Meeting documents

To consider report (to follow)

The Committee considered a report from the Council’s Monitoring Officer and Strategic Manager – Governance and Democratic Services, Scott Wooldridge, which revisited the Council’s Disclosures and Barring Service (DBS) check policy, with a view to requiring all members to be enhanced DBS checked, regardless of their role. Mr Wooldridge also referred to the financial implications in making the change, as detailed at paragraph 3.3.4 of the Report.

Members of the Committee discussed the report, and the following points were raised and responded to at the meeting: -

• the implications if a member ‘fails’ and their position – clarified that this will reveal whether a member has any convictions or not and there are other mechanisms if any election offences had been highlighted, for example;

• Query why proposing enhanced DBS check without barred list check – clarified that the proposal is around extending the existing arrangements to all Councillors
• The Chair asked for a briefing at some stage on the different level of ‘check’s’

The Committee AGREED: -

1.    To recommend to Full Council that the existing DBS policy for Councillors be extended to provide:

(a)          An extension of the current mandatory requirement to have Enhanced DBS checks without barred list checks to:  all Executive Lead Members; Associate Lead Members; members of the Adults & Health and Children & Families Scrutiny Committees; members of the Adoption and Foster Panels; members of the Corporate Parents Board; and Membersappointed to Panelsor working groups relating to education or adult socialcare services, to ensure that all Members of the Council and co-opted members are required to undergo an Enhanced DBS check without barred list checks. (Option 3 in paragraph 3.1 of the Report)

(b)          That all DBS checks required above will be carried out by the Council immediately following each Council election to ensure that such checks are renewed halfway through this election period, approximately May 2025. This is relevant as DBS checks are effectively only valid on the day they are issued and this current election period is unusually long.

(c)          That the Monitoring Officer maintains a register of approved applications.

2.    The Committee noted paragraph 2.2 of the submitted Report, which set out the implications if the amended policy set out above is agreed by the Council.