The Disclosure and Barring Service check is a common practice adopted by various businesses to gain more information on a potential employee’s criminal history and whether or not it is safe to hire him or her for certain roles.
The DBS check is usually of three types, namely –
- Basic DBS check
- Standard DBS check
- Enhanced DBS check
A basic DBS check is, as the name suggests, a very simple report that reveals the convictions, reprimands, and warnings received by a person from any police department. It may also contain any other information that the department feels is important to share for the check.
Any individual can apply to get a basic DBS check done. Even the employer or employing organisation can apply for a basic DBS check for recruits.
However, certain industries need a higher level of assurance when recruiting people for various roles. This includes jobs in the healthcare and education industry as well since people employed in these fields will directly come in contact with children and vulnerable adults. For such businesses, a standard or enhanced DBS check is suggested.
What is a standard DBS check?
A standard DBS check offers employers an in-depth look at the criminal record of applicants.
They can find information such as –
- Any reprimands received by the applicant
- Any warnings or cautions received by the applicant
- Any convictions that the applicant has faced
The police department may also include any information that they deem fit for the DBS check. The standard DBS check can be requested only by the employer and an individual cannot apply for it themselves.
Usually, a standard DBS check is required for roles of high responsibility; for example, for –
- Lawyers
- Accountants, and
- Management roles.
What is an enhanced DBS check?
An enhanced DBS check is opted for by organisations that work with children and other vulnerable adults. These include industries such as healthcare and education. Much like the standard DBS check, the enhanced DBS check can also be requested by an organisation only and cannot be requested by an individual.
The information contained on an enhanced DBS check is similar to the standard DBS check; however, it also contains additional information on whether the person is listed on the barred lists or not.
Two kinds of barred lists are maintained by the department, namely –
- Children’s Barred List, and
- Adult First List.
These lists contain names of those people who are not allowed to work with children or vulnerable adults, as the case may be. An enhanced DBS check allows employers to check whether an applicant has been barred or not.
Difference between a Standard DBS Check and an Enhanced DBS Check
So, in a nutshell – both the standard and enhanced DBS checks contain similar information. However, the only difference is that an enhanced DBS check allows employers to ensure that the applicants are not listed on the Children’s Barred List and the Adult First List as well.