Sex Offenders: Fears over lack of protocol for 'soft intelligence' on workers

The warning, from children's services directors, follows educationsecretary Ruth Kelly's admission that 88 child sex offenders have beencleared to work in schools since 1997. Kelly last week promisedautomatically to ban anyone convicted or cautioned of any child sexoffence or serious offence against adults from working withchildren.

In a review of safeguarding policy, she said a single vetting list willreplace the various lists relating to working with children andvulnerable adults by 2008.

But children's services directors have warned the measures will fail toprotect children adequately from adults who have not offended but aboutwhom suspicions have been raised.

David Hawker, director of children's services at Brighton & Hove CityCouncil, said at a local level, safeguarding boards could set upinformation-sharing systems to detect people who had been suspended ordismissed.