For a more complete guide to DBS checks we strongly advise you read: DBS checks: guidance for employers – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) For more information about where DBS checks fit in within safeguarding and safer recruitment see our resource on this topic – Safeguarding – The Basics.
About the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is a non-departmental public body of the Home Office of the United Kingdom. The DBS enables organisations in the public, private and voluntary sectors to make safer recruitment and employment decisions by barring individuals who pose a risk to vulnerable groups, and providing wider access to criminal record information, through its disclosure service for England and Wales.
About DBS checks
Organisations can make use of the DBS’s services to inform recruitment and employment decisions on both paid employees and unpaid volunteers. (Note – the DBS refers to ‘workforces’ when explaining which organisations are eligible to run certain checks, and which roles they are legally able to check.)
There are 6 different types of DBS check: Basic, Standard, Enhanced, Enhanced with a check of the Adult’s Barred List, Enhanced with a check of the Childrens’ Barred List and Enhanced with a check of both lists. See further down this resource for more information on these.
The DBS service currently employee Regional Outreach Advisors and there is one for the South West of England who can be contacted for advice in understanding your obligations.
The DBS Regional Outreach service – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Any individual applicants that have queries should contact DBS Customer Services – 03000 200 190
Working out what type of check to request
There are strict legal rules around how and when DBS ‘checks’ can be made – and there are different types of DBS checks. The onus is on the recruiting organisation to ensure they are fully informed on things such as…
- Who the organisation provides services for (children or adults at risk, or both?), and who the specific role will have contact with (children or adults at risk, or both?)
- What activities will the role be carrying out, (managing orgs finances, providing personal care services to clients, delivering workshops?) what role will be responsible for within these activities (leading, assisting?), and what structure the activities will have (will they be group, 1 to 1?)
- How often the activity/ies will take place (daily, weekly, monthly, ad hoc?), and how the role will be supervised
- Where the role is being performed (is it a Specified Establishment in the case of work with children?)
- When is the activity taking place (is anything happening overnight?)
…and to then cross check this against eligibility guidance from the DBS before making decisions around what DBS checks to request. If things are at all unclear organisations are advised to seek legal advice.
(Please note examples in brackets are purely illustrative and not an exhaustive list).
It is important to work out which DBS check you are eligible to run, before advertising a role – as you legally need to make applicants aware that the appointment to the role is subject to a DBS check, and to which level of check. The DBS cannot mandate DBS checks are carried out, however an organisation is likely to only know if a person is barred from the workforce they are seeking to engage in by applying for the correct level of check where eligible. As an employer may not legally recruit a person who is barred from regulated activity with either children, adults or both into a role that involves these activities it is important to be sure you do not do this accidentally. There are also additional legal/regulatory requirements for some sectors.
Organisations wishing to request DBS checks legally have-to-have a publicly available policy and procedure on both the handling of DBS certificate information and the recruitment of ex-offenders.
Handling of DBS certificate information – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) (includes a sample policy)
DBS sample policy on the recruitment of ex-offenders – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Name of the check | Where to find out who is it for, and more info about the check | What might it show |
Basic DBS Check | There is no specific eligibility for a basic DBS check. | Details of convictions and conditional cautions considered to be ‘unspent’ under the terms of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. |
Standard DBS Check | Eligibility guidance for standard DBS checks – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) A standard check may only be applied for if the applicant’s role is specified in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, as amended. | Standard checks reveal details of any convictions, adult cautions, reprimands and warnings the applicant has received, that do not qualify for filtering.. |
Enhanced DBS Check | Eligibility guidance for enhanced DBS checks – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) An enhanced check may only be applied for if the applicant’s job role is specified in both the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) order 1975 and the Police Act 1997. | Includes all a Standard check does plus an additional check with the police, who check if any other information is held on file that may be relevant. |
Enhanced DBS Check with additional check of the Adults’ Barred List* | Eligibility guidance for enhanced DBS checks – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) See section on barred lists, under relevant workforce guide to your advertised role (and if in doubt, or the role has different aspects to it, check the others too!) | Includes all that Enhanced certificate does, plus a check of the Adults’ Barred list – so this check would let you know if someone has been barred from working with vulnerable adults. |
Enhanced DBS check with additional check of the Childrens’ Barred List | Eligibility guidance for enhanced DBS checks – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) See section on barred lists, under relevant workforce guide to your advertised role (and if in doubt, or the role has different aspects to it, check the others too!)
