VETTING GLOSSARY

In section 2 of the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Acts 2012-2016,

“BUREAU”

means the National Vetting Bureau of the Garda Síochána, replacing the national unit known until 29 April 2016 as the Garda Central Vetting Unit.

“RELEVANT ORGANISATION”

means a natural person, a body or other entity who employs, or enters into a contract for services with, or permits any person on its behalf (whether or not for commercial or any other consideration), to undertake relevant work or activities, or who represents another person or entity for the purposes of the vetting procedures under this Act, but does not include such arrangements in the course of a private arrangement.

“RELEVANT WORK OR ACTIVITIES”

means—

(a) relevant work or activities relating to children, or

(b) relevant work or activities relating to vulnerable persons;

and

“relevant work or activities relating to children” shall be construed in accordance with Part 1 of Schedule 1;

“relevant work or activities relating to vulnerable persons” shall be construed in accordance with Part 2 of Schedule 1.

Part 1 of Schedule 1 includes (among others) the following categories of relevant work —

1. Any work or activity which is carried out by a person, a necessary and regular part of which consists mainly of the person having access to, or contact with, children in —

(a) an establishment which provides pre-school services,

(b) a school or centre of education.

4. Any work or activity which consists of care or supervision of children unless the care or supervision is merely incidental to the care or supervision of persons who are not children.

5. Any work or activity which consists of the provision of educational, training, cultural, recreational, leisure, social or physical activities (whether or not for commercial or any other consideration) to children unless the provision of educational, training, cultural, recreational, leisure, social or physical activities is merely incidental to the provision of educational, training, cultural, recreational, leisure, social or physical activities to persons who are not children.

6. Any work or activity which consists of the provision of advice, guidance or developmental services (including by means of electronic interactive communications) to children unless the provision of the advice, guidance or developmental service is merely incidental to the provision of those services to persons who are not children.

7. Any work or activity as a minister or priest or any other person engaged in the advancement of any religious beliefs to children unless such work or activity is merely incidental to the advancement of religious beliefs to persons who are not children.

8. Work as a driver of a public service vehicle which is being used only for the purpose of conveying children.

9. The provision by a person, whether or not for commercial or other consideration, of accommodation for a child in his or her own home.

“VETTING DISCLOSURE”

means a disclosure made by the Bureau on foot of an application made on or after 29 April 2016 by the liaison person of a relevant organisation in respect of the engagement of a person for relevant work or activities. The Bureau will make such enquiries of the Garda Síochána as it deems necessary to establish whether there is any criminal record or specified information relating to the person and issue the disclosure to the liaison person who made the application.

“LIAISON PERSON”

in relation to a registered relevant organisation, means a person nominated by an organisation to be registered as the liaison person of the organisation for the purposes of applying for and receiving vetting disclosures on behalf of that organisation.

“DECLARATION OF CONSENT”

means a declaration by a person that he or she consents to the making of the application for a Vetting Disclosure and to the disclosure of such information by the Bureau to the liaison person of the relevant organisation for the purposes of the Vetting Act. If a person in respect of whom an application for vetting disclosure is made is under 18 years of age, a declaration of consent may be made on his or her behalf by a parent or guardian.

“SPECIFIED INFORMATION”

means information concerning a finding or allegation of harm to another person that is received by the Bureau from the Garda Síochána, pursuant to an investigation of an offence or to any other function, or from a scheduled organisation (a body, e.g. Tusla, specified in Schedule 2), in respect of the person and which is of such a nature as to reasonably give rise to a bona fide concern that the person may —

(i) harm any child or vulnerable person,

(ii) cause any child or vulnerable person to be harmed,

(iii) put any child or vulnerable person at risk of harm,

(iv) attempt to harm any child or vulnerable person, or

(v) incite another person to harm any child or vulnerable person.

“RE-VETTING DISCLOSURE”

means a disclosure made by the Bureau in respect of a person, on foot of an application which shall be made by the liaison person of a relevant organisation after the expiration of such period as may be prescribed from the issue of the previous vetting disclosure in respect of that person (or of vetting information issued by the Garda Central Vetting Unit before 29 April 2016), and on the expiration of such intervals thereafter as may be prescribed.

NOTE: The re-vetting requirement in Section 20 has not been brought into force (and these periods and intervals have not been prescribed) as of 22 February 2023.

“REGISTER OF RELEVANT ORGANISATIONS”

means a Register maintained by the Chief Bureau Officer, to whom a relevant organisation shall apply to be registered, unless applications for vetting disclosures are submitted to the Bureau on its behalf by another relevant organisation that is already registered and which has furnished the Bureau with particulars of the name and address of the relevant organisation concerned.

“REGISTER OF VETTED PERSONS”

means a Register maintained by the Chief Bureau Officer of information on persons who were or are the subject of applications for vetting disclosure and includes information which on 29 April 2016 was in the possession of the Garda Central Vetting Unit of the Garda Síochána.

“REGISTER OF SPECIFIED INFORMATION”

means a Register of specified information maintained by the Chief Bureau Officer, including any specified information in respect of a person that as of 29 April 2016 was in the possession of the Garda Central Vetting Unit of the Garda Síochána.

“HARM”

means exploitation or abuse, whether physical, sexual or emotional, of the person.

“CHILD ”

means a person under the age of 18 years.

“SPENT CONVICTION”

means a conviction by the District Court in respect of an offence where the person convicted had attained the age of 18 years at the date of the commission of the offence, the person has only one relevant conviction, the offence is not an excluded offence [specified in the Act], not less than 7 years has passed since the effective date of conviction, and the person shall have served or otherwise undergone or complied with any sentence imposed, or order made by the court.

"VULNERABLE PERSON"

means a person, other than a child, who—

(a) is suffering from a disorder of the mind, whether as a result of mental illness or dementia,

(b) has an intellectual disability,

(d) has a physical disability,

which is of such a nature or degree—

(i) as to restrict the capacity of the person to guard himself or herself against harm by another person, or

(ii) that results in the person requiring assistance with the activities of daily living including dressing, eating, walking, washing and bathing.