What is a DBS?

A DBS check is a criminal record check and one that you may have to submit to before you can be offered certain job roles. People often have lots of questions about the DBS process and procedures. These include: What is a DBS check? Will I need a DBS check? And what will the DBS check reveal about me? Here’s everything you need to know about the information revealed about you in your DBS check:

What is a DBS?

DBS is an acronym for the Disclosure and Barring Service. Therefore, a DBS check is a system that checks what information is held about you by the Disclosure and Barring Service, effectively making it a form of criminal record check. Any employer is able to request that a DBS check is carried out before someone works within their company, but they are particularly important if you wish to work or volunteer with vulnerable groups, including children and young people. Upon completing the check, an employer can request to see a person’s DBS certificate and decide on the next steps.

The DBS check was formerly known as a ‘CRB’ check (with CRB being an acronym for Criminal Records Bureau) but the name of the check was changed when the name of the organisation responsible for providing the check was changed.

There are four different types of DBS checks, and you will receive a DBS certificate outlining the results of your check regardless of which type of DBS check is requested. The four different types of DBS checks are:

• Basic DBS check. Anyone can apply for a basic DBS check, although an employer can also request a basic DBS check on your behalf, with your permission. This check can be used for any purpose, including employment and volunteering, and will include details of any convictions and conditional cautions that are considered to be unspent under the terms of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA) 1974
• Standard DBS check. A standard DBS check is more in-depth and will contain details of both spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and warnings that are held on the Police National Computer. This information is not subject to any filtering. Any individual cannot request a standard DBS check independently as it must be requested by a recruiting organisation. There is a charge for employers using this service, but it is free of charge for volunteers. Examples of when you may need a standard DBS check include if you are volunteering to work with children (such as with Scouts or Guides) or for a job role such as a security guard
• Enhanced DBS check. Just like the standard DBS check, an individual cannot apply for an Enhanced DBS check by themselves. Instead, their check must be requested, with their permission, by an employer or volunteering organisation. An Enhanced DBS check is suitable for people working with both children and adults in certain circumstances. This includes if you are providing healthcare or personal care to those adults. Outside of working in childcare or healthcare, other examples of job roles that may require an enhanced DBS include roles such as taxi licence applications or people working in the Gambling Commission
• Enhanced with Barred List(s) DBS check. An enhanced DBS with barred lists check is just the same as an enhanced DBS check, but it also includes a check of one or both Barred Lists to ensure that the applicant has never been barred from working in certain positions or circumstances. This list check will appear as a separate search, but other than this the Enhanced with Barred Lists certificate will contain the same information as an Enhanced DBS certificate
• Undergoing a DBS check is not unusual. In fact, in the year 2019/20 alone, the DBS carried out 5.9 million criminal record checks. This comprised 3.86 million enhanced DBS checks, 326,000 standard DBS checks, along with more than 1.7 million basic DBS checks

Why Do People Need a DBS?

The main reason that people will need to undergo a DBS check is for certain paid or unpaid employment or voluntary positions. DBS checks are most common in circumstances where individuals wish to work with children or vulnerable adults, but there are other job roles where a DBS check is required too.

Your prospective employer will tell you if a DBS check is needed for your job and, if so, what level of check is required. But it is important to note that employers cannot simply decide that every person they employ needs to undergo a DBS check: Your employer is legally responsible for checking that the role you are applying for is eligible for these sorts of DBS checks, and this is assessed on an individual basis, based on the nature of your role and the responsibilities you will be asked to undertake.

For some job roles, we know that either a standard or enhanced DBS check will always be required. These roles include:

• Teachers
• Nursery nurses and early years childcare providers
• Social workers
• Childminders
• Foster carers
• Medical professionals

If you work in particular settings, you will also be required to undergo a DBS check, even if your job title isn’t one that you would automatically assume would require one (for example, if you are working as admin or support staff). These settings include:

• Schools
• Children’s homes
• Hospitals

If you have been asked by a prospective employer to have a standard or enhanced DBS check but you don’t think the job requires one, then you have two options: either you can submit to the DBS check, but log that you don’t feel it is necessary, or you can refuse to submit to the check and ask the Disclosure and Barring Service to investigate. It’s worth noting that if you do refuse to submit to the check then it is unlikely that you would be able to take up the role until an investigation is completed (and if the DBS feel the check is valid, you would then still need to submit to testing).

Finally, there are some positions where being considered ‘above reproach’ are essential, and therefore you will be asked to submit to a DBS check before you enter the profession. In some cases, this check may even be requested before you are able to attend university or college to study for the qualifications you need for the profession. Examples of these professions include:

• Solicitors
• Barristers
• Veterinary surgeons
• Accountants

Who Needs a DBS Check?

