About Suitability Assessments

The Suitability Process

The General Teaching Council for Wales (‘the Council’) is the statutory, self-regulating professional body for teachers in Wales. It seeks to raise the status of teaching by maintaining and promoting the highest standards of professional practice and conduct in the interests of teachers, pupils and the general public.

Under Section 134 of the Education Act 2002 and Regulation 7 of the Education (Specified Work and Registration) (Wales) Regulations 2004 (SI 2004/1744 (W. 183)), every qualified teacher who carries out the ‘specified work’ of a teacher in a maintained school in Wales must be registered with the Council. Other persons with Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), such as those working in independent schools, further or higher education, as home tutors or those not currently teaching are also encouraged to register.

In accordance with the Education Act 2002 and the Education Act 2002 (Commencement No. 10 and Transitional Provisions)(Wales) Order 2006 (WSI 2006 No.1336 (W.129)(C.44)), a teacher is not eligible for registration with the Council unless it is satisfied that he or she is suitable to be a registered teacher. The Council assesses suitability for registration on the basis of Enhanced Disclosures received from the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB).

The public interest

The Council regulates the teaching profession in Wales in the public interest, which includes the protection of members of the public, the maintenance of public confidence in the profession and the declaration and upholding of proper standards of conduct and competence.

This means that Committees of the Council apply the public interest test in their investigation and hearing of all suitability assessments. Applying the test requires Committees to balance competing interests, for example, the general public interest as opposed to that of the applicant.

The public has a right to expect that registered teachers uphold the highest professional standards, just as teachers have a right to be certain that their peers are in good standing with their professional body.

What is the disclosure process, and why is it necessary?

Every qualified teacher (Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs), experienced teachers returning to teaching or teachers moving into Wales) who wish to work in maintained schools, or non-maintained special schools in Wales must be registered with the Council.

In order for a teacher to register, he or she must complete the Council’s Application for Registration form, and an application for a CRB Enhanced Criminal Records check. The CRB returns completed checks to the Council in the form of an Enhanced Criminal Records Certificate once it has made enquiries with police and other agencies, such as the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). Checks are made on the basis of information provided by the applicant in the application form.

The requirement for applicants to apply for CRB Enhanced Criminal Records checks at the time they apply to register has been a legislative requirement since May 31st 2006, and acts as a safeguard to ensure, as far as is possible, no person is granted registration with the Council who may be unsuitable to be a registered teacher.

If an applicant has spent time overseas, the Council will also ask them to self-declare any criminal record or prosecutions pending in other countries. Any declaration will be assessed in the same way as a disclosure made by the CRB.

What information can the CRB provide in a disclosure?

The CRB discloses all offences held against an applicant’s name, regardless of when the offences took place or the sentence the Courts or Police Forces decided to impose. This is because the CRB is aware the applicant is applying to be a registered teacher. The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 does not apply to the teaching profession as it involves contact with children. The CRB therefore discloses offences and sentences even if they are ‘spent’.

Information disclosed can include a ‘criminal offence’:

Conviction
Caution (a formal warning about future conduct given by a senior police officer, usually in a police station, after a person has committed an offence. It is used as an alternative to charge and possible prosecution)
Warning (a young person given a second and ‘final’ formal warning about future conduct)
Reprimand(a reprimand has replaced the caution for young people aged under 18)

The CRB may also provide the Council with ‘other information of relevance’:

Information relating to a prosecution pending; and/or
Non-conviction information disclosed by the police at its discretion; and/or
Confirmation that an applicant has been included on an ISA barred list.

The information the CRB discloses will be different in every case.

What happens once a disclosure is received by the Council?

If the disclosure reports an applicant does not have a criminal record, the Council's Registration Team will process the application for registration, subject to qualifications and QTS checks.

If the disclosure reports an applicant has a criminal record, the Registration Team will refer it to the Professional Standards Team where it will be considered in line with the Council’s Suitability to be a Registered Teacher - Procedures and Rules.

This information is general information. In all circumstances, the General Teaching Council for Wales (Functions) (Amendment) Regulations 2006 and the Council’s Suitability to be a Registered Teacher - Procedures and Rules take precedence.

Investigating stage

The first stage of the process where a disclosure is referred to the Professional Standards Team is the investigating stage. Investigation involves the following, but the particular route a disclosure takes within this stage will vary depending on the nature of it.

about_suitability_diagram1

If, for example, the disclosure lists one or more convictions or cautions (save for certain exceptions), and there are no aggravating features to the particular offences or sentences, the Professional Standards Team may make a recommendation to the Chair of the Council’s Registration Committee that the application for registration is granted, without the involvement of a Committee. However, each disclosure is different and no general rule can apply to each and every one.

If the Chair of the Registration Committee agrees with this recommendation, the application for registration will be granted. If he or she does not, the disclosure will be referred to an Investigating Committee, as stage 2.

Stage 1 is a paperwork exercise.

about_suitability_diagram2

An Investigating Committee convened under stage 2 will investigate whether or not the application for registration should be granted on the grounds it is satisfied the applicant is suitable to be a registered teacher. The Council will issue the applicant with a ‘Notice of Investigation’ and ask him or her to respond to it. The Notice explains to the applicant that the onus is upon him or her to provide evidence as to their suitability.

A decision at this stage is made on the basis of paperwork and in private.

If the Investigating Committee is satisfied the applicant is suitable to be a registered teacher, the application for registration will be granted. If the Investigating Committee is not satisfied the applicant is suitable to be a registered teacher, and is minded not to grant the application, it will send the disclosure to a Suitability Committee for hearing.

