Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to tackle backlogs in DBS checks.

The DBS issues four levels of certificates of criminal records, known as DBS certificates and operates a system of updating certificates through its Update Service.

Basic DBS check

A Basic DBS check is available for any position or purpose. A Basic certificate will contain details of convictions and conditional cautions that are considered to be unspent. DBS operates to service standards of completing 80% of Basic check applications within 2 days.

Standard DBS check

Standard DBS certificates show relevant convictions and cautions held on the Police National Computer (PNC), subject to filtering rules. DBS operates to service standards of completing 80% of Standard check applications within 5 days.

Enhanced DBS check

An Enhanced DBS check is available to anyone involved in work with vulnerable groups, and other positions involving a high degree of trust. Enhanced certificates contain the same information as a Standard certificate, with the addition of relevant local police force information. DBS operates to service standards of completing 80% of Enhanced check applications within 14 days.

Enhanced with Barred List(s) DBS check

An Enhanced with Barred List(s) DBS certificate will contain the same information as an Enhanced DBS certificate but includes details of whether the individual is included on one or both of the Barred Lists. These lists include individuals barred from working with children and vulnerable groups where the role is in regulated activity.

There are currently no delays in DBS processing times and performance against these targets is strong. The average processing time in September for all Basic applications was 0.9 days; for all Standard applications was 1.6 days; and for all enhanced applications was 10.4 days.