Caregiver Support Service Standards, Police/RCMP Criminal
Record Checks, and the Criminal Records Review Act.
March 2007
The Standards and Policies for the screening, assessment, and approval of foster homes include
a 2 part criminal record check as only the 2 checks combined provide the most complete
information of a person's criminal record. The police/RCMP check and the Criminal Records
Review Act check. This has been in place for several years. What is new is that the Caregiver
Support Service Standards require this 2-part check to be repeated once every five years. For
those Foster Parents who began fostering prior to the CRRA check being introduced can now
expect to take part in a 5 year check. Many MCFD offices are completing this 5 year check at the
time of Annual Reviews or are reviewing the length of time people have been fostering and
putting them onto the re-check schedule, with some of the long service homes going first in the
line up.
When checking the MPSSG website it mentions all the categories of people (employees,
contractors and volunteers) who are covered by the CRR Act, with the form itself stating
“Employee”. This seems to be causing some confusion for Foster Parents. While clearly in the
MCFD circumstances Foster Parents are contractors and not employees, the CRRA form does
not have a space to delineate that designation. It should be noted that Foster Parents are one of
the more unique categories under CRRA and the MPSSG are fully aware that Foster Parents are
not employees but are applicants that the Ministry has approved or plans to for a contract as a
foster parent.
While MCFD may not have much influence on getting the MPSSG wording changed specifically
for Foster Parents even though it does not fit MCFD circumstances perfectly, it seems to be a
generic form in which applicants would complete the sections that are applicable to them. In
Section A Foster Parents likely have an ID number from the CRR program. This number would
indicate the applicant is in the foster parent category.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact the BCFFPA Provincial Office at 1-
800-663-9999.
