Consultation outcome

Consultation on the proposal to remove the statutory requirement for a full employment history when appointing health and care volunteers

Updated 18 December 2023

This was published under the 2022 to 2024 Sunak Conservative government

Applies to England

Introduction

Under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 (the 2014 regulations), where a service provider employs or appoints a person, including volunteers, for the purposes of carrying on a regulated activity, the service provider must obtain certain information from that person, so that it can be made available to the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The purpose of obtaining this information is:

• to ensure that the person being appointed is a suitable candidate for the role in question
• to ensure the safety of service users and staff when appointing a person involved in the carrying on of regulated activities in a health and care setting

The information service providers are required to make available includes information listed at schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations. The information listed in schedule 3 includes a full employment history, together with a satisfactory written explanation of any gaps in employment.

It also includes:

• information regarding full criminal record checks
• photographic identification
• evidence of satisfactory conduct in previous employment in the provision of services relating to children, vulnerable adults, and health and social care
• information about any physical or mental health conditions which, once reasonable adjustments are made, are relevant to the person’s capability to properly perform tasks intrinsic to the role

These regulations inform part of the NHS Employment Check Standards.

Policy proposal for consultation

This consultation considers the option of removing the requirement to obtain the full employment history from schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations with respect to volunteers. It seeks views on whether, without obtaining a full employment history, the other pre-employment information required to ensure the suitability of candidates in respect to volunteers, including the other information set out at schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations, is sufficient to ensure the suitability of volunteer candidates.

We are not seeking to remove the requirement for a full employment history for paid employed staff as set out in the 2014 regulations.

It is our view that the other pre-employment check information as listed in schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations is adequate without the need to retain the requirement for a full employment history for volunteers. The full employment history serves little purpose for the majority of volunteering roles and is disproportionate to an assessment of a candidate’s suitability to volunteer. This requirement:

• presents an additional administrative burden to employers
• slows down the appointment process unnecessarily
• is a potential deterrent for a number of individuals who may wish to volunteer but are unable to provide a full and complete employment history in some cases going back over a number of decades, especially where this has no bearing on their suitability to volunteer

If changes were made to the 2014 regulations to remove the need for a full employment history for volunteers, appointing service providers would still be able to collect one should they wish to when appointing a volunteer, however it would no longer be a statutory requirement.

It is also our view that the removal of the requirement to obtain a full employment history for volunteers has the potential to:

• improve the application experience for volunteers
• increase the diversity of volunteer applicants
• reduce the administrative burden for employers by further streamlining the appointment process for volunteers

We therefore wish to engage with stakeholders to understand system views on the pros and cons of obtaining a full employment history when appointing volunteers and how this information is used by the appointing service providers to inform decisions about volunteer suitability.

There are no plans to remove any of the other pre-employment check requirements from statutory regulation within the scope of this consultation. These proposals do not extend to paid employees.

There also certain categories of volunteers who are exempt from these proposals - these are described in the ‘volunteer exceptions’ section below.

How volunteers come in scope of the 2014 regulations for pre-employment checks

Definition of employment

Under the 2014 regulations reference to those ‘employed’ includes those appointed as volunteers. This is because the definition of ‘employed’ in the 2014 regulations is very broad in scope and includes employment “under arrangements for persons to provide their services voluntarily” (see regulations 2(1) and 2(2) of the 2014 regulations).

Regulation 19 of the 2014 regulations (fit and proper persons employed) requires that the information specified in schedule 3 must be made available in relation to each person employed for the purposes of carrying on a regulated activity. This requirement therefore also applies in relation to those appointed as volunteers for the purposes of carrying on a regulated activity.

Regulated activities

Regulated activity is a term common to both the regulation of care services as prescribed in schedule 1 to the 2014 regulations and to the process of barring people from certain types of work under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. The term means different things in 2 different contexts.

Regulated activity in this consultation refers to the former and includes, for example, the provision of care for persons who, by reason of old age, illness or disability are unable to provide it for themselves, and which is provided in a place where those persons are living at the time the care is provided. The 2014 regulations state that an activity which is ancillary to, or is carried on wholly or mainly in relation to, a regulated activity shall be treated as part of that activity. Therefore, many volunteering roles will provide the kind of support that would be considered part of a ‘regulated activity’ such as feeding a service user, making a service user comfortable in a discharge lounge, providing basic first aid in the event of an emergency, or helping a service user settle in at home following discharge from hospital.

