In the work undertaken within the Catholic Church in Aotearoa New Zealand, trust is placed in people (clergy, religious, employees and volunteers) to provide support and assistance to children and vulnerable adults. The purpose of these procedural recommendations is to minimise the likelihood of all people, but, particularly members of society, being put at risk by individuals who may have displayed behaviour that could be detrimental to others’ safety and wellbeing,

 

Consistent safety checking and police vetting can help assess whether people pose a risk to children and vulnerable adults and provide a way of preventing known abusers from working with those at risk.

 

In particular, these recommendations ensure alignment with the expectations set out by the Children’s Act, 2014.

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The key components to personal checking are:  

 

Referee Checks: Ask the person to identify at least one referee who can be contacted for discussion about the person’s history relevant to the role, any concerns around interacting with children of vulnerable adults and the person’s suitability for the role. Date and record the discussion - see below for Download.

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​Police Vetting: Completing a NZ Police Vetting and Consent Form, and any other required checks if the person has lived overseas - see below for Download.

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Appropriately responding to the results of the NZ Police Vetting Form, in accordance with the procedures are set out in the Police Vetting Sheet (General) - see below for Download.

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If a person provides evidence of a current police vet through any other organisation, this is not valid in terms of the work that the person undertakes within the diocese. For instance, a teacher who holds a current registered teacher certificate for which an acceptable police vet is a prerequisite, this does not preclude the person from a police vet for the work to be carried out within the Catholic Organisation. The police vet from one agency is not transferable to another.  Another example is if someone comes from Australia with a current "Working with Children Check" (in Queensland this is known as a Blue Card) and wishes to become an employee or volunteer in any Catholic Diocese in New Zealand.  Our New Zealand Safeguarding requirements state that they would still be required to complete a New Zealand Vet & Australian History Check Request and Consent Form.  Click here to access relevant forms. NZ & Australia

 

 When in doubt, the safety checking and police vetting process should be completed. Where an individual has spent significant periods of time in a country other than New Zealand, the relevant vetting officers will oversee the process of ensuring that a police vet or is completed from any country where the individual resided for a significant period of time.

 

Every three years a fresh police vet including an identity check must be completed

         Police Vetting Q&A and relevant forms can be viewed and downloaded below.

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​DISCLOSURE AND STORAGE OF INFORMATION

The Diocesan police vetting officer will receive the vetting result from the police.  Any results will then go to the Diocesan Safeguarding Officer and the appointed person within the parish or community for consideration.  In all cases the Privacy Act (2020) will be observed. All information related to the safety checking and police vetting process will be stored securely and access restricted to the relevant vetting officer.

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​For further information regarding this process please visit the NZ Police website.