In the initial days of the pandemic, the UK Government implemented various lockdowns and even added restrictions on people who were travelling. Their main aim was to prevent the spread of the virus, and since the virus passed from one person to another, when they were in contact, the best way was to reduce in-person interactions.
While the lockdowns meant that most people were working remotely, businesses that could not support remote working had no option but to wait for the situation to get better. Industries like hospitality and construction had the brakes hit hard, and many even shut down.
Medical professions, unfortunately, were receiving the worst brunt of the Coronavirus pandemic. With hospitals among a few other occupations marked as special services, people within the industry had no choice but to come in, no matter what. Additionally, there were rules about the number of hours they had to spend and had to work a lot longer than most would have thought. Other than spending long hours, they were still understaffed, with a large number of people affected by the pandemic and the number of people just increasing.
In the past, employers would ask the people applying for a position to provide a DBS check, which could refer to either the basic DBS check or enhanced check, depending on the application. However, with the implementation of multiple DBS checks, now employers who needed the information had to mention the specifics if they were planning on getting the information.
Basic DBS check
The basic DBS check is the most popular one used when running a background check on applicants. It provides information about cautions, reprimands, warnings and convictions that were spent or unspent, as long as they matched the definitions according to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, with definitions that match the UK and surrounding areas. With changes taking place throughout the world,
especially with the guidelines that were implemented because of the COVID pandemic, the DBS certificates can now be handled online.
Standard DBS check
The standard DBS check only works for people who are applying for jobs that would put them in high positions. Security guards, accountants and bankers would have to take these tests because of the nature of the work that they are handling. The tests would provide more information than the previous tests, including convictions, cautions, reprimands and warnings. Furthermore, they have to make sure that the roles and details mentioned in the Police Act 1997.
Enhanced DBS check
Much like the previous test when it came to specific jobs, the Enhanced DBS checks are for positions involving specific activities like teaching or treating adults which is usually working with a group of people who might not be able to defend themselves. The employer could ask for either one of these tests if the specifics of the specific job description were written in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exception) order 1975 as well as the Police Act 1997.
Furthermore, the test gathers police reports, information that might not be in the police report, but would be able to assist with making informed job decisions as well. In some cases, information about dealings with a specific group is like a danger to vulnerable groups. However, the involvement with various agencies would mean that the tests would take a lot longer to complete.
Enhanced with Barred List checks
The Enhanced with Barred List check is the most thorough check out there. It gathers all the information that would be handled in the previous tests and checks the correct DBS Barred List., which include the two DBS Barred Lists, for adults and children.
When it comes to the medical professionals going through the DBS barred list, there were changes that we made to process their information a lot faster than the rest. While the tests had to be thorough, the UK Government did not have all the time to get through a DBS check. All the applications of people working and assisting with the efforts against the pandemic had their information fast-tracked so they could begin at the earliest.
Their applications would move through the DBS barred list, and they could start working at the earliest. The rest of the necessary checks would be handled in time, and their job profile or position would be confirmed post that.
There were a lot of changes made to the process, including people providing their information through video call so that they would not have to leave their houses during the Coronavirus pandemic.
The authorities, to fast track the process, created the DBS Update Service, which was an annual subscription that people could keep in place since the DBS checks were getting a lot more common. In the past, the DBS check was not as commonly used as it is today, but now there were changes to the system to have them handled a lot more often. With a large number of people throughout the UK losing their jobs, it only made sense that employers had to be a lot clearer about the process and make sure they were working with people they could trust.
The new system allowed people to have their information ready to provide whenever needed, and they were applying for the job. The DBS certificate was only as relevant as the day of the application, so people using it had to make sure they had their most recent version when they were providing the information.
There could be changes to the way that the person behaved and changes accordingly to their background check, post applying for the DBS certificate. Additionally, employers can only gather this information if they have permission from the applicant, and they cannot collect details for anyone but only those already working for them or someone they are considering hiring. The basic DBS checks are the most common, but a few exceptions are depending on the exact requirements.