Scope of proposal

As part of the consultation the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is proposing to remove the requirement for a full employment history where a person is employed “under arrangements for persons to provide their services voluntarily”. However, DHSC would like to seek views as to whether by stating that the requirement does not apply with respect to those employed “under arrangements for persons to provide their services voluntarily” the right group of people would be covered.

Volunteer exceptions

It is important to note that the requirement to provide full employment history as set out in schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations will continue to apply with respect to:

• regulation 4 (that is, information with respect to the service provider where the service provider is an individual or partnership)

• regulation 5 (that is, where the service provider is a body other than a partnership, information with respect to a person appointed as a director of the service provider or a person appointed to perform the function of, or functions equivalent or similar to the functions of a director)

• regulation 6 (that is, where the service provider is a body other than a partnership, information with respect to a nominated individual who is employed as a director, manager or secretary of the body, and responsible for supervising the management of the carrying on of the regulated activity by a service provider where the service provider is body other than a partnership)

• regulation 7 (that is, information requirements relating to a registered manager in respect of a regulated activity)

where those individuals are volunteers, on the basis that those roles hold a level of responsibility where full employment history is necessary for ensuring suitability and appropriateness of the role.

As such, those roles where the service provider, partner or director of a regulated activity is a volunteer are not within the scope of this proposal.

Question

Do you think there are roles not covered by the term ‘volunteer’ that should be considered under the proposed regulatory change?

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Please specify what roles these might be and why.

Question

Some volunteer roles will be exempt from the proposed regulatory change. Where a service provider, partner, director or a registered manager of a regulated activity is also a volunteer, appointing providers will still be required to obtain a full employment history from these individuals.

Other than the examples listed above, do you think there are roles covered by the term ‘volunteer’ that should be exempt from the proposed regulatory change?

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Please specify what roles these might be and why.

Required pre-employment check information for volunteers

At regulations 4, 5, 6, 7 and 19 of the 2014 regulations and schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations, the information service providers are required to make available regarding employment history in respect of persons employed or appointed for the purposes of carrying on, or managing the carrying on of, a regulated activity includes:

• proof of identity including a recent photograph
• a copy of a criminal record certificate
• where required, a copy of an enhanced criminal record certificate together with, where applicable, suitability information relating to children or vulnerable adults
• satisfactory evidence of conduct in previous employment concerned with the provision of services relating to either:
  • health or social care
  • children or vulnerable adults
• where a person has been previously employed in a position whose duties involved work with children or vulnerable adults, satisfactory verification, so far as reasonably practicable, of the reason why the person’s employment in that position ended
• in so far as it is reasonably practicable to obtain, satisfactory documentary evidence of any qualification relevant to the duties for which the person is appointed to perform
• a full employment history, together with a satisfactory written explanation of any gaps in employment
• satisfactory information about any physical or mental health conditions which are relevant to the person’s capability, after reasonable adjustments are made, to properly perform tasks which are intrinsic to their appointment for the purposes of the regulated activity

In order to inform an assessment of the need for regulatory amendment in this space, it is important to understand:

• to what degree the need to obtain a full employment history is a necessary inclusion in the pre-employment information listed above
• to what end obtaining a full employment history might impact a decision to appoint a volunteer
• to what extent it may present a deterrent for prospective volunteers and/or may slow down the volunteer appointment process for service providers

Question

To what extent do you agree or disagree that obtaining a full employment history from a prospective volunteer poses challenges to the appointment process? (For example, will it affect the onboarding process or admin involved?)

• Strongly agree
• Agree
• Neither agree nor disagree
• Disagree
• Strongly disagree
• Don’t know

Please explain your answer.

Question

To what extent do you agree or disagree that the information provided in a full employment history is necessary to inform decisions when appointing a person to a volunteering role?

• Strongly agree
• Agree
• Neither agree nor disagree
• Disagree
• Strongly disagree
• Don’t know

Question

If you are involved in the appointment process for volunteers please provide examples of how you use this information to help inform your decision to appoint a volunteer.

How removal of full employment history may impact applications

Question

If the requirement to provide a full employment history were removed, do you think this would affect the number of applicants for volunteer roles?

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Question

How do you think this would affect the number of applicants for volunteer roles?

• It would significantly increase the number of applicants
• It would slightly increase the number of applicants
• It would slightly decrease the number of applicants
• It would significantly decrease the number of applicants
• Don’t know

Please explain your answer.

Question

If the requirement to provide a full employment history were removed, do you think this would affect the quality of applicants for volunteer roles?

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Question

How do you think this would affect the quality of applicants for volunteer roles?

