Dizzy: Vetting Harms Children More Than Not Vetting

DizzyThinks is a great blog. Tory-minded, but still great. Finding facts, statistics and reports and worrying them like a terrier. Sometimes barking "wolf" up the wrong tree. But always interesting.

Dizzy's report on youth opportunities versus safeguarding of children agsinst predators and health and safety is very interesting. The Manifesto Club are campaigning against vetting and they may have a point.

Though I suspect the decline in what they call "Hobby Clubs" predates the rise in CRB checking and the like.

Various youth activities formed part of the LOL childhood, but predatory youth or adults were never a factor. Though there were some future jailbirds and habitual arsonists in my scout troop.

Now I am the father of two kids who take part in a number of activities (and to be completely honest I don't know whether everyone they are led, taught and supported by is CRB checked, and I'm not worrying).

I am a Trustee or Volunteer with various orgs that work with children and young people too. And I have a coaching qualification in athletics - though I coach only adults, I will need a CRB check to progress that.

For six months I worked on ex-coalfield estates with young people. I wasn't CRB checked though I should have been. And I doubt others - in contact with the young people - had had CRB clearance.

There is probably more danger within groups and between the 'adults' attached to participants. And that is simply not covered by CRB checks. Meanwhile tens of thousands of children are on waiting lists for cubs, brownies, scouts and guides. Possibly playing out unsupervised instead.

Vetting is not all that helpful in my opinion. But my impression is (a) there is still a lot of activity for children out there in most areas and (b) the decline in the more paramilitary parts of the "hobby clubs" provision began long before the ramping up of CRB or H&S rules.