An MLC says staff involved in the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults have to be accountable - and must be ready to report their concerns.

Bill Henderson, a former psychiatric nurse, was speaking as the Legislative Council discussed the Safeguarding Bill for the first time last week.

He said that, during his time working for the health service, accountability was key in the day-to-day working with vulnerable adults and young people.

’We all knew what that meant and our responsibilities,’ he added.

’I labour the point, because it came out in the Everall Inquiry quite clearly that staff, for whatever reason, were sidestepping, in my words, their accountability and responsibility in their jobs, which led to some of the issues we have to face.’

The Everall Inquiry, published in 2006, was set up in the wake of the murder of two 16-year-olds in 2002. It found numerous failings in the care system and criticised care providers, police and social services.

Mr Henderson said: ’Even after all the work that has been conducted and assessments and reports and so on that have driven us to this point, it has to be clear from the board, and filtered down, that the actual quality of care, if I can put it like that, is at the point of delivery.

’It is incumbent upon everybody within that system, board down, to ensure that all staff are working to the remit they were trained for, or taken on in employment for, with regard to accepting their own job role, responsibility and accountability, so that is enshrined in the work that they do and becomes part of their behaviour.’

Workers should always be prepared to report any concerns they may have, he said.

The bill will create a new Safeguarding Board, on a statutory footing, to replace the non-statutory boards for children and vulnerable adults that exist now. It also puts an obligation on organisations that work with children and vulnerable adults to consider safeguarding needs.

David Cretney, who is guiding the bill through the Legislative Council, after it was passed by the House of Keys before Christmas, agreed with Mr Henderson.

’These are positions where people have to give a lot more than just their time in order to make sure that the people that they are caring for are properly cared for,’ he said.

’So, I agree 100% with him when he says that they need to ensure that they have no problems in terms of passing on information, because the children or the vulnerable adults are the people who must come first.’