‘Suitable’ means that a Committee is satisfied the applicant meets the standards expected of a registered teacher.

about_suitability_diagram3

If the disclosure suggests the harm, or the risk of harm to children or vulnerable adults, the Professional Standards Team will refer the disclosure to the ISA. Such a referral can take place at any time during the process, and will delay the progress of the application for registration. During the ISA’s consideration of the disclosure, the applicant remains unregistered.

The Council has no remit to investigate or hear any matter which alleges the harm, or risk of harm to children or vulnerable adults.

Hearing stage

What makes an applicant suitable or unsuitable for registration?

Each disclosure is different and general rules do not apply in determining whether or not an applicant is suitable for registration. Considered against the disclosure information and related evidence, a Committee uses its own judgment to decide whether or not it is satisfied an applicant is suitable to be a registered teacher.

The onus to provide evidence as to suitability rests with the applicant at each stage of the process. Applicants are encouraged to take this responsibility seriously as a disclosure referred to the Professional Standards Team calls into question their suitability to be registered.

The approach an applicant takes with the Council is highly relevant and may affect how a Committee views their application. For example, if he or she does not respond to a Notice or correspondence from the Council, a Committee may question whether they are fully committed to becoming a teacher, or to returning to teaching.

Principles governing the Council’s suitability work

There are a number of key principles which govern the Council’s suitability work. These are:

Fairness. Committees will treat each disclosure fairly and on its own merits based on the available evidence.

Efficiency. The Council will seek to deal with disclosures efficiently so as to cause the minimum of delay and discomfort to the parties involved.

Openness. The Council recognises that the interest of the public lies in the openness of its procedures and the accountability of the Council as displayed through its responsibilities regarding suitability assessments. However, the Council also recognises the concern it must have for the private lives of applicants whose suitability is being assessed and for potential witnesses, not least as these might include children.

The Human Rights Act entitles individuals to a public hearing, but this is subject to a number of qualifications. A Committee may decide that it is not in the interests of justice, of children or the protection of the private lives of individuals to hold a hearing in public. In such cases, a Committee will hear an assessment in private. An applicant may choose to waive their right to a public hearing, but it will still be for the appropriate Committee to decide whether the hearing should be in public or in private.

Impartiality. The composition of Committees will be developed to ensure a fair balance and Committee members involved will be impartial. The Council will ensure that there is a clear separation and division of roles in respect of those members and officers who are involved in an Investigating Committee and a Suitability Committee.

Confidentiality. Subject to the need to ensure justice and fairness, members and Council officers are committed to respecting the confidential nature of all information involved in a suitability assessment, in so far as is possible where hearings are in public.

All evidence, papers and records will be stored confidentially and securely.

Natural Justice. The applicant whose suitability is being assessed will be informed of the disclosure made to the Council. The CRB will also send an applicant a copy of a disclosure in relation to him or her simultaneously with providing it to the Council. Where a Notice of Investigation or Notice of Proceedings is issued, the applicant will be given an opportunity to provide written and other representations and evidence in response to the disclosure made, with a view to establishing to the Council’s satisfaction that he or she is suitable to be a registered teacher. In addition, the applicant is given the right of appeal to the High Court where an application for registration is refused by a Suitability Committee on the grounds that it was not satisfied that he or she is suitable to be a registered teacher.

The Public Interest. All suitability assessments will be investigated and heard in the public interest. This includes the protection of members of the public, the maintenance of public confidence in the profession and the declaration and upholding of proper standard of conduct and competence.

Equal Opportunities. The Council is fully committed to equal opportunities and non-discrimination.

Language. Committees will be conducted (all or in part) in English or Welsh at the request of the applicant.

Glossary

The Act	The Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998, as amended;
Applicant	A person who has made an application to be registered under Section 3 of the Act;
The Council	The General Teaching Council for Wales;
Criminal offence	a conviction; a caution (a formal warning about future conduct given by a senior police officer, usually in a police station, after a person has committed an offence. It is used as an alternative to charge and possible prosecution); a warning (a young person given a second and ‘final’ formal warning about future conduct); a reprimand (a reprimand has replaced the caution for young people aged under 18);
Disclosure	Information provided to the Council by the CRB in an Enhanced Criminal Record Certificate which relates to an individual applicant, and/or information declared by an applicant concerning his or her criminal history outside of the United Kingdom;
ISA	The Independent Safeguarding Authority. The ISA was created to help prevent unsuitable people from working with children and vulnerable adults following the Soham murders and subsequent commissioning of the Bichard Inquiry. The Inquiry looked at the way employers recruit people to work with children and vulnerable adults, and asked whether the way employers check the background of job applicants is reliable enough. It also asked whether employers should be responsible for deciding whether a job applicant can be safely employed. The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 (SVGA) required the ISA to establish and maintain the Children’s Barred Lists and the Adults’ Barred List. These lists hold the details of those individuals barred from working with children and vulnerable adults;
Other information of relevance	information relating to a prosecution pending; and/or non-conviction information disclosed by the police at its discretion; and/or confirmation that an applicant has been included on an ISA barred list;
Registered teacher	A person for the time being registered under Section 3 of the Act, or a person who was registered under Section 3 of the Act at the time of any alleged conduct or offence on his or her part, or a person who has made an application to be registered under Section 3 of the Act;
Suitable	The Council is satisfied that the applicant meets the standards expected of a registered teacher.