Government screening unit expected to process 140,000 background checks for working or volunteering with children or other vulnerable people About 140,000 people are expected to need background checks to work with children. ABOUT 140,000 people are expected to need background checks to work with children or other vulnerable people this financial year, as authorities consider reforms to speed up approval processes. Communities and Social Inclusion department officials today told a parliamentary committee that demand for background screenings is skyrocketing as a result of stricter policies prompted by cases where child abusers have slipped through the cracks. Amid the growing workload, the Education and Child Development Department lent two staff to the screening unit earlier this year to process priority applications by teachers, carers and others. Authorities are also investigating how to establish a "live" screening system which would automatically update if a person committed a new crime. In 2012-13, the Government's screening unit employed about 20 staff to screen 62,000 people. Of those, 112 clearances were denied. In 2013-14 the department added 27 staff and processed 112,000 checks. Of those, 74 applications were rejected. Department chief executive Joslene Mazel told the Budget and Finance Committee that about 140,000 applications were expected this financial year and it was likely that more staff would be dedicated to the task. More background checks, including police clearances and child protection history reviews, are required as a result of recommendations by the 2013 Debelle royal commission into school sex-abuse cases. Under the current system approvals remain valid for three years. If a person commits a crime during that time their status is not automatically updated. Ms Mazel told the committee the department was investigating moving to a live monitoring system. " (Using) the live system you could look their name up and it would give you the status, as of that day," she said. We're looking into that model. However, Ms Mazel argued that "we probably have the most thorough (background) checking in Australia." Department executive director Peter Bull said the "biggest bottleneck in the system" occurred at the point where staff had to match an applicant correctly with information available in the system about their criminal or behavioural history. Certain staff are now dedicated to this task and later pass that information on to another worker to assess whether the applicant should be given a clearance. Other delays occur when the department has to wait for other authorities, such as police, to provide information about an applicant, he said. About 12 per cent of applications are delayed because they have to be returned to the applicant to amend information. The department keeps a database of people who have had clearances rejected, been charged or appeared in court and also tracks aliases, Mr Bull said. We're acutely away of the delays. We've put on extra staff," he said. We want these screenings to go through as quickly as possible. In July, The Advertiser reported the screening unit was dealing with up to 1000 applications a day, including from people wanting to volunteer or secure jobs. At the time, the Government pledged an extra $1.3 million for the screening unit. However, it has continued to struggle to meet demand. On Saturday, The Advertiser reported long delays checking the backgrounds of carers in South Australia before they are employed were leaving people with disabilities waiting for crucial help. Service providers say they are waiting months for employees to be cleared before they can provide transport to people with disabilities, give them showers or take them to the toilet. Greens MLC Tammy Franks told the committee she had been contacted by taxi drivers who were forced to stop working and lose their source of income because their background checks had not been processed in time. The committee also heard: TRANSPORT Department drivers were being told to apply for their screening checks 12 weeks before they are due for renewal to ensure they are done in time. DISABILITY services has requested $16.6 million in extra funding to cope with demand. THE Communities and Social Inclusion department must save $52.3 million and cut 196 jobs over four years. THERE are 24 "surplus" employees in the department. Originally published as Screening unit for working with kids overloaded