AccessNI - UCA-NI Umbrella Body Service
Organisations who require AccessNI Disclosure Checks for new or existing employees or for Foundation Trainees, must have at least 20 checks per year to be able to go directly to AccessNI.
If your organisation has less than 20 checks per year, you must use an Umbrella Body.
UCA-NI can assist pharmacies who need checks, through our Umbrella Body Service.
COST: UCA-NI Fee of £25 + VAT per check + the AccessNI Certificate Fee (Enhanced fee is £32)
UCA-NI will invoice you on application and fees must be paid in advance.
For any Foundation Trainees enrolled on the Community Pharmacy Management Programme, the UCA-NI Umbrella Body Service Fee is waived. Enrol HERE
Why AccessNI?
Dept of Health NI policy is that “the provision of health care by any healthcare professional to an adult, or the provision of health care to an adult under the direction or supervision of a healthcare professional is regulated activity”. For job-roles performing regulated activity, an employer is entitled to ask for a criminal record check. This is known as an AccessNI Disclosure Check and there are Basic, Standard or Enhanced levels.
For the Foundation Training Year, all employers must ask their prospective trainees to get an AccessNI disclosure check prior to commencing their training placement. This is because they will be working in “regulated activity” during their placement. This also applies to other members of the Pharmacy team.
Basic Check – Any individual can apply for a Basic Check through NI Direct.
Community Pharmacy employers are entitled to ask for more detailed disclosure checks for certain job roles within their organisation:
Standard Check – For job roles such as a Pharmacist who is not working in regulated activity, i.e., not working in a patient-facing role.
Enhanced Check – For job roles where an employee is working in regulated activity, i.e., providing services directly to patients, e.g., a Pharmacist, Foundation Trainee Pharmacist or a delivery driver. These checks can include a check of the Barred Lists, e.g., the list of people who are barred from working with children and/or adults.
Checks are administered by AccessNI, under the jurisdiction of the Dept of Justice, and are governed by a Code of Practice aimed at ensuring former offenders are treated fairly when it comes to recruitment decisions.
Service Information
Service documents highlighted here are all available to download in the DocStore (access via main menu) – you will need to Login to view or download.
For pharmacies with more than 5 checks per year, please complete a Service Level Agreement Umbrella Body Service Level Agreement and return it to UCA-NI.
For pharmacies with 5 or fewer checks, please complete a Service Provision Letter Umbrella Body Service Provision Letter and return it to UCA-NI.
All pharmacies are required to abide by the AccessNI Code of Practice Accessni Code of Practice and will need to provide a copy of their Policy on the Recruitment of Offenders Policy on Recruitment of Ex-Offenders (Sample policy is provided) and Policy Statement on the Secure Use, Handling, Storage & Retention of Disclosure Information Policy Statement on the Secure Use. Handling, Storage and Retention of Disclosure Information (Sample policy is provided).
UCA-NI also provides you with:
- A Process Flowchart to follow FTY AccessNI Disclosure Check Process Flowchart
- AccessNI Guidance on Recruitment Policy Access NI Guidance on Recruitment Policy
- Information for each applicant including Applicant information about the process, how to create an NI Direct account, identity checking and how to dispute contents of a disclosure check.
To proceed, return the relevant documentation to UCA-NI and provide the names, job roles and contact details for each applicant to Adrienne Clugston who is the Umbrella Body Countersignatory.
For information and copies of the documentation if required, email office@ucani.co.uk