Nursery World - CRB strikes off users with low turnover

Nanny agencies are angry at being forced to deregister from the Criminal Records Bureau and pay an umbrella body to submit checks on staff to the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) if they need fewer than 100 a year. Maggie Dyer, who runs the London Au Pair and Nanny agency, said, 'It seems to me that we still have to do all the hard work for the umbrella bodies, filling in forms and doing ID checks, and they just take the money.'

Maggie Dyer, who runs the London Au Pair and Nanny agency, said, 'It seems to me that we still have to do all the hard work for the umbrella bodies, filling in forms and doing ID checks, and they just take the money.'

She said it affected her 'hugely' as a small agency, because she could not guarantee to need anything like 100 checks a year. Many nannies returning to the agency after a job had either undergone a CRB check recently or already possessed CRB clearance.

The changes also affect sports clubs, children's charities and independent schools.

A CRB spokesman said that its decision to streamline the registration process and create a smaller network of registered users followed extensive consultation and that it would ensure more efficient use of resources.

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