What happens if somebody works without a CRB? The manager lets them work without one.

Answered by Sheila Scott

Dear Lorraine,

The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 at http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2014/2936/schedule/3/paragraph/2/made  on the Government website identifies that it is a legal requirement for staff working in registered services to have had a Disclosure and Barring (DBS) check undertaken before commencing work.

One of the important changes that has been made recently concerns the transferability of DBS checks.

If a check has been made previously year then it is transferable to the new employer. CQC’s website has a great deal of information about this at http://www.cqc.org.uk/content/changes-criminal-records-and-barring-system#sm-accord-14

Part of the information states:

“There is no requirement for a service that directly employs its own staff to repeat disclosure and barring checks within a set period. Further checks on staff will depend on the registered person judging that this is necessary or advisable after a certain period.

When making their decision they should take into account the work they do, the potential scope for abuse, and the stability of the workforce”.

The DBS website states that

• Access to the DBS checking service is only available to registered employers who are entitled by law to ask an individual to reveal their full criminal history (other than protected cautions and convictions), including spent convictions – also known as asking ‘an exempted question’.

I am assuming that the service that you are speaking about is required to register with the Care Quality Commission because it is that registration that triggers the requirement to have a DBS carried out. https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/disclosure-and-barring-service

It is the responsibility of the Registered Manager or the Responsible Person to ensure that all the requirements relating to employing care staff are met.

It therefore follows that if a DBS has not been carried out and the appropriate checks have not been made and are not available for inspection by CQC at an inspection then CQC will view this very seriously as it is a breach of the regulation.

Best wishes.

Sheila