Gloucester Florist Fired For Refusing Criminal Record Checks

Tue, 14 Dec 2010

A florist in Gloucester has lost her job after taking refusing to undergo Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks - a legal procedure designed to stop potential paedophiles from working with children or ‘vulnerable adults’.

Annabel Hayter, 64, had been arranging flowers with the Gloucester Cathedral Flower Guild for more than 40 years, but was sacked for taking an 11-month stand against CRB probes.

As a point of principle, she refused official demands that she and her 50-strong guild undergo checks for any past criminal convictions and cautions, describing them as "ridiculous and a monstrous waste of money".

Mrs Hayter was fired from her flower arranging duties last week, just months before the highlight of their decade, the Gloucester Cathedral Flower Festival .

"Do I look like a paedophile?"’ she asked."Of course I don’t. It’s ridiculous. I’ve got four children, 11 grandchildren and I’m as innocent as the day is long. So why should I have to prove that I am not?"

"If people don’t trust me after 15 years, then the world’s gone crazy."

She added: "I want people to stand up and stop being sheep. If you’re asked to undergo one of these checks, ask yourself: ‘Do I work with children?’, and if the answer is no, then you don’t need to be checked."

"If everyone did that, we could begin to halt this ridiculous, over-zealous obsession with checking people that has gripped our nation."
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