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CRB delays are criminal says FSB
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has called on the Government to increase the resources at the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and to put pressure on the organisation to improve its performance.
The CRB provides checks on potential new recruits for employers working to provide services to vulnerable groups (such as nurseries and care homes). For around £30 per check the CRB will provide the firm with the background of a potential new employee.
However, FSB members have been reporting that they can be waiting 8 weeks or more for a report back. This can cause enormous problems for small firms with only a few members of staff because they have to wait for so long to take on someone who has been offered the job. These delays can cost applicants their jobs because firm can’t afford to wait for the CRB to take several weeks before checks come through.
Also, an employee can only carry their check forward to a new employer at the new business’ risk. This extra red tape increases still further the burden on both small firms and the CRB because the number of checks for them to carry out increases as people move jobs.
David Croucher, FSB National Crime Policy Chairman, said: “We recognise that these checks have to be made in order to protect the vulnerable people that our members serve. However, the tangle of red tape and delays that businesses have to suffer is unacceptable.
“The CRB are holding people back from taking up jobs, creating huge headaches for employers and – most importantly – depriving vulnerable people of expert care. This cannot be allowed to continue.
“If they are lacking in resources the Government must review the funding for the CRB. But we also demand urgent action from the CRB to speed up the process. Further improvements must also be made to the system itself to allow the CRB to meet its obligations and also to permit people to carry their checks forward, with only an update required, to a new job.”
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