Blue Card (Australia)
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[edit] Disambiguity
A Blue Card also refers to a card required by construction workers in Queensland. Additionally there are other Blue Cards in other states of Australia. This article refers to the Queensland Blue Card for Working With Children.
[edit] What Is It?
In Queensland, Australia a Blue Card is a type of identification card issued by the Office of the Commissioner for Children and Young People after a successful criminal history check (the "Working with Children Check"). This criminal history check includes both charges and convictions in all states of Australia. According to the Blue Card website (see link below) the Commission also has authority to look at disciplinary information from other professional boards, as well as police investigative information.
The Blue Card exists so that children and teenagers under 18 years can experience safer environments where they come under the control or influence of adults who are not their parents. In particular, the Blue Card system seems to address high trust and/or high risk environments.
[edit] What Isn't It?
The Blue Card only represents a criminal history check. The law surrounding the Blue Card does not look into other aspects of work involving children. Importantly it does not indicate that a person is experienced, skilled, or even psychologically capable of participating in child-related work -- just that the employee hasn't been known to have raped children, downloaded child pornography, or committed something equally serious.
Other aspects of a person's suitability to work with children are best assessed by their employer and other people around them. This is because there is no logistical, much less econimical, or ethical way for the government to monitor such things given the sheer number of very diverse people involved in the broad range of industries that involve children.
[edit] Who Needs It?
A Blue Card can be required for a person working or volunteering in situations where they may come into contact with children on a regular basis, even if it is just by phone. Whether or not someone needs a Blue Card depends whether that type of work is regulated under the Blue Card legislation. This includes but is certainly not limited to people like driving instructors, teacher aides, natural therapists, lifeguards, and babysitters.
According to news media based on statistics from Queensland Parliament, around 1 in 6 Queenslanders have applied for a Blue Card at some point.
Requirements of Note
- Any person wanting to enter a Childcare Centre, while there are children present, must hold a Blue Card.
- Health Care workers need Blue Cards to work at schools.
- As of 2006, all foster parents or kinship carers through the Queensland Department of Child Safety require a Blue Card.
[edit] Outcomes of Applying
There are three possible outcomes from The Working With Children Check: a Positive Notice, a Negative Notice, or a No Screening Notice.
Positive Notice - If the person applying for the Blue Card receives a Positive Notice it means that they are able to work with children. This notice is accompanied by the actual Blue Card. The majority of people who request a Blue Card receive this notice.
Negative Notice - A Negative Notice means that the applicant has charges or convictions on their criminal history that indicate they are unsuitable for work with children. After being issued with a Negative Notice a person cannot work with children if a Blue Card is required.
In the course of ensuring justice, where a person has a questionable criminal history, the Commissioner will ask them to submit their side of the story. This must then be taken into consideration before a Positive or Negative Notice can be issued.
No Screening Notice - If a person applies for a Blue Card but doesn't need one, or if they fall into an exception under law, then they receive a No Screening Notice. This means that they cannot receive a Blue Card because the law only allows the Commissioner to conduct criminal history checks on people who work in areas where a Blue Card is required. This law is in place so that the Commission cannot conduct criminal history checks on everyone and anyone at will.
It is important to note that parents do not need a Blue Card to see their own children, even if those parents are separated or divorced.
Other people who cannot have their criminal history screened under the Blue Card legislation include Aged Care or Disability workers who do not work with minors, even if the disability in question lowers the mental age of that person. Additionally Teachers do not require Blue Cards to teach in schools because they already undergo strong background checks through other government departments.
[edit] Legislation
The Blue Card has its own law. The Commission for Children and Young People and Child Guardian Act 2000 outlines the legality of the Blue Card system in Queensland. There is no Federal Law that directly relates to the Blue Card, rather it is driven by State legislation in those states that have it. This means that there are differences between states in the Blue Card system. Someone who works in multiple states with children may need more than one Blue Card.
