Criminal record checks

New and updated

• Date:

  4 February 2025

  Type:

  Podcasts and webinars

  Podcast: The criminally overlooked potential of ex-offenders in the workforce

  A significant proportion of the population have criminal records. So what are the legal requirements when thinking about recruiting someone with a spent or unspent conviction? And are employers that shy away from engaging with ex-offenders failing to make use of a valuable resource and even damaging their organisations? Debbie Sadler of Unlock and Brightmine senior legal editor Laura Merrylees join the podcast to discuss these questions.

• Type:

  Quick reference

  Rehabilitation periods

  Updated to reflect changes to the length of rehabilitation periods.

• Type:

  FAQs

  Will a job applicant have any redress if an employer refuses employment on the basis of a spent conviction?

  Updated with further information about rehabilitation periods.

• Type:

  Employment law guide

  Job applicants with convictions

  Updated to reflect an increase in fees for all levels of DBS check, effective 2 December 2024.

• Type:

  Policies and procedures

  Recruitment of people who have criminal record policy

  A model policy on recruitment of people with a criminal record, which deals with jobs covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, jobs that are exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks.

• Type:

  Policies and procedures

  Safeguarding: Recruiting people to work with children and/or vulnerable adults policy

  A model policy on recruiting people to work with children and/or vulnerable adults, in compliance with safeguarding requirements.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Criminal record checks: "Multiple convictions rule" breaches human rights

  In R (on the application of P) v Secretary of State for the Home Department and other appeals, the Supreme Court held that the criminal record checks rule requiring disclosure where a person has more than one conviction, regardless of the circumstances of the offences, is incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Criminal records: disclosure of acquittal did not breach job applicant's human rights

  In R (on the application of AR) v Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police and another, the Supreme Court held that, although the disclosure of the appellant's acquittal for rape was an interference with his human rights, it was justified. However, the Court expressed concern at the lack of guidance for employers on how to deal with disclosures of serious criminal charges that result in acquittals.

• Type:

  FAQs

  Can employers carry out criminal records checks under the UK GDPR?

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Criminal record checks: filtering process is inadequate

  The High Court has upheld a challenge by way of judicial review to the present criminal record checks scheme, finding that the relevant statutory provisions are incompatible with the European Convention of Human Rights. Ryan Stringer sets out the implications of the decision for employers.