• It would significantly improve the quality of applicants
• It would slightly improve the quality of applicants
• It would slightly worsen the quality of applicants
• It would significantly worsen the quality of applicants
• Don’t know

Please explain your answer.

Question

If the requirement to provide a full employment history were removed, do you think this would affect the diversity of applicants for volunteer roles?

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Question

How do you think this would affect the diversity of applicants for volunteer roles?

• It would significantly improve the diversity of applicants
• It would slightly improve the diversity of applicants
• It would slightly worsen the diversity of applicants
• It would significantly worsen the diversity of applicants
• Don’t know

Please explain your answer.

Other recruitment processes to ensure suitability of volunteer candidates

Volunteer roles often do not require candidates to have previous relevant work experience. However, currently the information service providers are required to obtain from prospective candidates is the same for paid, employed staff as it is for volunteers.

We are aware that there are a range of other, non-legislative, practices and processes that service providers put in place to ensure the suitability of prospective volunteer candidates (in addition to the required information listed in schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations and set out in the section above). These include face-to-face interviewing, obtaining references or face-to-face initial training.

It is also important to note that if volunteers are exempted from the requirement to provide a full employment history, this would mean that any volunteers who subsequently go on to secure a paid, employed role in health and care would be required to provide a full employment history at that point, prior to being able to take up a paid, employed role.

Question

Other than those listed in schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations, are there other pieces of information or processes not related to employment history you think should be added to volunteer pre-employment checks if full employment history were to be removed?

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Please provide details about what these pieces of information or processes are and why you think they are important.

Question

Beyond schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations, if the statutory requirement for full employment history were to be removed, is there information relating specifically to an individual’s employment, volunteering or training history that it should still be necessary to obtain for the purposes of assessing candidate suitability?

This might include part employment history, volunteering history, or recent employment history if the candidate is able to provide that information.

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Question

Please give examples of the parts of an individual’s employment history that you think should still be obtained beyond evidence of satisfactory conduct in employment relating to health and social care or working with children or vulnerable adults.

Question

Do you think there are other requirements within health and care volunteer application processes which have little or no bearing on assessing the suitability of a candidate, or hinder the appointment process?

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Please provide details about what these requirements are and why you think they hinder the appointment process.

Question

Do you foresee any potential challenges or issues arising from exempting volunteers from providing a full employment history for pre-employment checks?

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Please describe these potential challenges or issues.

Ensuring the safety of service users, staff and the public

The purpose of obtaining pre-employment check information detailed in schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations is to form part of the process undertaken by service providers to ensure the person being appointed is a suitable candidate for the role in question, and to help ensure the safety of service users and staff when appointing a person involved in the carrying on of regulated activities in a health and care setting.

Service providers may, for example, use the information regarding the full employment history of a person, to ensure a person provides reasons for why they may have left or been removed from employment concerning health or social care, or children or vulnerable adults.

In responding to the next question it is worth bearing in mind that the pre-employment information required by the 2014 regulations will likely constitute only part of a broader set of actions and processes undertaken by service providers to ensure the safeguarding of service users, staff and the public in the appointment of volunteers. Other checks relevant and proportionate to the role such as information concerning previous health and care experience, or employer or character references, should also be obtained, and there may be other helpful practices undertaken by service providers that help to assess the suitability of candidates and build trust in candidates that are not required by the 2014 regulations.

Question

Do you agree or disagree that, if full employment history was removed, the other pre-employment information required by schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations is sufficient to ensure the reasonable safeguarding of patients, staff and the public when appointing a volunteer?

• Agree
• Disagree
• Don’t know

Please explain your answer.

How to respond

The consultation will close at 11:59pm on 18 November 2023.

Please respond by completing the online survey.

If you have any problems with using the online survey, please email volunteeringconsultation@dhsc.gov.uk. Do not send your consultation answers or any personal information to this email address.

Annex A: public sector equality duty

The matters considered in this consultation do not raise any significant issues in relation to the public sector equality duty under section 149(1) of the Equality Act 2010, because, following consideration of the potential equalities impacts, it is anticipated that any impact will be minimal and, if any, will likely be a positive impact for certain groups of individuals.

It is anticipated that the matters considered in this consultation will not adversely impact on the duty to eliminate unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act. The current requirement to obtain a full employment history for volunteers may contribute to discrimination against people with certain protected characteristics, for example age, where it is unfeasible for a person to recall and retain details of an employment history that may span many decades, or a younger individual who may not yet have an employment history to provide. Removal of this requirement may therefore increase access to volunteering opportunities for a wider range of people from different age groups.

