DBS Checks - Staff (including student paid roles)

The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) offers a confidential checking service for transgender applicants in accordance with the Gender Recognition Act 2004. This is known as the sensitive applications route. For more information please visit:

Please refer to the link below for information on posts requiring pre-employment criminal record checks.

A DBS check has no official expiry date. Any information included will be accurate at the time the check was carried out. It is up to the department to decide when a new check is needed.

If an applicant was adopted before the age of ten then they do not need to provide their surname at birth. They should instead provide their adoptive name. (Ten years of age is regarded as the starting point for a DBS check because under the Children and Young Persons Act 1933, Chapter 12, Section 50, the age of criminal responsibility is deemed to be 10 years and therefore there is no possibility that an individual could have a criminal record in a name that was used until the age of ten.)

If an applicant was adopted after the age of 10 the DBS requires full details of previous name(s).

This will depend on the type and length of activity that you will be participating in. You should seek advice from dbs.applications@durham.ac.uk.

Please note that if you have not lived in the UK, you will also be required to provide a criminal records check from your own country.

The action required is dependent upon the nature of the conviction and the post or programme applied for. Specific instructions on how to proceed should be sought from either:

• Student applications: applications@durham.ac.uk
• Staff applications: Nicola Johnston (Chief People Officer)

If you are the applicant, you will be notified in due course what action, if any, will be taken.

Staff: A criminal record will not be an automatic bar to employment at the University. The specific details of each ex-offender's case will be considered on an individual basis and reviewed accordingly. Please refer to the Human Resources Statement on the Recruitment and Employment of Ex-Offenders for full guidance.

Answering 'yes' does not mean that you will be automatically barred from joining the University as the University has a responsibility to consider all applications primarily on academic grounds; however, the University also has a duty to ensure the safety and wellbeing of other members of its community and external bodies through whom students may complete aspects of their programmes of study.

Students: please contact:

Please contact:

• Nicola Johnston, Chief People Officer, for Staff applications
• applications@durham.ac.uk

No, we need to see the physical copy of all the documents used to verify your identity. 

Only in exceptional circumstances and with prior agreement with your line manager and / or HR. Your role may involve working with vulnerable adults and children, and cannot commence until the DBS clearance has been confirmed.  

No, you will only get the physical certificate. The university will not get a paper copy of this so please keep it safe.

Once your ID has been checked, the time it takes for your DBS result to come through can vary. The University has no control over when this is, as this part of the check is performed by the external company, uCheck. 

If you have a DBS Certificate that was issued by an organisation that is not Durham University, we will not be able to accept this DBS Certificate, as DBS certificates are not ‘portable’. However, individuals may be able to take their DBS certificates with them from role to role if within the same workforce, and where the same type and level of certificate is required. See also Portability information below.

No, the University can make checks only for University purposes and projects.