Written Policies and Procedures of social workers providing false information and disclosing cautions.

S. Prichard made this Freedom of Information request to Health and Care Professions Council This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

Response to this request is long overdue. By law, under all circumstances, Health and Care Professions Council should have responded by now (details). You can complain by requesting an internal review.

Dear Health and Care Professions Council,

We would like to know what the written policy and procedures are, and who is responsible and liable (Social workers or HCPC or both) for the following:

1. Ensuring social workers registering with the HCPC provide accurate and up to date information.

2. Ensuring social workers registering with the HCPC hold appropriate documentation to ensure they can legally work in the UK.

3. Ensuring that social workers do not own, a partner, director or secretary or in any way linked to a business, Limited or Sole Trader, that would be, according to the Department of Education, considered conflict of interest should the same social worker be also employed for a council.

4. Ensuring that social workers that have had HCPC disciplinary action or suspension against them that affects them working as a social worker, is adequately publicised to ensure parents and employees are safeguarded during time of caution applied.

5. Who is responsible, and liable, for ensuring that social workers that have had HCPC disciplinary action or suspension that affects them working as a social worker, discloses information of their caution, or is it down to their employee to check with HCPC?

6. What are the written policies and procedures of social workers that have failed to disclose HCPC cautions to their employers (new or old)

7. What are the written policies and procedures of employers that have failed check social workers entitlement to practice by the HCPC as a social worker?

NOTES
Q 1&2
We have seen a pattern of social workers nationally providing false information, such as giving false names, dates of births, not being entitled to work in the UK or having false passports

Q 3
Following the dishonesty of Q1&2, we have noticed a pattern of social workers setting up businesses as social workers or foster careers. This is deemed conflict of interest by Dofe. We, advocating for whistle blowers, was told of judges and social workers removing children for their own or friends foster agencies or care homes.

Q 4,5,6&7
We have noted that social workers that have been cautioned and had restrictions or suspensions placed on them, have then moved on to new employers working as a social worker.

N.B we have sent the HCPC a private FOI regarding a social worker that, despite being banned by the HCPC to work with children, continued to work with children. The tribunal page of her caution has been removed, not allowing the parent to take action against the council and social worker for harming her child. Please can you respond to the FOI email, which would be the same as used in this account.

Yours faithfully,

S. Prichard

FOI, Health and Care Professions Council

Dear S. Prichard

 

Thank you for your email of 10 January 2018, in which you ask for
information on social workers providing false information and disclosing
cautions.

 

We are treating this as a request under the Freedom of Information Act
2000 (FOIA).

 

We will deal with your request as promptly as possible and, at the latest,
within 20 working days as required by the FOIA. If you have any queries
about your request please do contact us using this email address, or the
address below.

 

The reference number for your request is FR05465.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Freedom of Information

 

Health and Care Professions Council

Park House, 184 Kennington Park Road

London SE11 4BU

[1]www.hcpc-uk.org

 

To sign up to our e-newsletter, please email [2][email address]

 

Please consider the environment before printing this email

 

Correspondence is welcome in English or Welsh / Gallwch ohebu yn Gymraeg
neu Saesneg.

 

 

 

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FOI, Health and Care Professions Council

1 Attachment

Our Ref. FR05465

 

 

Dear S. Prichard

 

Thank you for your email of 10 January 2018, in which you ask for
information on social workers providing false information and disclosing
cautions.

 

Your request has been handled under the Freedom of Information Act 2000
(FOIA).

 

1.         Ensuring social workers registering with the HCPC provide
accurate and up to date information.

 

When applying for registration an applicant has to supply evidence of
their address which is dated in the last 6 months and a copy of a form of
photographic evidence to confirm their identity such as a passport or
driving licence. These documents need to be certified as correct by
another person of standing in the community. We also check a registrant’s
details including names and date of birth against the university pass list
for their qualification. If a person is an international applicant we will
verify their qualification with the education provider and, if it applies
to them, verify any registration they have with a regulatory body or a
professional body and if those don’t apply seek a professional reference
or one from an employer.

 

2.         Ensuring social workers registering with the HCPC hold
appropriate documentation to ensure they can legally work in the UK.

 

We do not have a requirement for a registrant to provide documentation
that they are entitled to work in the UK as we are only assessing
eligibility to be registered. We have many registrants who do not work in
the UK. It is for prospective employers to determine if a person has a
legal entitlement to work in the UK.

