A major offender rehabilitation charity “deeply regrets the oversight” after a convicted murderer it employed worked with children for two years while barred from doing so.

Rashid Zaman, 44, of Bradford, West Yorkshire, worked for the St Giles Trust after serving 14 years in prison for murder.

Zaman was released in 2017 and started volunteering for the charity in 2021 before being hired to visit schools and youth homes.

Disclosure and Barring Service certificates show Zaman was not barred from working with children in 2021 but was barred in 2023, according to the BBC.

St Giles Trust discovered Zaman was barred in December 2024 and he was dismissed from the charity.

The charity said this situation “never should have happened” and it “deeply regrets the oversight”.

A spokesperson for the St Giles Trust said: “DBS checks are issued directly to individuals, not the organisation requesting them.

“In this case, the individual failed to disclose their new status, which only came to light when a partner organisation sought confirmation.

“As soon as we became aware, we launched an internal investigation and re-checked all Yorkshire staff working with children, with no further concerns found.

“We have since strengthened our internal processes to ensure this cannot happen again and deeply regret the oversight."

The charity said it believed in the power of those who had transformed their lives to lead others towards a positive future and this meant it employed individuals with previous convictions, including some for serious offences. 

“Every person we employ undergoes rigorous risk assessments and criminal background checks, and each one is deeply committed to using their own experiences to help others,” the spokesperson said.

“Evidence shows that lived-experience programmes like ours reduce offending by 21 per cent, while also providing meaningful employment that allows people to give back to their communities while cutting their risk of reoffending. 

“When we apply this model in hospital settings it reduces violence-related readmittance from 40 per cent to 7 per cent.

“We are firmly committed to our proven approach, and to the people we employ.”

The charity said Zaman was subject to an enhanced DBS check upon commencement of his employment, with the initial check showing that he was not barred from working with children.

“After a period of service at St Giles, we conducted a second DBS check, as part of our internal safeguarding policy, which exceeds legal requirements by mandating regular rechecks,” the charity spokesperson said.

“It was at this point that the individual was found to be named on the barred list. 

“As soon as this was brought to senior leadership’s attention, the individual was dismissed.”

Zaman’s situation had not changed and he did not reoffend or breach the conditions of his licence during his time at the St Giles Trust, the spokesperson said.

“This means that either a mistake was made in the initial DBS check, allowing someone who should have been barred to have been employed, or the second check resulted in the loss of employment for someone who had turned their life around,” the charity spokesperson said.

“Without our additional internal processes, which go beyond legal requirements, this issue would never have come to light.”

A comprehensive review of the DBS checks for all employees working with children in Yorkshire has been conducted, given these concerns and the St Giles Trust’s “unwavering commitment” to safeguarding, the charity spokesperson said.

“These checks have now been completed and no further issues were identified,” the spokesperson said.

“We are committed to working with all the relevant authorities – including the DBS – to ensure the safe and effective delivery of essential services.”

West Yorkshire Police has launched an investigation and Zaman was recently arrested, the BBC said.

A Charity Commission spokesperson said: “Following concerns raised with us relating to safeguarding at St Giles Trust, we opened a regulatory compliance case to gather more information.

"As part of our case, we have met with trustees and continue to engage with them as we determine next steps.”

West Yorkshire Police has been contacted for comment.