Every employer has a right to request a basic DBS check from their employees or prospective employees, but for standard or enhanced DBS checks, these can only be requested if your role involves working with specific people, or in specific situations, that requires them. Your employer cannot ask that you submit to an enhanced DBS check for a regular retail role, for example, but they can ask that you submit to a basic DBS check. This means that theoretically at least, everyone who works in paid employment or volunteers with children or vulnerable adults may be required to submit to a DBS check. Many people feel apprehensive about being asked to submit to a DBS check, but it’s important to note that all employers must treat DBS check applicants who have a criminal record fairly and should not discriminate because of a conviction or other information revealed. This information should also be treated confidentially. There are some convictions that would exclude an applicant from taking up a certain role, but there are many convictions that would have no impact on their ability to work in the position they have applied for. The rights of offenders to access gainful employment are protected under the DBS policy on the recruitment of ex-offenders.

What is an Enhanced DBS?

For some job roles, you will be asked to submit to an enhanced DBS check. An enhanced DBS check contains all the same information as a standard DBS check. However, with an enhanced check, additional information can also be requested by your employer, such as whether a potential or current employee is listed on the Children’s Barred List or Adult First list. If you are on either of these lists, then you cannot work with either children or vulnerable adults in any capacity. Because enhanced DBS checks show both spent and unspent convictions, there is no limit on how far back they will go: if you have ever received a warning, caution or conviction in any capacity then this will appear on your enhanced DBS check.

A grey area, in terms of enhanced DBS checks, is any allegations made against you which did not result in a police caution or conviction. Allegations are not disclosed on basic or standard DBS certificates. However, an allegation or pending matter (of which you have been found neither guilty nor innocent at the same time of submitting your DBS request) may be disclosed on an enhanced DBS certificate at the discretion of the police. Because this is discretionary, there is no way of knowing whether this information will appear on your enhanced DBS certificate or not.

How to Get a DBS Form?

You can use the gov.uk website to apply for a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and receive a copy of your criminal record. This is called ‘basic disclosure’ and will include details of any unspent convictions or conditional cautions. However, whilst any spent convictions, cautions or warnings will not appear on this form, they will appear on other more in-depth DBS checks. Applying for a basic DBS check independently will cost £18.

To apply for your basic DBS check independently, you will need to provide:

• All your addresses for the last 5 years and the dates you lived there
• Your National Insurance number
• A copy of your passport
• A copy of your driving licence

You no longer need to request a DBS form to get your basic DBS check certificate, as the whole process has been digitized, and therefore you can complete the application process in full online.

Obtaining a basic DBS certificate may be useful for your own information, but for certain roles, your employer may need to apply for a higher level of criminal record check. They may also wish to conduct their own DBS checks and will not accept any certificate that you provide.

It’s important to note that you can only request a DBS form and conduct your own DBS check if you are looking for the information from a basic DBS check. Standard DBS checks, Enhanced DBS checks and enhanced with barred list DBS checks can only be carried out on the behalf of your employer (and with your permission). You cannot conduct these independently. Only as an employer can you check the criminal record of candidates who have applied for a role within your business. For certain roles, such as healthcare and childcare, you can request a more detailed check: but you can only request a more detailed check if the job role justifies this.

How Long Does a DBS Last For?

Your DBS check does not have an official expiry date. Once your DBS check has been carried out, that certificate officially remains valid indefinitely. However, it is up to employers to decide if or when a member of staff needs their DBS check to be renewed, to ensure they have the most accurate information on an employee. And whilst you can present an existing DBS certificate when you apply for a new job role, it is up to your prospective employer to determine whether that certificate will be acceptable, or whether a new check is required. Often you will even need a new DBS certificate for each organisation that you work with: so, if you volunteer to support your child’s scout group and football club, whilst the same level of DBS check is required for both, it’s likely that you will be required to submit to two separate DBS checking protocols.

If you don’t change your employer, then your employer may not request that you regularly update your DBS certificate, as they will be satisfied with the information that they gained from your initial check. However, if you work for the local authority (for example as a teacher or care worker) then you’re likely to find that most authorities suggest that a DBS check should take place every three years. It is worth asking how often you will be expected to submit to new DBS checks when you take up a new position so that you can be prepared for this. Most employers (particularly those that work with children) will have a best practice policy that sees DBS certificates for all of their employees renewed regularly. For this reason, whilst official recommendations suggest a DBS should be renewed every three years, some organisations have set policies surrounding when they request rechecks. This timescale can vary from six months to every two years. If your employer is regulated by a government agency, such as the Quality Care Commission or Ofsted, they will need to adhere to their guidelines regarding how regularly they should repeat DBS checks on their employees.