An initiative involving child welfare bodies in the North and the Republic was launched yesterday in an effort to develop a common approach to protect children.
In particular they want to highlight the need for a common approach towards "the vetting of those unsuitable to work with children" and the registration and management of sex offenders.
The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children in the North and the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children in the Republic have joined forces to campaign for better cross-Border child legislation.
The Northern Ireland Assembly recently announced in its legislative programme that a Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults Bill would be introduced, an agreed statement from the two bodies said.
While this Bill would put a pre-employment consultancy register administered by the North's Department of Health and Social Security on a statutory basis, it was vital that arrangements for cross-Border vetting were in place: "This will require the Irish Government to consider equivalent legislation in the Irish Republic and measures to facilitate cross-jurisdictional checking."
It was not possible for organisations in the Republic to access the DHSS's pre-employment consultancy register at present, said NSPCC regional director Ms Lynne Peyton: "The vetting process in the South is in need of radical legislative overhaul. We urgently need to see common standards and processes applied, particularly where there is such fluid movement of personnel from both parts of the island."
Following the Sarah Payne and Vincent McKenna cases, the British and Irish governments announced legislative developments in relation to the tracking and management of sex offenders.
"While we very much welcome developments in both countries to manage those who pose a risk to children, there is a need to ensure that legislation is largely similar on both sides of the Border," said ISPCC chief executive Mr Paul Gilligan.