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We were recently pointed towards a large cleaning company that had a question on its application form for a job cleaning commercial offices which stated: “Criminal Record o Yes o No” The question didn’t make it clear that an applicant doesn’t need to disclose any spent convictions when applying for a role covered by the […]
We’ve recently been advising a large motor manufacturer who was asking a misleading question on their online apprenticeship application form. It stated: “Have you any convictions, including both spent and unspent convictions under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA) 1974? If yes, please provide details.” We believed that the apprenticeship role being offered would be […]
We were contacted by an individual who was concerned that a question on an employer’s application form in respect of a job requiring an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service checks was misleading as it did not provide any guidance around ‘protected’ cautions and convictions. The question on the application form stated: “Criminal Convictions (see guidance […]
Whilst working on a case we came across an application form for a volunteer role at a regional care provider that involved volunteers in its work. We identified a misleading question under their “Disclosure of criminal convictions” section. The question was in connection with an enhanced DBS check and stated: “Have you ever been convicted […]
We’ve recently worked on a case where an individual was considering applying for a job within an NHS trust as a ward caterer. The role involved serving food and beverages to patients on the ward. The individual was confused about what they should disclose about their criminal record as the application form stated: “As a […]
This case involves an organisation that recruits couriers. We were contacted by an individual who was in the process of applying for a job as a self-employed neighbourhood courier. As part of the online application form, the organisation involved had stated that: “l will ask you to provide a current DBS check (formally CRB). Please […]
We’ve recently worked on a case where the employer had a confusing question about criminal records. We were contacted by an individual who had just received notification from a local school that his application for a teaching position had not been successful. The individual explained that he hadn’t been surprised by the decision as the school […]
We’ve recently worked on a case where an employer had a blanket exclusion for certain offences. We were contacted by an individual who had applied to a training organisation which specialised in working with people with convictions with the aim of getting them into paid employment. The majority of individuals they work with are either […]
This case relates to a large background screening company that is registered with the DBS to conduct standard and enhanced checks – they’re a large company in this sector, and have been in the top 10 registered bodies (by number of applications to the DBS) in recent years. As part of their ‘offer’, they also […]
This case study involves a university that advertised a teaching fellow post, subject to a standard or enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check. A teaching position in a university is not on the list of exempted professions in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions) Order 1975. This sets out which jobs (e.g. doctors, nurses, school […]