Disclosure and Barring Service checks
WHAT ARE THEY?
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) helps organisations make safer recruitment decisions and prevent unsuitable people from working with vulnerable groups, including children. It replaced the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) in 2012.
As you are volunteering to work with children you will need an Enhanced DBS check. Enhanced DBS checks can seem daunting to carry out, but they are easy, once you understand the reason for the questions. The information that you provide on the Enhanced DBS application is to establish your identity. It provides enough details for checks to be made, so that the school can be as confident as possible that they are recruiting safely. Once you have been matched with a school, staff there will arrange for your Enhanced DBS check to be carried out.
The Enhanced DBS is a requirement of becoming a Schoolreaders volunteer. If you are already registered on the Enhanced DBS update service https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service the school will still need to check your certificate using this service.
WHAT DOES AN ENHANCED DBS CHECK INVOLVE?
The applicant fills in an application form (supplied by the school), giving personal information to identify themselves. They also provide original documents which give evidence of their name, date of birth and address. These are checked and signed off by the school. The form is then checked for completeness and signed off as a whole, and sent to DBS by the school.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE?
The Enhanced DBS must be successfully completed before you can start at the school. Enhanced DBS checks normally take around 4 weeks to process. There is a small associated fee, which your school will almost always pay on your behalf.
If you have any questions, please email admin@schoolreaders.org or telephone us on
01234 924 111.
You can find out more about the Enhanced DBS check by visiting: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/disclosure-and-barring-service/about