In the initial pilot areas, 435 out of 93,000 requests were denied due to criminal convictions, while an additional 20 were rejected based on entries in the national automated register of sexual or violent offenders.

Thibault Trump, founder of the Plic & Ploc crèche group, highlighted a specific case where an employee was unable to provide the required integrity certificate due to a past conviction.

The Ministry estimates that eventually, around one million individuals will need to request this integrity certificate as part of the new system.

Catherine Vautrin, the Minister of Solidarity, announced the expansion of a new background check system for early childhood and child welfare workers, which is currently being piloted in six departments in France.

Since its pilot launch in September 2024, this system has successfully excluded over 450 potentially dangerous profiles from working with minors.

The new background check process is designed to reassure families and professionals by providing a simpler and more accurate method of verifying the integrity of individuals compared to previous inconsistent procedures.

The ongoing testing of the secure information system requires both professionals and volunteers to obtain their integrity certificates from a dedicated government website.

The integrity certificate required for these checks verifies that individuals do not have a prohibition against working with minors and includes a review of their criminal records.

Katy Lemoigne, head of the Chanteclair association, stressed the importance of this system, noting the vulnerability of child protection services to sexual predators who target at-risk minors.

Plans are in place for nationwide implementation of this background check system by the end of 2025, following its expansion to 23 additional departments.