Safety and screening policy.

This Policy applies to every member of the Platform and forms part of our Terms and Conditions (the “Terms”). Where this Policy and the Terms differ, the Terms control. In this Policy, “Platform” has the meaning given in the Terms; a “background check” is a consumer report we obtain about a nanny account from an independent consumer reporting agency (the “Agency”); a “clear result” means the Agency reported nothing disqualifying under our screening criteria in the records it searched at the time; the “background checked mark” and the “verified family mark” are the indicators described in Sections 3 and 4; and “member” means any person holding a family or nanny account.

A nanny profile shows the background checked mark once our screening review of that account is complete and a person on our team has approved the account. The mark is a statement about our process at that time and nothing more. It is not a recommendation, it is not a verification of identity, character, or fitness, it is not a prediction of future conduct, and it is not renewed on a schedule. A profile without the mark has not completed screening: it is not shown to families, cannot be contacted, and cannot apply to jobs. Families still read the whole of Section 6 before relying on any profile.

The following rules are enforced by the Platform itself, not by policy alone:

• Families start every conversation. A nanny cannot open a thread with a family, so nothing unsolicited reaches a nanny and no family is contacted by someone they did not approach.
• A person on our team reviews every nanny account before it is shown to families or can apply to a job.
• A family cannot browse profiles or start a conversation until it has completed its profile, saved a payment card, and published a job.
• A nanny is not shown to families and cannot apply to a job until the screening requirement in Section 2 is met.
• An account we switch off loses access on its next request to the Platform, not when its session would otherwise have expired.
• Job posts that go quiet are closed automatically, so a stale post does not keep drawing applications.
• Members can report a profile, a conversation, or a community post from the page itself, and every report is read by a person.
• Community posts and comments, messages between members, job posts, applications, profiles, and reviews are checked automatically against a short list of hateful, sexually explicit, and threatening words and phrases before they go up, and one that uses them is turned back for the member to reword. Messages to our team and support requests are not checked, so a member can quote what they are reporting.
• Members can block one another. A family and a nanny who are blocked no longer see each other in search, on profiles, in jobs, or in messages, and pending applications and job offers between them are closed. Two families, or two nannies, who are blocked no longer see each other’s posts, comments, or replies in the community. A block from any member of a family covers the whole family, and the member blocked is not told.

The following are not part of the Platform, and you should not assume them: beyond that automated word check, we do not read, filter, or scan messages, and we do not verify what members write; and we do not monitor an arrangement after it is made. A block is not a report. When one member blocks another in the community, our team is told, with the post or comment the block came from, so we can review it; a block between a family and a nanny does not reach our team. Either way, a concern about another member should be reported under Section 7.

If anyone is in immediate danger, contact your local emergency services before doing anything else. The Platform is not an emergency service and is not monitored for emergencies.

To report a member, use the report option on their profile or conversation, or use the contact form and choose Safety concern as the topic. Reports go to a person on our team, who may ask you for more information. We do not disclose the identity of a reporter to the member reported, except where the law requires it. We may warn, restrict, suspend, or deactivate any account, with or without notice, and we cooperate with law enforcement and courts where the law requires or permits. We do not adjudicate disputes between members, and we are not a party to any arrangement between them.

For each check we store its status and outcome, the dates it was ordered and completed, and the Agency’s reference for the order. We do not receive or store the report’s underlying records or the identity details the nanny gave the Agency. Members of our team who review accounts can see a check’s status; families see only the mark. Screening information is retained and deleted as described in our Privacy Policy. The Agency’s handling of your information is governed by its own privacy policy, which it shows you before you begin.

Nothing in this Policy is a guarantee. A background check searches records: it cannot read intent, it cannot reach every record, because results depend on what each source holds, how identities are matched, and what a jurisdiction reports, and a clear result means only that nothing disqualifying was found in the records searched at that moment. Profiles, job posts, applications, and messages are written by members, not by us, and we do not independently confirm them.

Gathered Hands is a platform, not an employer or an agency. We do not employ, place, supervise, or direct any nanny, and we are not responsible for what any member does, online or in person. Deciding who to contact, who to meet, who to work for, and who to let into your home is your decision alone. Sections 7 (Relationship Between Members), 11 (Disclaimers), and 12 (Limitation of Liability) of the Terms apply to everything described in this Policy.

We may update this Policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date and, where a change is material, give notice on the Platform or by email. Your continued use of the Platform after a change takes effect constitutes acceptance of the revised Policy.

Questions about this Policy, including a request for a description of the screening package in use, can be directed to Gathered Hands at the contact details published on the Platform. A nanny who wants a copy of their report, or who wishes to dispute it, should contact the Agency using the details in the messages the Agency sent them when the check began.