The Beanbag Blog

Vetting & Barring: Implications for Private Tutors (Part 2)

2010-02-24 11:05:04 UTC

We welcome a guest blogger to Beanbag today - Ian Phillips. Along with Barry Clark, he is co-author of 'Vetting and Barring: A practical guide to the new CRB / ISA scheme'. Ian has helpfully summarised the impact of ISA registration on private tutoring.

Well, it’s nearly here. The much-trailed and, it seems, much-feared Vetting and Barring Scheme is moving into view. July 26^th is the key date, when its public-facing functions kick-off.

For tutors, the impact is fairly clear. Under the law, if you are hired by a family direct, it’s a private arrangement and there is no legal need to register. If you work through an agency, so that the deal is done between that agency and the family, then you will need to register with the Independent Safeguarding Authority. The owner of your agency will commit a crime, as will you, if you don’t do this. And you’ll need to have a meaningful conversation with the agency as to who picks up the bill (around £80).

Even if you only tutor direct with families then you will still need to consider whether to register voluntarily. From the commercial perspective, if your competition is agency-led, then many families will inevitably be drawn towards those ads that carry the magic legend ‘ISA registered’.

It’s a new world, brave or otherwise. Make sure in plenty of time that you’ve decided what you want to do.

Thanks Ian! For Beanbag tutors, you will be relieved to know that we are not an Agency - so there is no need for you to get ISA registered. Be aware however that parents will increasingly look for ISA registration as a safety 'kite mark', so it may be worth getting registered in any case.

Panorama look at child safety and the ISA

2010-02-09 17:31:10 UTC

Some of you may have seen the thought provoking BBC Panorama programme last night entitled 'are you a danger to kids'.

With more than nine million people potentially effected by the vetting and barring scheme, it is something that will touch many people's lives. Certainly those who come into regular contact (more than once a week) with children and vulnerable adults will be expected to obtain ISA registration. We explained the impact on tutors in a previous blog post.

Inevitably the programme touched upon issues around how the ISA will evaluate people - they will be expected to cover not only criminal records but allegations, complaints, tip-offs and suspicions (whether proven or not). An interview with John Pinnington highlighted the distress that unproven allegations can have on an individual, their family and their career.

We will be very much in the hands of the ISA's two hundred strong team of case workers to make the right decisions. We will also be expecting them to safeguard potentially damaging personal data - no computers to be left on trains, please.

So what's our view at Beanbag? Well as parents we welcome anything that reduces the risk that those with evil intentions ever get access to our children. As individuals, we are equally concerned about the human rights issues posed.

The debate will run and run, and I am sure that we will be writing about this again.

Beanbag welcomes its 2,000th Tutor

2010-01-26 15:26:09 UTC

Very good news from Beanbag Towers.

Increasing numbers of tutors across the UK have been joining our website of late, and today we said hello to our 2,000th tutor, Amy Fleming from Edinburgh.

When we set up this website it was because we wanted to improve the accessibility of tutors across the UK, giving parents the opportunity to find tutors online as an alternative to the traditional tutoring agency route.

Not resting on our laurels, we are keen to hear from tutors and parents on what they think of the website and how we can improve its usefulness to them. Please email me at jonellis@beanbaglearning.com I am really interested in what you have to say.

Best wishes from the Beanbag team!