Estelle Morris last night apologised for a sharp u-turn allowing headteachers to give the green light to new teachers and classroom assistants even though they have not been security checked.

Forum Response: Association of Teachers and Lecturers

Gwen Evans, deputy general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers told ePolitix: "We welcome Estelle Morris's overdue rescue operation to bail out the Criminal Records Bureau which will repair some of the damage done by what appears to be the incompetence of the private sector contractor.

"It gives no satisfaction to remind government that we have been predicting this crisis for almost two years.

"There are lessons to be learnt from this fiasco across government. Taxpayers have a right to be sure that their money is being well spent on securing effective public services.

"This is a textbook illustration of all the reservations which ATL members have about the involvement of for-profit companies in running public services. It seems that once again the taxpayer will have to bail out the private contractors.

"ATL will be raising the issue in the international context of GATS at the TUC Congress next week."

Forum response: National Union of Teachers

Doug McAvoy, general secretary of the NUT, told ePolitix: "The NUT is pleased at the education secretary's speedy response to our demand that headteachers be allowed to use their professional discretion over the employment of teachers whose vetting is not yet complete.

"It demonstrates acceptance by the government that it was a mistake to put List 99 checks in the hands of Capita. We are hopeful that all list 99 checks will now be complete by Monday ensuring that schools will no longer have to send pupils home as a result of the failings of the Criminal Records Bureau."

Forum response: PAT

Jean Gemmell, general secretary of the PAT, told ePolitix: "This U-turn is an admission of failure by the government, which should have listened to our warnings earlier in the year about the backlog of work at the CRB and the problems this would cause. However, the new guidelines seem to be the only practical way to avoid sending pupils home.

"The checks themselves must not be watered down, and headteachers must have confidence in staff they allow to work with children.

"At a time when problems caused by staff shortages are enormous, the issue of headteachers' confidence in those they employ is thrown into sharp relief.

"Parents must be confused by the government's change in policy. Although parents want schools to be fully staffed, they also want to be reassured that their children are in safe hands."