Do you really know who you’re employing?

Confirming the identity and background history of personnel is one of the many challenges facing both employers and recruitment agencies when sourcing, selecting and supplying both temporary and permanent employees

The solution

All organisations that work with Comensura for their staffing requirements benefit from access to our audit service. The audit team who manage the service are dedicated to monitoring and enforcing the contractual and legislative compliance of supplier agencies as well as promoting best practise where possible. Items and areas audited are customised to specific client requirements but typically include:

• Compliance with the Employment Agencies Act 1973
• Compliance with The Employment Agencies and Business Regulations 2003
• Working Time Regulations 1998
• The Asylum and Immigration Act 1996
• HM Revenue and Customs requirements
• Insurance and Indemnities
• Proof of CRB checking
• Proof of eligibility to work in the UK

Although these 6 monthly audits help to mitigate the risk to clients of accepting candidates from non-compliant agencies, many organisations require additional vetting and screening to be undertaken for individual candidates applying for specific roles.

Comensura Safeguard Plus

To help address these challenges, Comensura have used their expertise to develop Comensura Safeguard Plus, an independent service designed to help establish the suitability of candidates for specific roles, particularly those that involve working with children and vulnerable adults. In addition to reviewing the standard audits previously outlined, the Comensura Safeguard team work with recruitment agencies to ensure that each and every candidate put forward for a role has been through an additional independent vetting process.

These extra checks and screening processes include:

• Criminal Record Bureau / Protection of Vulnerable Adults and Children
  Ensuring an enhanced criminal record bureau check (CRB) has been conducted within the last year by the employing agency and does not contain any prohibitive convictions. Checks against the Protection of Vulnerable Adults List (PoVA) and Protection of Children List (PoCA) can also be made if required. Suppliers are required to scan and upload a copy of each candidate’s original applicant copy of the CRB certificate on to Comensura.net following receipt of a signed declaration from the candidate authorising the disclosure.
  
  
• Photographic Evidence
  Ensuring that all suppliers scan and upload a copy of the candidate’s official photographic evidence. These documents are then matched by the Comensura Safeguarding Team to the candidates CRB certificates held centrally on Comensura.net to confirm authenticity.
  
  
• References
  Independently verifying that suppliers take up comprehensive references for the last 5 years with any gaps in employment explained.
  
  
• Additional Verification
  Verifying that candidates submitted are GSCC, GTC or BAOT registered where applicable.
  
  
• Eligibility to Work in the UK
  Undertaking an additional independent check to verify that all candidates are eligible to work in the UK, in accordance with Home Office guidelines, physically checking scanned copy of documents.
  
  
• Overseas Police Checks
  Ensuring that Overseas Police Checks are obtained for candidates who have resided or worked overseas since age 16 and that any translations are certified, and any relevant documentation independently verified.
  
  
• Interviews
  Arranging where applicable for candidates to be interviewed by the client prior to formally taking up their temporary position.
  
  
• Visibility for Line Managers
  Providing operational line managers with details on any noncompliance measured against the above and providing “visual” confirmation of the identity of successful candidates prior to them commencing the assignment.
  
  

These comprehensive processes allows hiring managers to make an informed selection decision based on the intelligence obtained, secure in the knowledge that they have taken every step available to mitigate any risk.

Download our data sheet for further information: safeguard-plus.pdf