Absence of operational specification

Absence of specification of data operations can be as big a speedbump as their presence.

After the murder of Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells in Soham, the Bichard Enquiry was set up to consider how their killer was able to get a clean certificate enabling to work with children despite extensive police and social work evidence that he was a sex criminal with an interest in young girls.

The brief for the inquiry was:

‘Urgently enquire into child protection procedures in Humberside 
Police and Cambridgeshire Constabulary in the light of the recent 
trial and conviction of Ian Huntley for the murder of Jessica 
Chapman and Holly Wells. In particular to assess the effectiveness 
of the relevant intelligence-based record keeping, the vetting 
practices in those forces since 1995 and information sharing with 
other agencies, and to report to the Home Secretary on matters 
of local and national relevance and make recommendations as 
appropriate.’ 

Bichard took evidence from 58 organisations and 148 individuals. We can use Bichard findings to identify the large number of physical databases which could have been involved in the vetting process. These are:

• Commercial identity verification databases
• POCA – Protection Of Children Act list
• and a Scottish version
• List 99 – Department for Education and Skills list of person barred from working with children
  • and a Scottish version
  • and a Northern Irish version
• Cambridgeshire Police systems:
• Child Access Database – Cambridgeshire Police’s system used to manage the vetting process
• CIS – Cambridgeshire Police’s criminal intelligence system
• Intrepid - Cambridgeshire Police’s child abuse or domestic violence system
• PNC (the Police National Computer)
• Humberside Police Systems
• CIS Nominals - Humberside Police’s database on criminal (or suspected criminal) individuals
• CIS Crime – Humberside Police’s database on crimes
• Child Protection Database – Humberside Police’s child protection system
• Integrated Criminal Justice Systems – Humberside Police’s custody management system
• unspecified Lincolnshire police systems
• unspecified local police systems for 40 other English and Welsh Police Authorities, 8 Scottish ones, the Police Service Northern Ireland and the British Transport Police
• SSID - Humberside Social Works’ Social Services Information Database
• unspecified social work systems for every other local authority in the UK

The report address numerous issues around audit, create, update and partition particularly in paragraphs 1.29 to 2.72, 2.104 to 2.106 and 2.148.