Filtering of old and minor offences from DBS

Dekota

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/dbs-filter-certain-old-and-minor-cautions-and-convictions-reprimands-and-warnings-from-criminal-record-certificates

On 28th May 2013, a legislation was passed on the filtering of cautions and convictions that are minor or old and non-specific. I thought this was a revelation really because that would mean cautions would have a 6-year expiry date which is definitely good news for me as I've just lost a job offer with the NHS because of a silly caution I have that is relatively minor. According to the legislation, my caution would expire in July 2017 BUT can anyone in the know tell me if this legislation only applies to cautions and convictions adminstered AFTER the legislation was passed?

If so, I am devastated, I really am and that is completely unfair that pre May 2013, people will be seen as criminals and not given leverage in the jobs market while those that causes offenses post legislation will not be punished for long. It's ludicrious, can anyone shed some light/give some insight.

Many thanks

Savvy_Sue

It reads to me as if it's retrospective, because registered bodies are now instructed:

Applicants should now ignore this question and treat this question as if they were being asked ‘do you have any unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands or warnings?’

Did you read the links on that page? Filtering rules and List of offences which will never be filtered.

Dekota

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

It reads to me as if it's retrospective, because registered bodies are now instructed:



Did you read the links on that page? Filtering rules and List of offences which will never be filtered.

Many thanks for reply, I have read all the associated document and my caution isn't listed so would be applicable for filtering.

Just want confirmation because the last thing I want is to live in hope for the next 4 years only to find out that the caution will stick.

Savvy_Sue

Well, my other question is whether you have had advice on how to disclose it? Did the NHS know you had this conviction BEFORE your DBS check came back, or had you forgotten about it / failed to disclose it beforehand?

iSlideOnItConstance

I process DBS certificates for positions which are exempt from the rehabilitation of offenders act 1974. I am pleasantly surprised with the amount of applicants who do not disclose cautions/convictions explicitly when asked on the job applications. If a record does appear on the DBS certificate, i usually ask the applicant to attend an interview. Other employers may withdraw the job offer based on character and conduct grounds immediately, however from my experience some people do make genuine errors in not disclosing, hence giving them the opportunity to explain why. Each case is considered on its own merits Some applicants adopt a nonchalant attitude, others do make a genuine mistake as mentioned.

A conviction/caution should not necessarily preclude anyone from gaining employment, but it is very important to properly disclose when asked to do so, as non-disclosure raises more questions than answers, which of course brings the applicants integrity into question.

As of may 29th, one DBS certificate will be issued, this will be forwarded onto the job applicant only, it is then the applicants responsibility to provide this to their employer to make a copy.

Also, as Savvy_Sue mentioned, did you not disclose beforehand?

New rules:
http://www.criminalrecordjobs.co.uk/conviction-advice/how-long-before-my-conviction-becomes-spent/

DBS filtering process:
http://www.unlock.org.uk/userfiles/file/informationhub/dbsfilteringprocess.pdf

EDIT: You will have to disclose your caution until it becomes spent, only then will it be filtered from future checks.

makeyourdaddyproud

I totally agree with the above. I had a caution for shoplifting in 1979 at 15 and a minor offence in 1990. It didn't affect my chances of securing interviews post disclosure and I have secured an offer in the past for SC clearance.

It isn't worth the risk of lying when your potential employer values integrity as well as professional skill. Your amenity should be safe in that regard.

Dan

Dekota

Many thanks for the replies so far, I cannot stress how much I value these responses!

Especially thanks to iSlideOnItConstance

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

Well, my other question is whether you have had advice on how to disclose it? Did the NHS know you had this conviction BEFORE your DBS check came back, or had you forgotten about it / failed to disclose it beforehand?

Here's the thing, application stage I did not because the DBS questions are not specific as in they asked 'Do you have any unspent convictions?' and I had assumed cautions are not classed as convictions but for NHS they are and nowhere did it ask for caution disclosure. Interview stage I completely forgot to mention and then DBS disclosure form, I ticked yes for cautions and when DBS certificate came back I was even given the opportunity to explain the circumstances under which I got it, explained everything properly in person and then received the dreaded response from them yesterday.

What's devastated me is that they've basically told me it's irrelevant whether I disclose the cautions in my future job applications to NHS because the decision will always remain the same because of the time elapsed since I was given the caution (2011/12) so I suppose I cannot argue as that plays a major factor in their decision.

For future reference for other people: Cautions will henceforth have a 6 year expiry date from the date of issue and on the condition that it is not a cited offense that cannot be filtered.

Savvy_Sue

I wonder if that's a blanket NHS policy, or whether it varies from one trust to another, also depending on the level of work involved?
I think a phone call to another trust would be worthwhile ...

Yorkie1

A caution is not a conviction. If the question specifically only mentioned convictions, then they can't punish you for answering 'No' to the question.

Unless the guidance issued actually tells you that they mean 'caution' as well as 'conviction' when they say 'conviction', I think they have not acted correctly.

polgara

I think there is a general misunderstanding for the general public about cautions although a caution is not a conviction, it forms a part of a person's criminal record. I think a lot of people accept a caution thinking that it won't impact on their criminal record. For lots of NHS jobs there is a requirement for an enhanced CRB (now DBS). In my experience I come across a lot of people who don't declare cautions but once they are questioned about it, ie. when we get the DBS through, they are then very honest about it.

It all depends on the caution/offence - I have seen pages long CRB forms that havent stopped me from progressing their employment. However, for a finance job for instance I'd been wary of a recent conviction/caution for say a fraud/theft offence and would want to interview the person to get their side of the story prior to carrying out further actions.

usefulmale

Do they ever give out cautions for 'KNOWINGLY CAUSE A NUCLEAR EXPLOSION'?

ALL cautions should be filtered out after they are spent because if it wasn't important enough to bother a judge with at the time, I can't see the point in dredging it up 5, 10, 20 or 30 years later.