DBS and Safer Recruitment

Safer Recruitment and People Management is an integral part of keeping people safe in the Church.

On this page you will find information about:

If you are a Lead/Deputy Recruiter within your church setting, there is also a dedicated page to support you in your role. Visit the Support for Lead Recruiter page

Safer recruitment

Parishes need to make sure that all church roles (employed or volunteer) that involve substantial contact with children, and/or vulnerable adults are safely recruited.

This means that they must be recruited by following the House of Bishop's Safer Recruitment and People Recruitment guidance

The Safeguarding Hub is an online tool designed to assist parishes specifically with their responsibilities around safer recruitment and people management.

The Safeguarding Hub consists of a suite of three tools:

Stage 1: Keep track of DBS checks and safeguarding training
Stage 2: Create role descriptions and person specifications.
Stage 3: Track the safer recruitment of new volunteers.

Parishes can choose to use one, two, or all three of these tools. Future tools are expected to help parishes further.

The Safeguarding Hub makes it easy to identify when actions are outstanding, in progress or completed. Helpful reports can also be generated to assist with keeping track of actions.

Visit the Safeguarding Dashboard and Hub page

DBS eligibility

Any church body asking an individual to apply for an enhanced DBS check with or without a check of the barred lists has a legal responsibility to ensure that the role is eligible.

It is a criminal offence for anybody to carry out an enhanced DBS check with or without a check of the barred lists on roles that are not eligible. Church bodies that carry out illegal checks may not only be committing an offence under Part V of the Police Act 1997, but are also likely to be in breach of data protection legislation.

Therefore, it is important that all roles have a clearly defined job description which will assist when considering DBS eligibility.

The following resources can assist with assessing eligibility:

Thirtyone:eight online DBS eligibility guide - Only Lead Recruiters/Recruiters will have access to the eligibility guide, log in details are sent with your Thirtyone:eight welcome email.
Thirtyone:eight regulated activity decision-making flow charts and notes as listed below:
Thirtyone:eight helpline 0303 003 11 11
Contact the Diocesan Safeguarding Team on 01634 560000

Within the Safer Recruitment and People Management Guidance (Section 9) there is a useful section on the DBS including a guide to DBS eligibility for clergy, charity trustees, and anyone else who works with children and young people.

Useful links