As Ian Huntley begins two life sentences for the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, questions arise over checks into school staff. By Tina clarke.

HEAD teachers in Swindon are shocked that murderer Ian Huntley could get a job in a school and have called for more stringent checks to prevent a killer like him working with children in the town.

Until March last year basic criminal record checks were carried out on support staff applying for jobs in councils across the country.

Now under a two tier system operated by the Criminal Records Bureau (see panel), teachers and support staff are subjected to a vetting procedure which covers not just prior convictions, but cautions, reprimands, warnings and dropped charges a process which would have weeded out a character like caretaker Huntley who had been investigated for rape and underage sex.

But some people would have been appointed before more thorough checks were carried out.

Head teachers in the town say even the new system is not enough and are backing a call by the National Association of Head Teachers for a radical overhaul of the whole vetting process for school staff.

Michael Keeling, head of Even Swindon Infants School and chairman of the Swindon Association of Primary School Heads, said: "Like any normal person I am quite shocked that someone with his background should be able to work in a school." He said he felt it was a case of 'there but for the grace of God.'

"You know as much about the person you are employing as you can find out.

"You take references and get police checks, but if someone has a very shady past that they are clever at covering up you may not know," he said.

Individuals who preyed on children were devious by nature and tended to be good at hiding their past.

He said: "The ones you really need to watch are the ones who don't get convicted.

"Huntley was extraordinarily good at covering his tracks."

Like many heads, Mr Keeling put potential employees through the vetting process but sometimes had to appoint them before checks were completed.

There was a well publicised problem last year when schools across Swindon feared they might not be able to open in time for the Autumn term because of a huge backlog in the vetting system.

Heads were eventually told they could employ teachers before the results of their vetting were known if they believed they were not a security risk.

"We are not supposed to employ people until we get it back," said Mr Keeling.

"But usually I have to employ someone before I have got it back."

Dr Nick Capstick, head of Drove Primary School, suggested that a licensing system should be looked at. Staff would apply to have their licences renewed every few years and anyone who had been convicted or even investigated during that time would be picked up. But he accepted it would be costly.

"We have got nearly 50 members of staff. It costs to put them through the procedure. My feeling is that anyone who is in contact with children should be thoroughly vetted. You can't leave it to chance."

He had been shocked when Huntley was arrested for the killings.

In the past he has turned potential support staff down after the vetting procedure showed one had a conviction for violence, while another had one for dishonesty.

"I wouldn't have felt comfortable with them being in the school," he said.

A statement from the National Association of Head Teachers said the current practice of allowing each individual police force to decide what information, beyond a criminal conviction, should be disclosed must be brought to an end.

Swindon Council spokeswoman Sheila Roberts said the council would be taking advice from the government. "All our staff are vetted and we are not waiting too long at the moment for the results around two to three weeks."

She explained that staff who supervise children like teachers are subjected to enhanced vetting which checks local police files as well as national. People who work in council-run youth clubs are also checked in this way.

An independent inquiry into how Ian Huntley got his job as a school caretaker was announced today by Home Secretary David Blunkett.

"This has been a shocking and horrific case and my thoughts are with Holly and Jessica's families,'' said Mr Blunkett.

Tina Clarke