Speedy Garda vetting system takes top IT award

Software significantly reduces time it takes to vet people wanting to work with children

An IT software system deployed by the Garda last year to speed up the vetting of people wanting to work with children or vulnerable people has won a major award.

The Garda eVetting project, which has slashed the vetting process from nine weeks to just five days, took home the top prize in the Ireland eGovernment Awards.

The awards, now in their 16th year, recognise advances made in the use of digital technology by the public sector in Ireland.

The judges deemed the eVetting project to be the overall winner at the awards due to the positive impact it has had both for the Garda as well as for citizens looking to be vetted.

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Paper-based process

Prior to the launch of the system last April, the vetting process was a lengthy paper-based process, with applications taking up to nine weeks to decide. In the first quarter of 2017, however, 96 per cent of applications were received online, with the majority of decisions within five working days.

Last year a total of 389,548 vetting applications were received by the Garda.

Some 85 per cent of registered organisations have already transitioned to eVetting in its first year.

The eVetting system provides real-time tracking of applications for organisations, while for the Garda it has significantly reduced the data entry requirements and rekeying of information between internal systems.

Richard Corbridge, chief information officer of the Health Service Executive (HSE), was awarded the individual Net Visionary award.

Individual category winners at the Ireland eGovernment Awards:

General

DPER Open Data Portal

Health and Medical

HSE – Maternity and Newborn Clinical Information Systems

Agri and Food Science

Teagasc Environmental Knowledge Transfer

Internet of Things

An Post ILAS

Gaeilge

Conradh na Gaeilge – Peig.ie

Local Government

South Dublin CoCo In Context 4 website

Marketing and social media

Dublin Bus Social Media

Mobile

Dept of Foreign Affairs – Travel Wise.

Open Source

An Garda Síochána eVetting

Promoting Ireland Overseas

Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs – Irishgenealogy.ie

Universal design

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission – Ihrec.ie

Innovation

Dublin Bus #DB (Twitter customer service)

Net Visionary

Richard Corbridge, CIO HSE

Charlie Taylor

Charlie Taylor

Charlie Taylor is a former Irish Times business journalist