Well done, you made the correct decision.
Here are some points that you need to consider. You should have included these in your reflective activity.
- You now realise you made a mistake when you allowed Mary to start working before you had received her PVG record. You have potentially put residents at risk from harm.
- Now the police have been to the workplace to charge Mary with an offence you have taken the correct action by suspending her while her suitability for the post is investigated. During the investigation you must take responsibility for your earlier mistake.
- As a social service manager you have a duty to make sure people are suitable to enter the workforce. The SSSC Code of Practice for Social Service Employers states that you should check criminal records and other relevant registers before confirming appointments. When you allowed Mary to start work before the necessary checks were complete you were not meeting the standards expected of a manager.
- You should discuss your mistake with your manager and take steps to make sure this does not happen again. You should identify any training needs you have and act on these. You need to revise your recruitment process and have a robust system to make sure all employees complete the necessary checks before they start.
- You need a better understanding of what the PVG scheme is for and the importance of engaging with it correctly. You should spend time researching the available information and learning resources that explain the PVG scheme.
- You also need to review how you plan for and deal with staff shortages. Ask for guidance on this from your manager, HR advisor, Care Inspectorate officer or Disclosure Scotland.
When Mary was selected for the job, you should have told her that she could not start work until you had received her PVG record. Find out more about why this was the right option here.
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