 

3.         Ensuring that social workers do not own, a partner, director or
secretary or in any way linked to a business, Limited or Sole Trader, that
would be, according to the Department of Education, considered conflict of
interest should the same social worker be also employed for a council.

 

This information is not held by the HCPC.

 

4.         Ensuring that social workers that have had HCPC disciplinary
action or suspension against them that affects them working as a social
worker, is adequately publicised to ensure parents and employees are
safeguarded during time of caution applied.

 

The Health and Care Professions Tribunal Service (HCPTS), which is the
adjudication service of the HCPC, publishes the outcome of fitness to
practise hearings on its website [1]www.hcpts-uk.org. The policy setting
out how the outcomes are publicised is set out in the HCPC’s Publication
Policy: Fitness to Practise Proceedings, a copy of which is attached.

 

By publishing the outcomes of hearings against Registrants who are subject
to a sanction in this way, the HCPC ensures that the information is
available to interested parties, including the general public, employers,
and patients / service users.

 

The HCPC also maintains a public register of all those holding an active
registration with the HCPC. This register is accessible via the HCPC’s
website at [2]http://www.hcpc-uk.org/aboutregistration.... The
register entry for those registrants who are subject to a sanction is
annotated with the appropriate details, and a link is provided giving
direct access to webpage on the HCPTS website where the decision is
published. This ensures that anyone wishing to check the registration
status of a particular registrant is able to see from the register entry
whether that registrant is subject to a sanction.

 

5.         Who is responsible, and liable, for ensuring that social
workers that have had HCPC disciplinary action or suspension that affects
them working as a social worker, discloses information of their caution,
or is it down to their employee to check with HCPC?

 

As part of the Standards of conduct, performance and ethics, which sets
out the duties expected of registrants, the HCPC expects all registrants
to be open and honest with their employers, both when applying for jobs
and when they are employed.

 

A registrant who is subject to a suspension order imposed by the HCPC is
not permitted to practise in their chosen profession but a registrant
subject to a conditions of practise order or a caution order may do so.

 

Registrants who are subject to a conditions of practise order are almost
always required by one of the conditions to disclose to any employers or
prospective employers, or agencies, that they are subject to the
conditions of practise order. If the HCPC is informed that the registrant
has breached this condition it may result in a more restrictive sanction
being imposed.

 

The HCPC does not make it a positive requirement for a registrant who is
subject to a caution order to disclose that fact to any particular
individual. However, most employers will ask applicants for jobs which
require an active HCPC registration whether they have ever been subject to
fitness to practise proceedings and would expect applicants to answer that
question honestly. If the HCPC is informed that a registrant has been
dishonest in a job application it may result in fitness to practise
proceedings being brought against that registrant.

 

The HCPC also expects employers to check the registration status of their
employees and works regularly with employers such as the NHS and local
authorities to remind them that this is good practise.

 

The HCPC considers that it is the responsibility of employers and / or the
general public when engaging with a registrant to check the registration
of that individual. The HCPC is not responsible for ensuring that a
registrant discloses information about their sanction to any party,
although as set out above the HCPC can take action in certain
circumstances if notified that the registrant has failed to do so.

 

6.         What are the written policies and procedures of social workers
that have failed to disclose HCPC cautions to their employers (new or old)

 

This information is not held by the HCPC.

 

7.         What are the written policies and procedures of employers that
have failed check social workers entitlement to practice by the HCPC as a
social worker?

 

This information is not held by the HCPC.

 

 

Internal review

 

If you are unhappy with the way your request for information has been
handled, you can request a review by writing to:

 

Secretariat Department

Health and Care Professions Council

Park House

184 Kennington Park Road

London

SE11 4BU

 

Email: [3][email address]

 

If you remain dissatisfied with the handling of your request or complaint,
you have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner at:

 

The Information Commissioner’s Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK0 5AF

 

Telephone: 0303 123 1113  Website: [4]www.ico.org.uk

 

There is no charge for making an appeal.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Freedom of Information

 

Health and Care Professions Council

Park House, 184 Kennington Park Road

London SE11 4BU

[5]www.hcpc-uk.org

 

To sign up to our e-newsletter, please email [6][email address]

 

Please consider the environment before printing this email

 

Correspondence is welcome in English or Welsh / Gallwch ohebu yn Gymraeg
neu Saesneg.

 

 

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