Criminal Records Bureau (CRB)
Here you can find out about information and resources surrounding Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks and we will help signpost you to relevant umbrella organisations that can assist with carrying out checks on staff and volunteers.
Protecting vulnerable people is about identifying, assessing, managing and controlling risk. If your organisation works with or for these people then it is undoubtedly good practice to check the records of volunteers, staff and trustees who will be working with children and vulnerable adults.
Given the millions of people working, or volunteering in the voluntary sector and the reported number of incidents, the risk is not large - but it is very significant.
You and your organisation need to be in the position of saying, "We did everything we could to prevent…" and more importantly, by having checks and systems and controls, you will hopefully never be in a position to have to account for your people.
Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and VCI sector
Following the recent Voluntary, Community and Independent (VCI) sector road shows, groups asked if there could be a list of umbrella organisations that can support groups around CRB checks. In the more information section of this page is an up-to-date list of organisations who can support VCI groups with CRB issues.
If you know of any other organisations that can support VCI groups with their CRB checks please email alex.ormston@derbyshire.gov.uk with details in order we can add on to the list
Need to get a CRB check done?
If you're a small organisation, finding an umbrella body that will run your CRB checks for you can feel like searching for a city centre parking space in December.
There is a web site called www.disclosures.co.uk (opens in a new window). All the work is done online through a secure site.
There is an annual registration fee of £35 which entitles an organisation to up to 15 checks. There is then an additional charge for each check of £31 for a standard check and £36 for an enhanced one, with a further £7 handling fee.
Alternatively, you can go to CRB's own website, www.crb.gov.uk (opens in a new window). Towards the centre of the home page is a section called NEW CUSTOMERS with a link to "Search our database". You can then search by Region, County, Price and Sector, and will be given a list of umbrella bodies to approach. Clicking on the name of each organisation will give you further details.
CRB Online Tracking Service
Since 3 January 2007 it has been possible to track online the progress of an application from receipt to issue.
This free service is available to applicants and employers and can be accessed via the CRB website at www.crb.gov.uk/tracking (opens in a new window)
To use this service you will need to have:
The Disclosure application from reference number.
The applicant's date of birth.
An online search will reveal:
The date the application was received by the CRB.
The stage in the process that the application has reached.
The date that each stage was completed.
Frequently Asked Questions
To find out more information about CRB checks please see the attachment in the documents section of this page.
Related documents
The following documents are in Portable Document Format (PDF). You can download the PDF software for free from the Adobe website (opens in a new window)