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Sex offenders have jobs as charity trustees [message #59157]

Sun, 18 October 2009 03:30

Brody Levesque

Really getting into it

Location: US/Canada
Registered: September 2009
Messages: 733

Apparently the United States isn't the only place that certain folks slip thru the cracks. From London comes this report:
Investigations into paedophiles, rapists and sex abusers working as charity trustees have tripled in the past year. They include individuals involved with organisations that work closely with children and other vulnerable people.

According to a report from the Charity Commission, the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales, a growing number of criminals on the sex offenders register are being proposed as, or are acting as, trustees and board members.

The commission found that many of the charities it investigated did not routinely carry out basic Criminal Record Bureau checks to discover whether those being nominated had convictions disqualifying them from occupying certain roles. Other charities had policies that were not sufficiently rigorous.

The report's findings have been called "shocking and unacceptable" by John Carr, secretary of the Children's Charities' Coalition for Internet Safety, who speaks on behalf of a number of UK children's charities, including the NSPCC, Barnardo's, the Children's Society and the NCH.

The Charity Commission report, to be published tomorrow, will state: "Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries must be a key priority of all trustee boards of charities that work with, or run activities for, children or vulnerable adults. Procedures to ensure that this happens must be properly and consistently applied without exception; otherwise trustees are failing in their legal duty of care to the charity and its beneficiaries."

The commission took action in 30 cases in 2008, up from nine in 2007. Measures included suspending or removing the trustees and reporting incidents to the police.

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[Updated on: Sun, 18 October 2009 03:31]

Re: Sex offenders have jobs as charity trustees [message #59179 is a reply to message #59157]

Tue, 20 October 2009 23:04

johnleeb

Toe is in the water

Location: USA
Registered: January 2009
Messages: 44

Considering that anyone who has been convicted of any sex offense, including indecent exposure, can be on the list of offenders, I think they should be classified as to offense level prior to checking them for sensitive positions.

And while it is being done, why not have a similar rating system for those who have or may be apt to commit or promote hate crimes (including those in the religious sector).

There is something else done in the US. The authorities send announcements out when any sex offender moves into a neighborhood. They NEVER announce when that person moves out of the neighborhood!

Re: Sex offenders have jobs as charity trustees [message #59188 is a reply to message #59179]

Wed, 21 October 2009 10:40

acam

On fire!

Location: UK
Registered: July 2007
Messages: 1849

I think the whole enterprise is a terrible mistake. Reformed criminals are among the best resources there are for preventing crime and rehabilitating criminals.

Schools should welcome reformed drug addicts and alcoholics so that pupils can learn that such things aren't cool. How can children learn how to understand and protect themselves from sex offenders if they are excluded from association with the young?

I think it is the Independent Safeguarding Authority that has been set up by this government to vet everyone who is allowed into a school or to give children lifts. And the only opposition to it has come from famous children's authors who rightly are objecting to having to get expensively vetted before being allowed into a school. But, of course, most sexual abuse of children is perpetrated by people not on the sexual offences register. What will reduce abuse most is if children are told how to recognise the danger and talked to and listened to openly enough so that they can say what is going on in their lives.

The essence of the ISA position is that nobody can ever reform and that nobody who hasn't been caught is a danger. How absurd can you get?

Love,
Anthony
PS I have to admit that I got some of this from an article in Society Guardian today. Here's the link:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/oct/21/offenders-vetting-barring-scheme

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