Can employers rely on criminal record checks?

Published on 29 Jan 2007

The recent criminal records scandal has raised questions over how effective the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), the organisation which currently carries out criminal record pre-employment checks, really is.

Critics have warned that employers can not fully rely on CRB checks if police records are not up to date - after all CRB checks are only as good as the information the agency is able to access. However, the Home Office has insisted that employers should still have faith in CRB checks despite the recent blunder.

This is not the only criticism that has been levelled at the CRB since it was created. When an employer gets a CRB check back and no problem is found that employer is entitled to believe that the person they want to employ has no criminal record. The reverse is also true, when the check flags up an issue employers are within their rights to believe there is a problem and to not offer someone a job because of that.

However, one problem of CRB checks is the number of people who are in the police database but have committed no crime. This means some people may be being denied a job because their prospective employer falsely believes they have a criminal record.

According to the Government, CRB checks stop 25,000 unsuitable people from being employed in jobs working with vulnerable people; the danger of this is that employers may rely solely on this check and not carry out other pre-employment checks – such as getting references.

As Workplace Law previously reported, the Federation of Small Businesses has also claimed that criminal records checks are too slow and that some of its members are having to wait eight weeks or more for a report back. This can cause enormous problems for small firms with only a few members of staff because they have a long wait before they can take on someone who has been offered the job; in some cases businesses are unable to wait for the results of checks.

However, the laws surrounding the vetting of people working with children or vulnerable adults is set to change.

The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 received royal assent towards the end of last year. It sets out the framework for a new vetting system for people working or volunteering with vulnerable clients.

The Act means that employers will be able to make a 'real-time' instant check of whether a prospective employee is barred, with secure online access rather than the current paper-based process. This list would be updateable, with organisations informed of any changes to the status of their staff.

The Act will also mean that employers will be committing an offence if they:

employ someone to work with children or vulnerable adults whom they know to be barred; or
employ someone who has not been through the central vetting process.

Penalties for committing an offence will include up to five years in prison and up to £5,000 fines.

A copy of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 can be found at by clicking here.