There are two types of DBS checks, (formally known as CRB checks) a standard criminal disclosure check and an enhanced disclosure.
What is the difference between these checks?
Standard DBS check: includes all criminal history; cautions, warnings, reprimands and convictions held on the Police National Computer, with the exception of the DBS filtering rule. The Standard Disclosure is strictly for regulatory purposes, such as certain positions within the financial sector.
Enhanced DBS check: in addition to details all criminal history; cautions, warnings, reprimands and convictions held on the Police National Computer, with the exception of the DBS filtering rule. Additionally, it checks against the DBS Children and Adult barred list (where appropriate) and information provided by local police forces. Any individual undertaking a Regulated Activity, either through employment or as a volunteer, will require an Enhanced Disclosure.
As with a Standard Disclosure, Enhanced Disclosures are commonly used for the purpose of protecting the most vulnerable in our society whereby a person has frequent unsupervised access to vulnerable people.
I have been told I require a DBS check for my job, how do I go about this?
As an individual, you cannot apply for your own DBS check. There are three ways in which you can obtain a DBS check:
- Through the local authority- if you run/ participate in afterschool clubs and it is not relevant for your employer to apply for the check as it is not related to your job role.
- Employer- Your employer will apply for the relevant check on your behalf.
- Governing body- for self-employed individuals such as child minders.
As an employer, if you aren’t sure what type of check your employees need a member of our team would be happy to advise you on this – one of our expert team are always on hand to help you and safeguard your organisation. Contact us on 01443 799900 or email us at info@cbscreening.co.uk
Alternatively, you can visit our DBS pages on our website http://bit.ly/DBSChecks