Child Protection

DHSSPS guidance to the Protection of Children (NI) Service [POC (NI)] is contained in

Advice can also be obtained from the Volunteer Development Agency who provide POCVA awareness training.

Guidance to the Protection of Vulnerable Adults (NI) Service [POVA (NI)] is contained in

The DHSSPS has also published Child Protection guidance: Co-Operating to Safeguard Children

Access the Area Child Protection Committees' Regional Policy and Procedures Guide (PDF 1.4 MB) and the short guide to the procedures (PDF 418 KB).

Pre-employment Checking

Please note that from the 1 April 2008 responsibility for pre-employment checking will pass to the new disclosure body Access NI. In order to facilitate this transfer the POCVA checking service provided by DHSSPS ceases from Friday 14/03/08. Any POCVA forms received after this date will be returned unprocessed. Any organisation wishing to carry out pre-employment checks after this date must first register with Access NI.

Details on how to register with, and use the new disclosure service can be found on Access NI's website

Please note that Access NI will not accept POCVA forms and existing registration as a POCVA user will not transfer across to Access NI.