Information, Advice and Guidance: Government says helpline staff lack sufficient criminal checks

The Department for Education and Skills (DfES) requires advisers on the youth help-line,which number about 70, to be subject to "enhanced disclosures", the highest level of check. These are conducted through Disclosure Scotland, the Scottish arm of the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and involve disclosure of any information the police deem to be relevant.

Instead, only "basic disclosures" have been carried out on many staff, the lowest of three levels of check. It only includes details of unspent convictions that are sent to the individual rather than their employer.

The oversight emerged last week after managers from The essentiagroup, which runs the youth helpline, asked permanent staff to produce certification from police checks, following pressure from the DfES.