DBS Checks for Summer Jobs
DBS Checks for Summer Jobs – What you need to know
For some tourism destinations and attractions, the summer season starts at Easter. For others, they rely on the school holidays for their biggest influx of visitors. The higher number of guests, visitors, diners or drinkers means that businesses have to increase their staff levels to manage the increased traffic. Customer satisfaction must remain as high during the busy summer months as it is on a quiet Tuesday in March – or you could run the risk of missing out on the key revenue that keeps many businesses afloat during the off-season.
Student Summer Jobs
Luckily, the increase in staffing requirements can usually be met by university students that have finished for the academic year and school pupils that have an extended summer with an early finish after exams.
What this means for businesses is that they will have new temporary members of staff on their books, which can put their HR departments under pressure. As well as onboarding the temporary staff in terms of training, HR departments also have to oversee the documentation that goes along with new hires, such as payroll.
With many seasonal jobs public-facing, it is likely that many of these positions will be eligible for a DBS check.
Do I need a DBS for a summer job?
It’s a great question and one that will depend on the job that you are doing – and the people that you will be working with across the summer.
With schools out, there’s a good chance that your role will involve working with or near children – and your DBS will depend on the level of interaction that you have with children, who are classed as a vulnerable group.
There are many summer jobs that will bring young summer workers in contact with children, from sports coaches and swimming teachers to summer scheme leaders and language guides for international students in the UK to improve their English.
Also, summer staff could find themselves working in theme parks or on fast food stands, which sees them engage with children, and other vulnerable people, every day, but without any responsibility or duty towards them.
For employers, they will know if the roles that they are fulfilling require a DBS check and what level of check it requires. If this is your first summer recruiting summer staff, you might appreciate guidance. The Government has created lots of helpful resources – like this Guide – to help employers understand their responsibilities in terms of DBS.
Get a DBS check fast
As an employer, you’ll understand the urgency in getting DBS checks completed. At MyVetting, we’ve developed our DBS platform around circumstances just like this.
Traditionally, DBS checks have required weeks for processing and in-person meetings in order to verify paperwork and documentation. This can be tricky if your potential employees are still at university or in the middle of a tough exam schedule.
With MyVetting, we’ve created a process where you can request your applicant to upload their documentary evidence from their own device, regardless of where they are in the world.
Once we’ve sent the first request, we’ll check in with them to remind them to start their online DBS check. Once they’ve uploaded their evidence – maybe a passport – and completed their digital Liveness Check, you will be able to track the progress of their check through your MyVetting dashboard.
With many years of experience in the vetting industry, we could see that businesses and HR departments needed a solution that was seamless, allowing them to see where their checks were in the system within seconds. So, we built a powerful digital solution that would allow you to check many applicants at speed, without compromising on security and safeguarding.
We also believe that you shouldn’t have to pay for speed and convenience, so we’ve worked hard to make our costs as competitive as possible, with costs reducing with the number of checks purchased.
In fact, MyVetting has been developed to meet the precise needs of DBS checks for summer staff.
Do you really need a DBS Check for a Temporary Role?
Yes, if the role requires a DBS check then it must be in place before employment can start. This is the same for part-time roles, full-time, temporary and volunteer roles.
Do All Roles Need a DBS Check?
No, not all summer roles will legally require a DBS check. This means that, if the role does not need one, a DBS check does not need to be carried out before employment can start. If an employer wanted to get every member of staff a DBS check to ensure that they had an awareness of any criminal records, then employers can request all members of staff to undergo a Basic DBS check.
Summer employees and volunteers working in Regulated Activity will require an Enhanced DBS check and may also require checking against the Adults and Childrens Barred Lists.
While it is important to be aware of all the roles that might require a DBS check, it’s important to understand that only individuals that are over the age of 16 can undergo a DBS check.
What is Regulated Activity?
Regulated Activity is a precise term that is used to refer to roles or positions – voluntary or paid employment – that involve close and unsupervised contact with vulnerable groups, such as children or adults at risk. Roles that involve regulated activity are subject to Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks as part of safeguarding measures.
Right to Work Checks
For new employees, employers should also undertake Right to Work checks to ensure that their workers have the legal right to live and work in the UK. MyVetting also offers fast, affordable and secure Right to Work checks, which you can Buy Now.
