Apply to be a chaperone for children in entertainment
Fees
The fees are:
- volunteer chaperone licence (applications and renewals) £15
- professional chaperone licence (applications and renewals) £70
If you have any questions about the different licence types or anything else regarding chaperone licences, email cs.ewscee@derbyshire.gov.uk or telephone: 01629 537859.
Why we charge for chaperone licences
We had been issuing chaperone licences for free since their introduction. Each chaperone licence application / renewal directly costs us money for the disclosure and barring service (DBS) check and ID badge (including recorded delivery). There is also the indirect costs of staff to hold the training sessions.
Other local authorities in our region (and across England) already charge individuals to process licences and we now need to charge these fees to help cover the costs of this process. We've kept the cost as low as possible with a volunteer licence cost of £5 per year, this includes the provision of an initial training session and a photo identification badge.
About chaperone licences
Chaperones are normally licensed by the local authority in which they live, therefore we can only issue chaperone licences for our residents (excluding Derby City Council).
The role of chaperone is to exercise a duty of care to the child or children in their care which any parent might be reasonably expected to give that child.
Chaperone licences are valid for a maximum of 3 years from the date of the DBS check.
Apply for a licence
To obtain a new chaperone licence from us, you need to:
- attend an online chaperone training session held via Microsoft Teams
- provide 2 suitable references
- have an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check performed by us
- provide 3 identity documents to us at in order for us to proceed with a DBS check
- provide a photo of you which is used on your chaperone licence and ID badge
- undertake online safeguarding training provided by us or give evidence that you've already completed suitable safeguarding training elsewhere
From the date of application, it will take approximately 6 to 8 weeks before a chaperone licence can be issued.
Renew your licence
To renew your Derbyshire chaperone licence, you need to:
- have an enhanced DBS check performed by us
- provide 3 identity documents to us in order for us to proceed with a DBS check
- provide a photo of you which is used on your chaperone licence and ID badge
- undertake online safeguarding training provided by us or give evidence that you've already completed suitable safeguarding training elsewhere
If your chaperone licence is about to expire, you can apply to renew it if there are 6 months left on your current licence.
If your chaperone licence has expired you'll need to apply for a new one.
We can only accept renewals if you currently hold a chaperone licence issued by us. If you've moved to Derbyshire and hold a chaperone licence from another authority, you must apply for a new chaperone licence.
You're not required to attend the chaperone training session or provide references.
From the date of requesting your renewal, it will take approximately 6 to 8 weeks before a chaperone licence can be issued.
Training session (not applicable for renewals)
Training is delivered online via Microsoft Teams. The next training sessions are:
- Tuesday 27 January 2026, 5.45pm to 7pm
- Wednesday 28 January 2026, 11am to 12.15pm
- Tuesday 17 February 2026, 5.45pm to 7pm
- Wednesday 18 February 2026, 11am to 12.15pm
- Monday 2 March 2026, 5.45pm to 7pm
- Wednesday 4 March 2026, 11am to 12.15pm
- Tuesday 17 March 2026, 5.45 to 7pm
- Wednesday 18 March 2026, 11am to 12.15pm
References (not applicable for renewals)
We're unable to accept references from family members.
We only accept written references.
On your application, you must provide contact details for 2 people to provide a suitable reference. We'll then request a reference from them by asking certain questions to check your suitability to work with children.
Disclosure and barring service (DBS) check
We're currently unable to complete a DBS check through the DBS update service. We need to perform our own DBS check. Our DBS team will email you a link and your login details in order for you to set up your DBS check.
We need to see your ID documents in person in order to verify your identity to proceed with your DBS check. It's best to do arrange this as soon as possible as DBS results take on average 2 to 3 weeks to come back. Unfortunately, once we have verified your identity we have no control over how long it takes to receive your DBS result. There are several different factors affecting how long it can take.
Find out what ID documents are suitable and how to get them checked.
If a trace is found then you'll be invited to an interview to discuss any convictions you have, to see if we deem you're still suitable to work with children or not.
Photo
We need a colour photo of you for your licence which is emailed to you, and your ID badge which is posted out to your home address. This can be a picture taken against a blank background. We must be able to see your full face and head (wearing glasses is acceptable).
Safeguarding training
If you've completed safeguarding training through work or elsewhere, you can send us evidence of completed safeguarding training (either your training certificate or a screenshot of your learning record). We'll review it to see if we can accept that instead of completing the online course we've requested. If the evidence does not state an expiry date then it must have been issued within the past 12 months for us to accept it.
If you've not already completed safeguarding training recently, you can complete safeguarding training provided by Derby and Derbyshire safeguarding children partnership (DDSCP). It's an online course that can be taken at any time. The course takes about 1 hour to complete. Once you've completed the safeguarding training, please save the training certificate for your records. You'll need to upload a copy when you make your chaperone licence application or renewal request.
When the course page loads, click 'Register' to create an account. Please input your personal details and the following information when you register:
- your role/job title: chaperone
- your organisation: Derbyshire County Council
- sector: local authority
- options: Derbyshire County Council
- line manager name: chaperone application
- line manager email: cs.ewscee@derbyshire.gov.uk
- telephone: 01629 537859
- organisation address: County Hall, Matlock, DE4 3AG
Introduction to safeguarding level 1
Contact us
Email cs.ewscee@derbyshire.gov.uk or telephone: 01629 537859.