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Parents and carers can now hire people with greater
peace of mind thanks to tougher vetting checks
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Change delivers on a recommendation made by Professor Alexis
Jay OBE in the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
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Latest measure government is taking to protect children,
introducing mandatory reporting of abuse and
with convictions for child sex abusers at
their highest-ever levels
Children and vulnerable adults will beprotected from the threat
of sexual exploitation thanks to new tough checks which allow
parents and carers to fully vet who they hire, Prisons Minister
has announced today.
Parents will be able to get Enhanced Disclosure and Barring
Service (DBS) checks when hiring private tutors, carers and
therapists, among others. This will give them greater peace of
mind that the people they let through their front door will not
have a history of abusing vulnerable people. Under the current
system, only those working for an organisation, such as a school
or hospital, could request this information.
This change comes good on one of Professor Alexis Jay's
recommendations from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual
Abuse - to make greater use of the Disclosure and Barring Service
barred list to save children and vulnerable people from the
horrors of abuse. It will come into effect from January
2026.
Minister for Prisons, Probation, and Reducing
Reoffending, , said:
“Enhanced DBS checks provide clear, reliable
information about individuals' backgrounds, helping families and
personal employers identify risks and keep those with
harmful intentions far away from children and vulnerable
adults.
“Protecting the vulnerable, tackling abuse and standing
up for victims is absolutely paramount to our Plan for
Change.”
Before this change, self-employed or personal employees could
only access Basic DBS checks which only show unspent convictions
and cautions.
This is the latest step the government has taken to deliver on
Professor Jay's recommendations to better protect
vulnerable children. The government is also bringing in mandatory
reporting of child sex abuse and looking at how therapeutic
support can help victims rebuild their lives.
Under this government, convictions for
child sex abusers are at their highest ever levels
and the police are looking again at more than 1,200
closed cases, including more than 200 cases of rape.
, Minister for Safeguarding
and Violence Against Women and Girls, said:
“We must use every lever at our disposal to protect children
and other vulnerable people in our society from harm.
“These measures, which respond directly to Professor
Jay's recommendation, will put more power in the hands of
parents to vet anyone working closely with their children,
even if they are freelance or self-employed.”
Further information
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This measure amends the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974
(Exceptions) Order 1975 and will come into effect in January
2026.
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Enhanced DBS checks with a check of the barred list(s)
are used for more sensitive roles working with children or
vulnerable adults and are the highest-level DBS check
available. They include spent and unspent convictions and
cautions (subject to filtering rules), any police information
considered relevant and proportionate to disclose by a chief
officer, and whether the individual has been barred from
working with children or adults.
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Under the Crime and Policing Bill, relevant roles will be
eligible for the highest level of DBS checks,
whether they are supervised or not.
