Vetted for work

SIR – Although it is absolutely right and proper that all those working with children and vulnerable adults should be properly vetted in order to guarantee safeguarding, it does seem anomalous that the rest of society does not need any such checks in order to be employable in their chosen profession.

In Germany, anyone over the age of 18 (and especially those applying for employment in the public sector) can be asked to supply prospective employers with a recent Führungszeugnis, or “behaviour certificate”, which is valid nationally and indicates any past criminal record.

Surely it should be compulsory for all British adults to have a similar certificate, updated every three to five years. Such a system would provide employers with a greater level of protection against potential fraudulent or inappropriate activity by employees, and would also obviate the need for some teachers who work in more than one school to have to apply for multiple checks, often at great expense. Christopher D Wiggins

Dursley, Gloucestershire