| Includes all that Enhanced certificate does, plus a check of the Childrens’ Barred list – so this check would let you know if someone has been barred from working with children.
|
Enhanced DBS check with additional check of the Adults’ Barred list and the Childrens’ Barred List
| Eligibility guidance for enhanced DBS checks – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) See section on barred lists, under relevant workforce guide to your advertised role (and if in doubt, or the role has different aspects to it, check the others too!)
| Includes all that Enhanced certificate does, plus a check of the Childrens’ and Adults’ Barred lists – so this check would let you know if someone has been barred from working with vulnerable adults or children.
|
Note – the DBS can’t access criminal records held overseas, so a DBS check may not provide a complete view of an applicant’s criminal record if they have lived outside the UK.
Employers should make sure they have access to all the information available to them to make a safer recruitment decision. You can read about how to get a criminal record check for overseas applicants, or those who have previously lived outside the UK, on the Home Office website.
The DBS have a quiz tool online to help you work out what level of check is right for your employee.
Covering the cost of DBS checks
The DBS offers free-of-charge Standard and Enhanced DBS checks for volunteers, as long as the volunteer applications meet the DBS definition of a volunteer which is defined in legislation (the Police Act 1997 (criminal records) Regulations 2002).
Basic DBS checks are the only check that an applicant can request about themselves, which also means they can pay for the check themselves (note – the DBS will not cover the cost of basic DBS checks for volunteers). However, from an inclusivity point of view it is good practice for employers or volunteer involving organisations to pay for a DBS check if they request an applicant has or does one.
Some organisations reimburse their employees and or volunteers for the cost of being on the update service, to allow for streamlined annual DBS checks. This may only make sense to do if you envision this person remaining in post beyond a year.
How to obtain a DBS check
With the exception of basic checks, where a volunteer or employee could organise this themselves, DBS checks are requested by employers either via the DBS directly, or through a ‘DBS Umbrella Body’. A DBS Umbrella Body – also known as a Registered Body – is an organisation associated with the DBS, acting as an intermediary between the DBS and organisations that require DBS checks for their staff or volunteers. You can find an umbrella body via the DBS’s online search engine tool, or asking other organisations who they use.
The DBS ‘update service’ means that for a fee (currently there is no fee for volunteers), applicants may use a certificate more than once within a sector where the disclosure level, workforce details, barring list checks and volunteer status are the same. An employer with consent to run a DBS update check, and the consent of the DBS check subject can, free of charge, check that the existing certificate is up to date, but should be sure to check the applicant’s identity and the certificate’s authenticity themselves as part of this process.
Unless an individual is on the Update Service any information disclosed on a DBS certificate will only be accurate at the time the certificate was issued. It is good practice for organisations to consider when a new DBS check may need to be requested. i.e. is there a particular time frame where you would undertake a ‘renewal’? There is no official expiry date for a certificate issued by DBS, and now rules on how often organisations should be requesting DBS checks, but organisations should consider the fact a DBS certificate isn’t a ‘live’ document when designing their safer recruitment practices.
Disclaimer
We make every effort to ensure that our information is correct at the time of publication.
This is only intended as a brief summary of relevant issues and information. Legal advice should be sought where appropriate. The inclusion of other organisations in this information does not imply any endorsement of independent bodies, they are just for signposting purposes.
Voscur is unable to accept liability for any loss or damage or inconvenience arising as a consequence of the use of this information.
