Transgender criminals could exploit a “loophole” by hiding their birth name while applying to work with children in order to conceal prior convictions.
People who do not identify with the gender assigned at birth are permitted to conceal their former name and biological sex when applying for positions in schools, nurseries, and hospitals.
Unlike others who have changed their names, transgender individuals must individually tell officials of their previous identities, according to a report by Keep Prisons Single Sex.
While they are still required by law to inform the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) of their current and former identities, the report’s author told the Telegraph that placing the responsibility on the individual “destroys faith in the system.”
Miriam Cates, Tory MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge, stated to the publication, “The goal of criminal background checks is to both safeguard the public and stop those who wish to do damage from gaining access to children and vulnerable individuals.”
If predators can dodge inspection by changing their name or claiming to be the other gender, this DBS loophole will undoubtedly be exploited and children will be hurt.
The research asserts that the system could be “abused” by “evil criminals” who wish to conceal their prior convictions in order to obtain access to vulnerable individuals.
The report cautions, “The current DBS system relies on the premise that these disclosures will be made accurately and completely, despite the fact that there are reasons to believe that they may not be.” Omission could be deliberate, even for malicious purposes.’
However, criminals concealing their former identities is not a novel concept.
Ian Huntley, who murdered 10-year-olds Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells in 2003, gained employment at a school after legally changing his name and concealing his true identity from a criminal record check.
Ministers are presently considering an existing loophole that relies on sex offenders notifying them of name changes through deed poll.
The DBS, a division of the Home Office, established a “sensitive applications pathway” for transgender individuals. These persons are excluded from revealing their former identities on the application form; instead, they must call officials and inform them.
This indicates that the information is not shared with their future employer.
Dr. Kate Coleman, director of KPSS, stated that there is “no certainty” that the information on a criminal record check is accurate for transgender individuals due to their “increased privacy rights.”
She cautioned that the gaps pose “severe threats to security that threaten the system’s legitimacy and dependability.”
The paper recommends for criminal background checks to be conducted using permanent National Insurance numbers.
A DBS representative stated, “All applicants for DBS checks are obliged to sign a legal declaration attesting that they have given their current and former identities.” Therefore, this is applicable to transsexual applicants.
Disclosure and Barring Service provides a Sensitive Applications process for transgender applicants under the Gender Recognition Act (2004). The prior identities (including birth sex) of transgender people are protected by the law.
“Our Sensitive Applications approach allows these applicants to send their complete information to DBS without releasing it to a potential employer.”
Our Sensitive Applications procedure does not pose any additional risk to DBS checks; rather, it offers transgender candidates the legal safeguards to which they are entitled.