Why You Should Encourage Your Foster Carers To Register For The DBS Update Service

Foster care agencies are responsible for conducting regular criminality checks on their foster parents. Carrying out DBS Checks on a regular basis is essential to be sure you have the most relevant information.

But having to carry out fresh DBS Checks every 3 years can be a hassle. It takes both time and money to do new checks. The DBS Update Service can help make this whole process easier.

What is the DBS Update Service?

The DBS Update Service is a subscription service offered by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Holders of a DBS Certificate can register for the service at a cost of £13 a year. This creates an online record which is updated of new information is added.

Once they are registered, they are given a code which they can provide to the foster agency. With this code, you can then conduct ‘status checks’ on their record online. A status check is simply the term used for looking up someone’s record on the Update Service.

Carrying out status checks is quick, simple, and much cheaper in the long run than conducting new DBS Checks.

However, if you’re responsible for managing hundreds or even thousands of foster parents, status checks still require a lot of effort. Having a tool that could automate and manage this process for you would solve this issue.

Automating the Update Service

Personnel Checks have developed a service which allows the management of Update Service subscriptions to be automated.

Our status checking tool allows regular status checks to be conducted automatically on registered foster carers. If information is added to their record, a notification is sent to you. This ensures you are always in receipt of the most up to date information.

This method saves both time and money, whilst ensuring you’re fulfilling your due diligence to the best of your ability.

Registering for the Update Service

At the moment, it is the applicant's responsibility to register for the DBS Update Service. The organisation requesting the DBS Check cannot register a certificate on an applicant's behalf.

Applicants must register for the Update Service within 28 days of a certificate's issue date. They can also register while the DBS Check is still in the process, using their E-Reference number. This is the tracking number they are issued with (if their check was submitted electronically).

If registration isn’t made within this period, applicants will be unable to subscribe to the Update Service.

In theory, the DBS Update Service completely removes the need to complete new DBS Checks for your foster parents. But you are reliant on your foster carers remembering to register to the Update Service.

For organisations processing DBS Checks through Personnel Checks, we can prompt and signpost your candidates to the Update Service. Our system can even remind them if their subscription is coming to an end and they need to update their details.

Even without our service, encouraging your foster parents to register their DBS Certificates to the Update Service is a no-brainer. It makes the checking process streamlined and easy for everyone involved. If you want to see how easy managing the Update Service can be, get in touch.