Understanding DBS Check & Gathering Information Through It

Employers are allowed to check the records of people if they want to know about their criminal history when they are applying for a role within the company. The process of getting a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check started in 2012 but is used a lot more consistently now with the changes that are taking place within the work market in the UK.

The information gathered is the right of any employer, whether for employees or prospective candidates. Some positions demand the revelation of this information when candidates are applying for them.

Additionally, employers can choose to gather the information to make sure an individual is a good fit for the team, the company, and people they will be working with. Although, most people are not meeting in person anymore and conduct all their meetings remotely.

Furthermore, employers can request a more detailed check for specific roles, for example, in healthcare or childcare since the DBS check provides information on how an individual would behave in certain groups. The way they behave with children or adults is vital when selecting them for jobs since health care or assisted living needs to know if these people are comfortable working with the elderly.

There are different rules for getting a criminal record check, depending on the parts of Europe that conducts them. Here are some checks, completed through the DBS system:

• A basic check, which shows unspent convictions and conditional cautions, placed on a person.
• A standard check shows the spent and unspent convictions of the individual, cautions, reprimands and final warnings.
• An enhanced check shows the same as a standard check plus any information held by local police, considered relevant to the role.
• An enhanced check with barred lists, which shows the same as an enhanced check plus whether the applicant is on the list of people barred from doing the role.

If you carry out criminal records checks, you must have a policy on employing ex-offenders and show it to any applicant who asks for it.

Another benefit of the DBS check is that employers can review the DBS certificate online without having to leave their office, which makes it a lot more convenient and a faster approach to a background check.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made the process of hiring a tricky one since many people are losing their jobs and are looking for work in any industry that they might be able to get through.

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been more than three million people who have been claiming unemployment benefits. The unemployment rate has barely moved since many people are not looking to get into the workforce anytime soon. They are waiting for the situation to get a lot better before they start looking for work again.

Furthermore, people are not open to leaving their houses because of the fear of catching the virus, so they prefer staying at home for the entire situation to get better.