Garda Vetting & Recruitment

Our Aim

To support local churches in the processing of Garda Vetting applications as part of their recruitment process.

Garda Vetting

Garda Vetting is one of the steps in the process of recruiting employees & volunteers. Everyone who will be working with children or vulnerable adults is required by law to be vetted before they commence their work, whether that work is paid or as a volunteer.

Vetting Application Process

STEP 1 (Vetting Applicant & Disclosure Clerk)

You will need to complete one or both of the following forms:

  • Download and fill in the Inviter Form, GV1
  • If you are 16 or 17 years of age – you will also need to get the Parental / Legal Guardian Consent Form, GV2 completed by the correct person. If you are 18+ you do not need to worry about this form.

You will also need to gather two pieces of ID as follows:

  1. Photographic ID – a copy of your passport OR your driver’s license;
  2. Proof of current address – a bank statement or utility bill (not mobile phone bill) that is less than 3 months old.

Once you have the form(s) completed and have gathered your ID you need to send / give them to your local church Disclosure Clerk. You can find a current list of Disclosure Clerk’s here (coming soon).

STEP 2 (Disclosure Clerk & Seventh-day Adventist Church in Ireland)

Once your local church Disclosure Clerk receives your vetting application & documents they will fill in a Verification of Identity, GV3 form. They will then send all of these forms along with your ID documents to us.

Upon receipt, we will check your application, store your documents electronically, and send your application (via South Dublin County Volunteer Centre who are authorised and employed by us to process all applications) to the An Garda Siochana National Vetting Bureau.

By law, the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Ireland is required to keep copies of your vetting documents for the duration of your employment / volunteering.

STEP 3 (Applicant)

Once your vetting application has been received by An Garda Siochana’s National Vetting Bureau, you will receive by email, an invitation from An Garda Siochana to fill out on online e-vetting form. This email will come to the email address you provided on the Inviter Form, GV1.

This is the final form that you will need to fill out. On this form you will need to provide full personal details, passport details, a full address history, information relating to any previous criminal convictions. Once you’ve filled this form out you will need to wait to hear from us.

If you do not receive a link in an email from An Garda Siochana to this form within a week of passing your forms and ID documents to your local church Disclosure Clerk, please check to make sure this form hasn’t gone into your spam / trash email folder. If you definitely have not received it, get in contact with your Disclsoure Clerk. If necessary they will contact us.

STEP 4 (Seventh-day Adventist Church in Ireland)

Once the National Vetting Bureau has issued your Disclosure Certificate it will be passed onto us via South Dublin County Volunteer Centre. Once we receive your Disclosure Certificate we will let you know.

Based on the information on your Disclosure Certificate, and once we have received your Children First E-Learning certificate, we will email you and the Disclosure Clerk in your local church to let you know that you can commence your volunteering / employment.

Level 1 Basic Safeguarding Training

Before you can commence working with children and/or vulnerable adults you MUST also have completed the Level 1 Basic Safeguarding Training.

To do this you will need to:

You can do this Level 1 Basic Safeguarding Training at any time. You do not have to wait until your vetting application has been submitted.

You may also have completed this Children First E-Learning Programme by request of another organisation. If you have, you do not have to do the E-Learning programme again, so long as your Certificate is dated within the last 3 years. You will need to send us a copy of your Certificate.

Your Level 1 Basic Safeguarding Training will expire 3 years after the date on your E-Learning certificate. At that point, you will be requested to complete the training again.

Inviter Form, GV1

Application form for vetting, to be fill in by applicant.

Parental Consent Form, GV2

When the vetting applicant is under 18 years old this form will need to be filled in by the parent / legal guardian of the applicant.

Verification of Identity Form, GV3

For use by the Disclosure Clerk only.

Introduction to Children First E-Learning Programme

Access this training programme.

Before you start working with children or vulnerable adults as a volunteer or employee of the Seventh-day Adventist Church you must be Garda Vetted and complete the Level 1 Basic Safeguarding Training.

Common Questions about Garda Vetting 

Who should be vetted?

Vetting is a legal requirement for any person who is carrying out relevant work or activity under Schedule 1 of the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Acts 2012-2016. Relevant work must be a regular and consistent part of their role; it should not be incidental to their role (i.e. happening as a minor accompaniment to something else).

All employees and volunteers who work with children or vulnerable adults as a regular and consistent part of their role must be vetted before they commence their role.

The following persons MUST be vetted: pastors, elders, children’s Sabbath School teachers, youth leaders, Pathfinder & Adventurer Club leaders & counsellors, children’s ministry team members. This list is not meant to be exhaustive.

Consult your local church Disclosure Clerk for further guidance if you are unsure. If they are unsure, they will contact us.

Who are 'Children'?

For the purposes of Garda Vetting, all persons under the age of 18 years are classed as children (unless they are married).

Who is a 'Vulnerable Person'?

A person, other than a child, who –

  1. is suffering from a disorder of the mind, whether as a result of mental illness or dementia,
  2. has an intellectual disability,
  3. is suffering from a physical impairment, whether as a result of injury, illness or age, or
  4. has a physical disability,

which is of such a nature or degree – 

  • as to restrict the capacity of the person to guard himself or herself against harm by another person, or
  • that results in the person requiring assistance with the activities of daily living including dressing, eating, walking, washing and bathing.

If you are unsure about whether your volunteer/employee job description includes working with vulnerable adults, please contact your pastor/elders. If you are unsure of anything please also consult with your local church Disclosure Clerk. If they are unsure of how to advise you they will contact us.

What defines Relevant Work or Activities?

Relevant work or activities either relates to children or vulnerable persons.

In the context of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Ireland, relevant work includes, but is not restricted to – “Any work or activity as a minister or priest or any other person engaged in the advancement of any religious beliefs.”

For a full definition of relevant work or activity see Schedule 1 of the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Acts 2012-2016.

If you are unsure whether a church role/job description falls under the legal definition of relevant work or activity, consult your local church Disclsoure Clerk for further guidance. If they are unsure they will contact us.

Should we just vet everyone?

No. The National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Acts 2012-2016 does not provide a legal power to request vetting in regards to any person.

Only persons carrying out relevant work or activity under Schedule 1 of the Act should be vetted.

To vet someone who does not require vetting is a breach of the Act and of Data Protection. Breach of the Act can result in prosecution.

 

Common invalid reasons for requesting Garda Vetting
  • It seems unfair to vet some staff and volunteers but not others
  • Just to be safe
  • It is our policy to Garda Vet all our staff and volunteers
  • It is best practise to vet everyone
  • They will handling money
  • They may have contact with children or vulnerable persons

Garda vetting may only be requested for someone who will be carrying out relevant work or activity which is defined under Schedule 1 of the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Acts 2012-2016.

Are there exceptions to the rule about who should be vetted?

Part 3, Section 12 of the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Acts 2012-2016 clarifies particular situations where vetting would not apply.

Occasional volunteering – the Acts does not apply to persons who assist on an voluntary and occasional basis; other than where such assistance includes the coaching, mentoring, counselling, teaching or training of children or vulnerable persons.

If you are unsure about occasional volunteering, consult your local church Disclosure Clerk. If they are unsure, they will contact us.

How long will the Garda Vetting process take?

It may take from 2-4 weeks for your vetting to be completed, although it may be quicker than that. Rarely, it could take longer than this.

What if I don't have the ID listed on this page?

If you do not have all pieces of identification (passport/drivers license and utility bill), please contact the Disclosure Clerk for alternative ID which may be accepted. They will guide you through this.

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