At BBSafe, we use the building blocks of safeguarding culture. A simple way to think about how to approach client safeguarding for children and vulnerable adults.

Organisations rightly invest in criminal history checks and working with children screening to ensure their workforce meets legal requirements. But while these tools are essential, on their own they are not enough.  An over reliance on screening may even increase risk, because it creates a false sense of security, reducing vigilance and increasing complacency. We therefore urge the organisations we work with to think about how they can look deeper into a candidate’s suitability. 

Recently, we heard about a not for profit that was expanding rapidly and needed new staff. One candidate seemed qualified and suitable. His resume was good and he had some relevant experience. He held a current Working With Children Check and had a clean criminal history.  On paper, he looked good, and most of the leadership team was ready to offer him the role. 

But as part of their safeguarding protocol, the organisation conducted thorough referee checks before making any offer.  As we recommend, the hiring manager phoned referees rather than relying on written references. That’s when the story changed. One referee was asked “Would you work with this person again?” She hesitated before answering, “No, unfortunately I wouldn’t”. 

She revealed that there was evidence the candidate had been drinking before coming to work. Sorry, the referee said, but he wasn’t the kind of person that she would trust to work with children. The hiring team paused. The applicant had passed all the formal checks. But the behavioural feedback painted a different picture. The organisation did not hire the candidate because this process identified important red flags. 

For us this is a great example of how worker screening checks tell you who’s eligible, not who’s suitable.  It’s the deeper, human insights—gathered through reference checks, behavioural interviews, and values-based recruitment—that can often make the difference in safeguarding. 

That’s why we recommend assessing candidates in multiple ways before making any offer. Other key strategies are: 

• Exploring motivation for wanting to work with your client group – does it make sense based on their qualifications and work history or life experience – or is out of context or disconnected 

• Exploring work history – including time worked overseas, reasons for leaving and explaining any gaps 

• Exploring how they think about safeguarding their clients 

• Exploring how they maintain professional boundaries when they come up against them.

   

There is so much we can and should ask to ensure we get the safest people working with vulnerable clients. Don’t be afraid to ask the hard questions and dig into anything that raises a red flag.