Around 15 million people in the UK – or one in four of the population – volunteer on a regular monthly basis. Voluntary roles vary hugely, from home based roles answering email enquiries or working on a phone helpline, to regular shifts in charity shops or delivering services to all groups in society. Volunteering doesn’t have to mean giving up huge amounts of your time either as most modern charities have flexible programmes which allow people of any age and circumstance to help them out. If one of your New Year’s Resolutions for 2017 is to undertake volunteering, then you’ll be pleased to discover there are many advantages to doing so.
Becoming a Magistrate
One of the things which differentiates the court system in England and Wales from courts around the world are the Magistrates Courts. This court is the first tier of the court system. Magistrates deal with minor crimes and misdemeanours, and are the first people to hear more serious courses which are then referred on to Crown Courts. Unlike judges in the higher courts, magistrates aren’t members of the legal profession, and are usually specially trained members of the public who work as a magistrate on a part time basis. If you’re looking for an unusual and interesting way to get involved in the community, then could training as a magistrate be for you?
Power of Attorney
It’s perhaps not one of the most festive adverts, but you may have seen the advert on TV about Father Christmas getting stuck in a chimney while delivering presents and being thankful that Mrs Claus has had the forethought to take out a Power of Attorney which allows her to deal with unexpected events. It’s a clever way of making a very important point – that whatever our age and medical condition, making a Power of Attorney agreement is something we should be considering.
Taxi Drivers and Disclosure
Driving a black cab or mini cab in the UK has been a popular way of earning a wage for decades. It’s flexible, can be lucrative if you are prepared to work at weekends or through the night, and can usually be done on either a part time or full time basis. Although rules have always been strict about who can get a licence to drive a traditional black cab (also sometimes known as a Hackney cab), over recent years’ rules have also been tightened up on the people who apply to drive a mini cab, which is sometimes more formally referred to as a private hire vehicle.
What Jobs Need DBS Checks?
If you’re in the jobs market, you’ll often see some vacancies advertised as needing a DBS check, or stating that the applicant must undergo police checks before starting the position. In the UK, not all employers are allowed to carry out checks on new employees. The law is quite strict regarding which types of jobs require this sort of check to be carried out. Although many application forms will ask whether the person applying for the job has any criminal convictions, this is not the same as asking someone to complete a check through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), or equivalent bodies in Northern Ireland and Scotland.
How Long Does Disclosure Last?
For many occupations in the UK, a DBS check will be required. This is a common requirement in jobs which involve caring for children or working with elderly or disabled adults, and for jobs which have a high degree of responsibility like working in the court service or for the tax office. Employers will be aware of the need to carry out DBS checks, or if they are in Scotland or Northern Ireland, checks through the relevant sister bodies. One of the most confusing points about DBS checking is whether there is an expiry date on checks, and there is no simple answer to this.
Who Pays for Disclosure?
Some occupations in the UK require that the person be vetted by the Police to make sure that they do not criminal convictions which might mean they are not suitable to do the job. This system is mainly designed to protect vulnerable people like children or elderly people from abuse, but also applies to people who have jobs which involve responsibility for a lot of money or who work in security, Police or the legal profession. In England and Wales, this checking is handled by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and there are sister organisations in Scotland and Northern Ireland which perform the same function. Getting Disclosure checks done is a standard part of the process, but who pays the fees associated with the application – the applicant or the employer?
What Does a Spent Conviction Mean?
Not every job will require the applicant to go through a police checking process before starting work, but if you are thinking of a career working with children, or in professions such as nursing or teaching, applying for a check through the Disclosure and Barring Service is part of the process. A main concern of many applicants is that minor offences or cautions from years in the past will come back to haunt them, and that may mean that they are blocked from taking their new dream job. Under UK law, some convictions are considered “spent” in certain circumstances and that means that often they do not have to be disclosed and will not show up on any police checks.
Disclosure for People Who Have Lived Overseas
Every year thousands of workers from other parts of the world come to the UK to work, and many of them take jobs in market sectors which require workers to have their criminal records checked. There is a wide range of occupations which fall into this category, and irrespective of nationality, police checking for people who have lived overseas can be complex and take a lot longer than for someone who has always lived in the UK.
How Long Will My Disclosure Take to Come Through?
If you’ve recently applied for a job and have been told that you must go through a process of Disclosure, the main concern is usually how quickly the process can be completed. Applications for Disclosure checking, also sometimes known under its previous name of CRB checking, is done through the Disclosure and Barring Service in England and Wales, Disclosure Scotland or Access Northern Ireland, depending on where you live and where the prospective job will be based. Each organisation has different service standards and guarantees about how long checks will take to come back. Each employer will have their own policies about whether employees can start work while their police check is pending, and this is something which should be clarified at interview stage. Many employers can arrange alternative duties for staff while they wait for certificates to be issued.
