
are partners or members of its governing body.
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Where the specific legal requirements above require notification about a change of person, the
information that must be provided to Ofsted is the new person’s date of birth, name, any former
names or aliases and home address.
Where it is reasonably practicable to do so, notification must be made in advance of the event
occurring. In all other cases, notification must be made as soon as is reasonably practicable, but in
any event within 14 days of the event occurring.
A registered provider who, without reasonable excuse, fails to comply with these requirements,
commits an offence.
The Childcare (Disqualification) Regulations 2007 require registered providers to inform Ofsted
of any court order, determination or conviction or any other grounds for disqualification from
registration applying to themselves or any other person living or working in their household.
Statutory guidance to which providers should have regard
Registered providers should also notify Ofsted of any change in their telephone number.
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