What is the PVG Scheme

The PVG (Protection of Vulnerable Groups) Scheme, is a registration system for anyone who carries out work (paid or unpaid) with vulnerable groups in Scotland. It is designed to exclude people who are known to be unsuitable from working with vulnerable groups and detects those who become unsuitable while in the workplace.

People who are protected by the PVG Scheme are:

• individuals under the age of 18 (children)

• individuals over the age of 16 who are provided with care, health, community care or welfare services (protected adults)

Key points:

• If your community group or organisation has volunteers or paid staff which you consider to be undertaking regulated work, your committee or board has a legal responsibility to make sure that those people are suitable to work with children or vulnerable adults.

• It is an offence for an individual who is barred to undertake regulated work. It is also an offence for an employer to offer a barred individual regulated work unless they can show that they did not know and could not reasonably be expected to know that the individual was barred.

• If your organisation has paid staff or volunteers who are carrying out regulated work, you need access to scheme records. You must either:

• register with Disclosure Scotland, which will enable them to countersign disclosure applications or requests

• or enrol with a registered body that can provide countersignatory services for them Volunteer Scotland Disclosure Services can help with this

Links for more information

Scottish Government - Disclosure Scotland

Types of Disclosure and Fees

https://www.mygov.scot/disclosure-types/

Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations, CVO

Overview of the PVG Scheme

https://scvo.org.uk/support/running-your-organisation/legislation/pvg-scheme