Category: DBS News and Advice

The statistics about the numbers of candidates found lying on their CV are shocking, with around 56% of CVs thought to contain lies or exaggerations. Employers are well aware of what’s going on, and so many will ask for extra checks on applicants, involving chasing up references or running social media checks. One of the easiest things to lie about is qualifications, as until recently it hasn’t been standard practice for employers to ask candidates to show A-level or degree certificates.

Although it’s often said that the British are world experts in queuing, the reality is that nobody likes being kept waiting. It’s bad enough waiting for a delayed train or a delivery from an online retailer, but when you are waiting for paperwork to arrive before you can start a new job, the frustration is even more intense. Police criminal records checks, also known as DBS checks or Disclosure Checks, are essential for many roles, and although employers will have their own policies, often they will refuse to let you start work without the certificate in your hand.

Disclosure and Barring Service checks, also known as criminal records, checks or disclosure checks, are taking longer than usual to come back at the moment, mainly due to ongoing pandemic delays. It can be frustrating to experience lengthy delays when you’re waiting to start a new job, and there’s nothing you can do about delays caused by DBS processes and procedures. There is however a lot you can do to ensure everything is in order before your form arrives at the DBS in order to eliminate delay caused by human error. But what are the most common mistakes people make when completing their disclosure forms?

If you’ve ever stared out of the window on a cold and wet British afternoon and wished you were somewhere warmer and sunnier, then you’re not alone. Thousands of British citizens emigrate each year, with many more making a temporary move for work, or on a gap year or sabbatical. Since the UK left the European Union, this has made moving overseas trickier, but not impossible. There’s a lot of paperwork to get in order depending on the country you are moving to. Most permanent emigrants need a firm job offer, health certificates, personal references and even a minimum amount of money in the bank. One of the most commonly asked for pieces of paperwork is a police certificate. Although these have a lot in common with DBS checks and certificates, there are a few important differences.

The language we use to discuss various work-related checks can take some time to change when the law moves on. This is perhaps why you’ll still hear people talking about List 99, even though this register is now managed by the Disclosure and Barring Service and is known as the Barred Lists. List 99 checks don’t apply to everyone, but if you are intending applying for a job which involves working with children, it’s something you might come across.

Disclosure checks are required for so many jobs that most people who are in the market for a new role are aware of their existence. Despite this, there is a perception that all disclosure checks are the same and will show exactly the same level of detail. That’s not actually the case, and there are in fact three different levels of DBS check. Enhanced Disclosure is the most detailed level of check which you may be asked to complete.

More young people than ever are staying at school and college until they are 18, and leaving school at 16 and walking straight into your first full-time job is now relatively unusual. But that’s not to say that under 18s don’t work at all. Many have a part-time job around their school or college hours, volunteer with sports clubs, or are on an apprenticeship which involves some time at work and some time in the classroom. Getting a DBS check can be tricky for under 18s, but it’s not something that employers can ignore.

Part of the reason why there is so much confusion around the different levels of disclosure is reporting in the press and the media. They talk about criminal record checks as if they are all the same thing, and the procedure is the same for all jobs. That’s not the case though, so it’s hardly surprising that job applicants are bemused when they’re asked for a standard or enhanced DBS – aren’t they all the same? There are important differences between the levels of a DBS check, and although it’s really the job of the employer to know which check applies for each position, having a broad idea of how the system works is still a good idea.

Is there anything more frustrating than delays which are not your fault? That’s especially the case if you’re applying for a new job and need to have all of the paperwork in place before your employer will allow you to start work. There’s lots in the process you can control, such as making sure you act promptly when you get an email from your employer asking you for information. But there are other parts of the procedure which are out of your control and understanding what might be causing the delays may help take some of the stress out of the situation.

One US manager hit the headlines recently in the business word when he announced that he had an innovative new way of checking up on the people who had applied to work with his company – checking up on their Uber rating. A manager at an investment firm looked at the rating given to customers by Uber drivers, justifying his decision by saying that people who treat strangers like Uber drivers well are more likely to treat their colleagues and customers well too. But did this innovative tactic pay off?