A guest post by Shaun Joynson

To paraphrase Ken Livingstone, if legislation changed anything it would become illegal.

The aptness of that phrase should surprise no one observing the mad world of vetting checks. As the Manifesto Club’s recent report shows, little has changed despite the Protection of Freedoms Act. Unnecessary criminal record checks just keep being done. And though the club's report focuses on school parent volunteers, a similar pattern exists elsewhere.

In theory, the Protection of Freedoms Act (enacted September last year) has introduced a 'common sense approach' on CRBs. In theory, nobody need now be checked who is not in sole charge of children, 'frequently or intensively' (defined in law as once a month or for 4 days at a time).

Yet on the ground, CRB checks continue with almost no change. This recent email is from a ski instructor - a UK citizen, resident in Italy - who refuses on principle to be CRB checked, and has lost several jobs with UK schools as a result. This case shows that the demand for CRB checks is continuing to an irrational degree, flying in the face of government recommendations and common sense.

Guest post by a housing surveyor who has battled repeated demands for CRB checks. He analyses why public bodies demand so many CRB checks, and what can be done about it.

It was a statement whose content I have become all too familiar with over recent years: as the work may involve some contact with vulnerable adults or children, a CRB check was an absolute essential. This was a condition of my employment and if I was unwilling to have a CRB check my employment would be terminated.

You might think that I might be a teacher, a nurse, a youth club leader, a social worker, but no, I am a housing surveyor. More specifically, a survey manager, so the number of times I actually might complete a survey is small.

This lady has been abroad for many years, and returned to discover that CRB checks have spread to every corner of UK life. Her observations are a blast of sanity, and welcome perspective on this uniquely British obsession...

"Having just returned to the UK after some years spent living abroad, I've been pretty taken aback by how things have changed in this regard. I'm now a full-time mature student, looking for a chance to volunteer somewhere. It's not really for the sake of my CV, as people often assume, but simply to make some useful contribution to society. I'd thought of some sort of first-aid role with the Red Cross, or volunteering at my local hospital or homeless centre.

As the Protection of Freedoms Act comes in - supposedly limiting over-CRB checking - it is reported that one school is CRB checking parents, to watch their children's sports matches.

The school apparently put a note in the newsletter -

"A reminder that parents wishing to spectate at our sports fixtures
MUST be in possession of an up to date Swindon Borough
Council CRB check. If you wish to spectate at a sports event the
following procedures apply.
Parents wishing to come and spectate regularly at fixtures need
to contact Miss Carter. Miss
Carter will send you the relevant links to the CRB site or ask for

Virgin Australia has banned men from sitting next to unaccompanied children. A fireman sitting next to two boys was asked to move, so a woman passenger to take his place. The outraged man pointed out that he was trusted to save children from burning buildings: surely he could sit next to a couple?

A Manifesto Club member passed on this on - one of the Rochdale victims was excluded from working in social work, because of her experiences of sexual abuse. So even victims can be excluded from roles because of CRBs.... She told Women's Hour on Radio 4:

"I wanted to be a social worker. Social services rang up the university, and the university involved. I couldn't do the course, because I had social services involved."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00ykz94

This email from a lady shows how the expansion of enhanced CRB checks drastically narrows job opportunities for people with any kind of criminal record:

"My husband has a driving offence from the past which does not show up on his enhanced CRB however, the driving offence I have from 13 years ago does show up on my CRB.

As a naturally caring person with an honors degree in psychology, I seek caring roles where I can offer my help and caring skills to others, however I have found that these are the jobs that I cannot apply for as I would be ruled out immediately by a CRB check with a silly mistake upon it from 13 years ago.

This email recalls how a visitor to a National Trust for Scotland site was warned at the entrance that he shouldn't take photographs of children...

‘I recently visited J.M. Barrie’s birthplace home in Kirriemuir, Angus, a building run by the National Trust for Scotland, holding a camera. I was expressly told, as I purchased tickets, that I must not use my camera to photograph children. Mention was made of both child protection and data protection legislation, and also of the possibility of tracing women in refuges via possible posting on social networking sites.