“SEX-OFFENDER checks on hold for two years,” (TES, February 12) is a frightening reminder of the fact that many supply teaching agencies do not vet applicants thoroughly.
You say that most agencies do not have access to List 99. Yet the Department for Education and Employment will provide regular updates of the list to agencies which check large numbers of applicants, and smaller agencies can write to the DFEE, which will check for them free of charge.
There is simply no excuse for not checking each applicant against List 99. Failure to do so is not only illegal as pupils could be put at risk, it also reflects badly on reputable agencies like TimePlan.
Sally Webster
Public relations officer
TimePlan Education Group Ltd
20-21 Arcadia Avenue
London N3
