Anger at 'ludicrous' vetting procedure; Hockey team couldn't stay with families.

Byline: Tom Mullen

THE headmaster of one of the North East's most prestigious schools has hit out at "ludicrous" new vetting guidelines that meant a visiting hockey team were not allowed to stay with his pupils' families.

Dr Bernard Trafford, headmaster of Newcastle's Royal Grammar School, spoke out amid plans to have all adults involved in exchange programme-style events checked to make sure they are not potential abusers.

A hockey team of 13-year-old girls almost had to pull out of a visit to the RGS because the families the girls had arranged to stay with had not been vetted.

Despite Dr Trafford having met the families concerned and his assurances there was no cause for concern, the Midlands-based school felt forced to arrange bed and breakfast accommodation for the team for fear of breaching the rules. Last night Dr Trafford said the draconian measures from the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) were unnecessary and damaging.

He said: "Ask any headteacher and they will tell you it's bureaucracy gone mad. The loss of trust in decent, law-abiding adults is a huge worry, and we resent being the agency of this.

"The hockey team's trip was all arranged, we had spoken to the host families. It was supposed to be a nice way for them to spend time in the region. This was the sort of thing you did when the world was sane.

"But schools are feeling the pressure and like with most things with schools. you have to follow the guidelines.

"I think the whole thing is going mad.

It's going well over the top." The new rules - which will require all people working with children or vulnerable adults to have screening - are not set to come into force until November next year, but some schools have already embraced the principle following seminars from ISA officials.

Exchange visits around the country are already reportedly being scrapped because some parents object to being vetted, feeling it to be degrading. Sir Roger Singleton, the ISA chairman, insisted the scheme was proportionate, adding that some people, such as piano tuners or electricians might choose vetting even if they didn't have to for "commercial advantage". But Dr Trafford - who is also vice-chairman of The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference - said the project could lead to genuinely dangerous adults slipping under the authorities' radar.

He said: "If you go mad like this you're not going to make anyone safe. You're just going to get a lot of overcompensating for something that in the end doesn't work. It's not that we don't want the work. The problem is you create little dark corners where genuinely dangerous people can hide."

A spokeswoman for the Department of Children, Schools and Families said: "The Vetting and Barring Scheme will not put school exchange trips under threat - we already strongly recommend that host families are CRB checked.

"When ISA registration becomes mandatory from November 2010, families will need to register. This will be a one-off registration and should be easier than the present arrangements where families would have to undergo CRB checks for each visit they host in order to comply with the guidance.

"Host families who are not being paid anything more than their expenses will be considered volunteers and we have made it clear from the outset that the ISA registration fee (pounds 64) will be waived for volunteers."

CAPTION(S):

HITTING OUT Bernard Trafford, headmaster at Newcastle Royal Grammer School.