DISCLOSURE AND BARRING SERVICE (DBS) POLICY

General Principles

As part of the National Standards of the National Association of Child Contact Centres (NACCC) of which Bath Child Contact Centre (BCCC) is a member, it is required that all new staff will have a disclosure through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The Police Act 1997 (Enhanced Criminal Record Certificates) (Protection of Vulnerable Adults) Regulations 2002 (statutory instrument number 446) and the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 also require our child contact service to undertake these checks. For the purpose of the policy, ‘applicant’ will refer to either staff or management.
All staff, Co-ordinators and management will have a DBS disclosure undertaken every three years.
NACCC is a registered umbrella body processing DBS disclosures for its member Centres. As such, NACCC will process BCCC’s DBS forms as part of our membership agreement. 

Recruitment

All advertisements for positions within BCCC will contain the statement, ‘A DBS disclosure will be requested in the event of a successful application’.
All application forms will contain a section requiring the signature of the applicant stating they are willing for a DBS disclosure to be undertaken.
In accordance with the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, all application forms will contain the statement that, ‘a criminal record will not necessarily be a bar to obtaining a position’.

Staff/Co-ordinators/Management

BCCC recognises that an offence listed in a disclosure is not necessarily a bar to employment. 
BCCC will review any information listed in a disclosure and in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice, will consider the following when reviewing an applicant’s suitability:
Whether the conviction or other matter revealed is relevant to the position in question.
The seriousness of any offence or other matter revealed.
The length of time since the offence or other matter occurred.
Whether the applicant has a pattern of offending behaviour or other relevant matters.
The circumstances surrounding the offence and the explanation(s) offered by the convicted person.
Management will have the final decision as to the suitability of an appointment of a person whose application is subject to disclosure information. This decision will be taken in accordance with the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and will be after discussion with the individual applicant.
Each applicant will be made aware that upon request, a copy of the DBS Code of Conduct and this policy can be provided. This statement will be included in the application form.

Security and Retention of Disclosure Information

BCCC takes confidentiality seriously and ensures that all information relating to disclosures is kept in a secure place, under lock and key.
Only relevant employees who have been assigned responsibility for disclosure information have access to this.
DBS only send out the disclosure to the applicant. It is therefore important that we see the disclosure and make a note of the disclosure number and date for your records to enable three-yearly DBS checks to be carried out.

Levels of Disclosure

BCCC processes all disclosures at the level of ‘enhanced’ as defined by the DBS. 

Payment of DBS Disclosures

There is a charge for paid staff, and this cost is paid by this Child Contact Centre. Unpaid staff are eligible for DBS checks at no cost to the Centre or staff member. 

DBS Update Service

The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Update Service allows:

applicants to keep their DBS certificates up to date.
employers to check a DBS certificate.

It is down to the individual if they wish to register with the DBS Update Service, which is currently free for unpaid staff and at a charge for paid staff, which is to be paid by BCCC.
If an individual is registered with the DBS Update Service, it has to be renewed every year for this to continue to be valid.
The DBS Update Service does not necessarily mean that the DBS certificate is portable and will need to adhere to the DBS Office guidelines.
When an applicant has registered with the DBS Update Service, and it is valid to be portable, the Centre must check the status of the DBS certificate with the DBS Office and record the date this was checked for your records. 
The DBS certificates will still need to be checked by the Centre every three years if the applicant has registered with the DBS Update Service.