It is anticipated that the matters considered in this consultation will not produce an adverse impact on the duty to advance equality of opportunity or foster good relations between different groups. This is because any change to the 2014 regulations to exempt volunteers from providing a full employment history would potentially open up the opportunity to volunteer to a wider group of individuals who may otherwise not be able to provide a full employment history. This could in turn contribute to positive, but likely not significant, impacts on diversity in volunteering. Having increased opportunity to engage in volunteering opportunities may also assist those with protected characteristics in widening access into paid future employment through gaining experience in health and care settings.

The matters concerned in this consultation could have a positive effect on certain groups with protected characteristics. An increase in volunteers providing regulated activities could have a beneficial impact on patients receiving care. A number of these care recipients will be older people or people who have disabilities. Therefore, groups who come under the protected characteristics of age and disability could benefit from these changes. Service providers may use information regarding the full employment history of a person to help ensure that person provides reasons for why they may have left or been removed from employment concerning health or social care, or children or vulnerable adults.

Removal of the requirement to obtain a full employment history may mean a decrease in the level of potential safeguarding information available to employers to inform their decision making about a volunteer’s suitability. This could present a risk to patients, particularly those that are vulnerable because of age and/or disability. However, this risk should be mitigated by the other requirements set out in schedule 3 to the 2014 regulations, which will continue to include the requirement for Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks to be in place and the requirement for appointing service providers to seek evidence of satisfactory conduct in any previous work relating to health or social care, children or vulnerable adults.

Privacy notice

This is a public consultation on whether to remove the statutory requirement for health and care service providers to obtain a full employment history from applicants for volunteer roles involved in the carrying on of regulated activities.

Data controller

The data controller is DHSC.

What personal data we collect

We will collect data on whether respondents are responding on behalf of an organisation or to share their individual or professional views. If responding on behalf of an organisation, we will collect data on the name of the organisation, the sector it operates in, and the geographic region it operates in. If responding to share professional views, we will collect data on the person’s profession and the type of organisation they work for. If responding to share professional or individual views, we will collect data on age, ethnicity, geographic location and gender.

We will also ask for your email address for the following reasons:

• if you need to contact us about deleting your response - the only way we can verify that it is your response is via your email address

• if you did not have time to finish the survey, we can send you a reminder before it closes - this is optional and it is up to you whether you wish to share your email address

How we use your data

We will collect the above listed data for the purpose of analysing consultation responses to understand whether the proposed statutory changes will impact certain types of organisations, social groups, or professional groups adversely. The data will be collected via the respondent’s responses to the consultation.

Legal basis for processing personal data

Under article 6 of the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the lawful bases we rely on for processing this information are:

• we have a legitimate interest
• 6(1)(e) processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller

Data processors and other recipients of personal data

Your information will be shared only with DHSC’s third party supplier (SocialOptic), which is responsible for running and hosting the online survey.

International data transfers and storage locations

Your data will be stored on a secure DHSC server in the UK.

Retention and disposal policy

Your data will be retained for a period of 12 months from the closing date of the consultation following which all data will be securely disposed of according to departmental procedures.

How we keep your data secure

Your data will be stored on a secure DHSC server in the UK.

Your rights as a data subject

By law, data subjects have a number of rights and this processing does not take away or reduce these rights under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (2016/679) and the UK Data Protection Act 2018 applies.

These rights are:

1. the right to get copies of information - individuals have the right to ask for a copy of any information about them that is used

2. the right to get information corrected - individuals have the right to ask for any information held about them that they think is inaccurate, to be corrected

3. the right to limit how the information is used - individuals have the right to ask for any of the information held about them to be restricted, for example, if they think inaccurate information is being used

4. the right to object to the information being used - individuals can ask for any information held about them to not be used. However, this is not an absolute right, and continued use of the information may be necessary, with individuals being advised if this is the case

5. the right to get information deleted - this is not an absolute right, and continued use of the information may be necessary, with individuals being advised if this is the case

Comments or complaints

Anyone unhappy or wishing to complain about how personal data is used as part of this programme, should contact data_protection@dhsc.gov.uk in the first instance or write to:

Data Protection Officer
1st Floor North
39 Victoria Street
London
SW1H 0EU

Anyone who is still not satisfied can complain to the Information Commissioners Office. Their website address is www.ico.org.uk and their postal address is:

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Automated decision making or profiling

No decision will be made about individuals solely based on automated decision making (where a decision is taken about them using an electronic system without human involvement) which has a significant impact on them.

Changes to this policy

This privacy notice is kept under regular review, and new versions will be available on our privacy notice page on our website. This privacy notice was last updated on 19 September 2023.