Prospective coaches applying for a job with the Wiltshire County Football Association are put through the Criminal Records Bureau checking system.

But the Wilts FA secretary Mike Benson said he feared the checks might not be as thorough as they should be.

Mr Benson, 69, said: "I do have some concerns about the checking system.

"I find it quite unacceptable and rather frightening that someone may have had sinister dealings, and yet there is no record of it.

"If the checks are purely based on previous convictions then it opens up the whole can of worms like in the Huntley case."

Mr Benson said Wilts FA had about a dozen qualified coaches who had all been checked by the Bureau.

On average he said it took about four weeks to get the results.

"We are never told how they check or what exactly they are checking for," he said. "If someone didn't come back clear we wouldn't employ them. You can't be too careful now.

"It's worrying for people with young families now. There was the problem with the education system some months ago when the checks were taking too long. But are you supposed to have a classroom with no teacher while you wait for the checks to come back?

"I'm glad to say my children and grandchildren are not that age anymore."

Swindon Junior Rugby Club coaches are checked by the same system. The club's chairman Joe Walsh said: "We follow the Rugby Football Union policy which is to go through the CRB.

"We have never had anyone fail a check, and currently have about 20 members of staff."

The club, based in Greenbridge Road, has around 200 junior members.

Mr Walsh, 40, added: "I think the system is quite safe and thorough. It's the same process as is used for teachers and other people who work with children."