Once you are clear whether a CRB check is necessary and confident that it is lawful, you need to know what sort of check you should carry out. There are two types of CRB checks in England: standard disclosures and enhanced disclosures. Scotland also has a basic disclosure system.

Standard disclosures

These give access to an applicant’s criminal record, even if the offence is spent. Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act offences become spent after a certain period of time, which means that the individual is no longer required to disclose it.

The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act is likely to be reformed under the Government’s Green Paper, Breaking the Cycle, and it is expected that the times after which records become spent will be reduced.

Contact the Nacro Resettlement Plus Helpline on 020 7840 6464 9am-5pm Monday-Friday for further information.

Enhanced disclosures

These include spent records as well as information that the police deem relevant to the post being filled. Enhanced checks mainly be used for posts where there is regulated activity with children and vulnerable adults. The information is highly sensitive and should only be shared with those involved in making a decision about a person’s application.

As well as showing spent and unspent convictions, enhanced disclosures also show ‘other relevant information’ from local policy records that the police believe is relevant to a particular post.

Contact the Nacro Resettlement Plus Helpline on 020 7840 6464 9am-5pm Monday-Friday for further information.

Those in regulated activity with children and vulnerable adults, as defined by the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. Guidance on what constitutes regulated activity working with children and vulnerable adults is to be found on the CRB website

Basic disclosures

In Scotland there are also basic checks, which disclose current, unspent criminal records.

Contact the Nacro Resettlement Plus Helpline on 020 7840 6464 9am-5pm Monday-Friday for further information.