Enhanced DBS Checks Explained

A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check can help parents and employers make safer recruitment decisions when choosing someone to work with children.

However, DBS certificates contain several different sections, and the terminology can be confusing. An Enhanced DBS certificate is not automatically the same as an Enhanced DBS certificate with a Children’s Barred List check.

This guide explains the main sections you may see on an Enhanced DBS certificate and what they mean.

What is an Enhanced DBS check?

An Enhanced DBS check contains information about relevant convictions and cautions held on the Police National Computer. It can also contain relevant information held by local police forces which a chief police officer considers ought to be disclosed for the particular role.

Where the position is legally eligible, an Enhanced DBS check can additionally include a search of the Children’s Barred List, Adults’ Barred List, or both.

This distinction is particularly important when employing someone to look after children.

An Enhanced DBS certificate without a Children’s Barred List check does not establish whether the person appears on the Children’s Barred List.

Applicant Personal Details

Near the top of the certificate you will find information identifying the person to whom the certificate relates.

This normally includes details such as:

• Surname
• Forenames
• Other names
• Date of birth
• Place of birth
• Gender

Parents should check that the certificate belongs to the person presenting it.

A DBS certificate itself is not proof of identity, so appropriate identity checks should also be carried out.

Employment Details

The certificate contains a section showing details of the position for which the DBS check was requested.

This normally includes:

• Position Applied For – the type of work for which the DBS check was requested.
• Name of Employer – the organisation or other description entered as part of the application.

The position is important because eligibility for a DBS check depends on the work the person will be doing.

Parents should consider whether the position shown on an existing certificate is relevant to the childcare work they are considering.

Countersignatory Details

Enhanced DBS applications are normally submitted through an organisation registered with the DBS, known as a Registered Body, or through an Umbrella Body.

The certificate may identify the Registered Body and countersignatory associated with the application.

Eligible self-employed people and personal employees can also apply for their own Enhanced DBS check through a DBS Umbrella Body.

Police Records of Convictions, Cautions, Reprimands and Warnings

This is one of the main criminal record sections of an Enhanced DBS certificate.

An Enhanced DBS check includes relevant information held on the Police National Computer, subject to the DBS filtering rules.

If there is nothing to disclose, the section will normally state:

NONE RECORDED

It is important to understand that “None Recorded” does not necessarily mean that the person has never had any involvement with the police.

DBS filtering rules mean that some old or minor convictions and cautions are not disclosed.

Information from the List Held Under Section 142 of the Education Act 2002

You may notice a section on an Enhanced DBS certificate headed:

Information from the list held under Section 142 of the Education Act 2002

This relates to historic arrangements for prohibiting or restricting people from working in education.

The old system was commonly associated with what was known as List 99.

Modern barring arrangements are now administered by the DBS.

On a certificate with nothing recorded, this section may state:

NONE RECORDED

Parents should not confuse this section with the DBS Children’s Barred List section. They are separate sections of the certificate.

DBS Children’s Barred List Information

For parents employing childcare providers, this is one of the most important sections of the certificate.

The Children’s Barred List contains people who have been barred from carrying out regulated activity with children.

Where a Children’s Barred List check has been requested as part of an eligible Enhanced DBS application, the certificate contains the result in the section:

DBS Children’s Barred List Information

If the list was checked and the applicant is not barred, the certificate will normally show:

NONE RECORDED

If the Children’s Barred List was not included in the application, the certificate may instead indicate that it was:

NOT REQUESTED

This is an important distinction.

Simply seeing the words “Enhanced Certificate” at the top of a DBS certificate does not automatically mean that the Children’s Barred List was checked.

Why isn't every Enhanced DBS checked against the Children's Barred List?

The law restricts access to barred list information.

A Children’s Barred List check can generally only be requested where the role is legally eligible, such as certain types of regulated activity with children.

It is therefore possible for someone legitimately to hold an Enhanced DBS certificate which does not include a Children’s Barred List check.

DBS Adults’ Barred List Information

There is a corresponding section headed:

DBS Adults’ Barred List Information

This relates to people who are barred from regulated activity with adults.

For a childcare role which does not involve regulated activity with adults, it would be normal for the Adults’ Barred List not to have been requested.

A Children’s Barred List check and an Adults’ Barred List check are separate checks.

Other Relevant Information Disclosed at the Chief Police Officer’s Discretion

This is another important feature of an Enhanced DBS check.

An Enhanced DBS check goes further than simply searching for convictions and cautions.

Police forces can consider locally held information and may disclose information which they reasonably believe is relevant to the position being applied for and ought to be disclosed.

If there is no information to disclose, this section will normally state:

NONE RECORDED

The existence of this section is one of the important differences between a Standard DBS check and an Enhanced DBS check.

What Does “NONE RECORDED” Mean?

You will often see NONE RECORDED several times on a clear Enhanced DBS certificate.

It means that the particular section has produced no information to be recorded on the certificate.

However, always look at which section says NONE RECORDED.

For example:

DBS Children’s Barred List Information – NONE RECORDED

is very different from:

DBS Children’s Barred List Information – NOT REQUESTED

The first indicates that the Children’s Barred List was checked and nothing was recorded.

The second means that the Children’s Barred List check was not requested.

Enhanced DBS vs Enhanced DBS with Children’s Barred List

Check	Criminal Record Information	Relevant Local Police Information	Children’s Barred List
Enhanced DBS	Yes	Yes	No
Enhanced DBS + Children’s Barred List	Yes	Yes	Yes

A person can therefore truthfully say “I have an Enhanced DBS” without necessarily having undergone a Children’s Barred List check.

Is a Clear DBS Certificate a Guarantee That Someone is Suitable?

No.

A DBS check is an important safeguarding tool, but it should form only one part of a wider safer recruitment process.

Parents should also consider:

• Identity checks
• References
• Qualifications
• Employment history
• Interviews
• Experience
• Whether the person is suitable for the individual needs of their family

A DBS certificate is also a snapshot of information available when the certificate was issued.

Where appropriate, membership of the DBS Update Service may allow the status of an existing certificate to be checked subsequently.

What Should Parents Check on a DBS Certificate?

When somebody shows you an Enhanced DBS certificate for childcare work, pay particular attention to:

1. The applicant details and whether they match the person presenting the certificate.
2. The date of issue.
3. The certificate number.
4. The Position Applied For.
5. The Police Records section.
6. The DBS Children’s Barred List Information section.
7. Whether the Children’s Barred List says NONE RECORDED or NOT REQUESTED.
8. The Other Relevant Information section.

Remember that a DBS certificate should never be treated as a replacement for other appropriate safeguarding and recruitment checks.

Sample DBS Certificate

A sample Enhanced DBS certificate can be useful for understanding where each section appears.

You should look for the separate sections covering:

• Police Records
• Section 142 of the Education Act 2002
• DBS Children’s Barred List Information
• DBS Adults’ Barred List Information
• Other Relevant Information disclosed by the police

Further Information

For more information about DBS checks, eligibility and barred list checks, visit the official Disclosure and Barring Service guidance on GOV.UK.

Disclosure and Barring Service guidance on GOV.UK

More information

Apply for an Enhanced DBS Check as a nanny, babysitter or tutor

Obtaining a DBS check for Ofsted Registration

Checking Childcare Provider Documents

Safety Centre

This guide is intended to provide general information about DBS certificates and should not be regarded as legal advice. DBS eligibility depends on the particular role and circumstances.