DBS Checks Explained: What Parents Need to Know

A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check is a background screening tool used by employers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to check whether a potential employee has a criminal record that might make them unsuitable for a particular role. In the childcare sector, DBS checks are not merely good practice – they are a legal requirement. The Childcare Act 2006 and the EYFS statutory framework both require that all staff who have unsupervised contact with children must be subject to enhanced DBS checks, and that employers must not take on anyone who is barred from working with children.

The DBS was created in December 2012, merging the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). A DBS certificate is issued to the individual being checked (not to the employer) and shows the result of a check against police records and, where relevant, the DBS barred lists. Understanding what a DBS check does and does not reveal is important for both employers and the parents who rely on them.

Three Levels of Check

There are three levels of DBS check, each suited to different types of role:

• Basic DBS check: reveals only unspent convictions; available for any role, including self-employment
• Standard DBS check: reveals spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings; required for certain roles that are not regulated activity
• Enhanced DBS check: the most comprehensive level, including a check of both barred lists; mandatory for all regulated activity with children, covering every registered childcare role

A Basic DBS check reveals only unspent convictions under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. It can be requested by an individual about themselves or by an employer for any role. It is the lowest level of check and is generally not sufficient for roles involving children.

A Standard DBS check reveals both spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings held on the Police National Computer. It is available only for roles that are eligible under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (SI 1975/1023), which includes most roles working with children. Unlike a Basic check, it also shows convictions that would otherwise be treated as “spent” under the 1974 Act. However, a Standard check does not include a search of the DBS barred lists.

An Enhanced DBS check includes everything in a Standard check plus a search of the DBS barred lists (the Children’s Barred List and the Adults’ Barred List) and, where the role involves regulated activity, a request for any additional information held by local police that is considered reasonably relevant to the application. This is the level required for all staff working in regulated activity with children, including teaching, childcare, supervision and unsupervised personal care.

Regulated Activity and Why It Matters

The concept of regulated activity is central to understanding DBS requirements. Regulated activity with children is defined in the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 (as amended by the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012) and includes activities such as teaching, training, instructing, caring for or supervising children where the activity is carried out frequently (more than three days in 30) or in an overnight setting. A person who is barred from regulated activity must not work in regulated activity – the prohibition is absolute, regardless of supervision level.

This distinction matters in practice. A volunteer who works with children less than three days in any 30-day period is not in regulated activity and cannot be checked against the barred lists (though they can still have an Enhanced check without a barred list check). A regular volunteer or paid member of staff who works with children weekly is in regulated activity and must have an Enhanced DBS check including the barred list search. Employers who fail to make this distinction correctly risk employing barred individuals in regulated activity, which is a criminal offence.

The Barred Lists

The DBS maintains two statutory barred lists:

• the Children’s Barred List – inclusion means a person is legally prohibited from engaging in regulated activity with children
• the Adults’ Barred List – inclusion means a person is legally prohibited from engaging in regulated activity with vulnerable adults

It is a criminal offence, under section 7 of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, for a barred person to seek to engage in regulated activity with children, and a separate offence under section 9 for an employer knowingly to allow a barred person to work in regulated activity.

Individuals are referred to the DBS for consideration for barring following a caution or conviction for certain automatic barring offences (which result in automatic inclusion without representation rights), or following a referral from an employer or regulated activity provider where a person has harmed or poses a risk of harm to children. Organisations have a legal duty to refer individuals to the DBS in certain circumstances, including where they have dismissed or removed a person from regulated activity because of harm or the risk of harm to children.

The DBS Update Service

The DBS Update Service is an optional subscription service that allows individuals to keep their DBS certificate up to date and allows employers to check the status of an existing certificate online, in real time, rather than applying for a new one. An individual joins the Update Service by subscribing within 19 days of their DBS certificate being issued. Subscriptions cost £13 per year. An employer with the individual’s consent can check the certificate status online and see whether anything has been added since the certificate was issued.

The Update Service does not replace the need for an initial Enhanced DBS check, but it significantly reduces the administrative burden and cost of repeated checking. Many childcare settings require new staff to join the Update Service as part of their employment conditions. It is worth noting that the Update Service only reflects changes to the criminal record; it does not update the local police information element of an Enhanced check.

What a DBS Check Does Not Reveal

DBS checks are an important safeguarding tool but they are not a guarantee of safety. A DBS check reveals what is recorded on police systems; it does not reveal information that has never been reported, investigated or prosecuted. The most significant limitation is that the majority of people who abuse children are not known to police at the time they are checked. A clear DBS certificate is one safeguard among many – it must be combined with safer recruitment practices (including reference checking, qualifications verification and gap analysis), adequate supervision, a culture of openness and vigilance, and robust safeguarding policies.

Parents should be aware that asking to see a staff member’s DBS certificate directly is generally not appropriate – DBS certificates are issued to the individual and contain sensitive personal information. The correct approach is to ask the setting manager to confirm that all relevant staff hold current Enhanced DBS checks and to see the settings safeguarding and safer recruitment policies.

For related guidance, see also our articles on safeguarding requirements under the EYFS, SEND and safeguarding vulnerabilities, how Ofsted inspects childcare and what quality childcare provision looks like.