Some of us during our career’s or community work have had to have CRB checks – Criminal Records Bureau, as they were known, I have had several enhanced CRB checks done.
It is now called DBS – Disclosure and Barring Service.
What is the Difference Between a CRB and a DBS Check?
There is no difference between a CRB and DBS check. … One of which was the coming together and merge of the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA), under the new title of the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
I have no issues with this being done to ‘safeguard’ the public/children or vulnerable people I engage with – but it is only as good as the day the checks are done.
I have no issues with the frequency these checks are done – there is a cost of course.
So we learn this week that Cambs Police come pretty low on the league table of checking up on their own officers.
BBC 5 Live Investigates found that there were thousands of officers and staff who had not undergone the stricter checks.
Freedom of Information replies from 36 of 43 police forces in England and Wales revealed that 16 of them had not performed retrospective background checks on those people.
West Midlands Police had the largest number of officers and staff who had not been checked or vetted within the last 10 years, with 3,283.
Hertfordshire Constabulary had 831 and Cambridgeshire Constabulary had 637.
West Midlands Police said it had “backlogs in our routine reviews of vetting” but it was confident only “a minority” were not covered by other government or security checks.
So Cambs Police it is time to get your own house in order – otherwise the ‘public’ may well loose confidence in the service.
If I a member of the public need vetting regularly – surely the Police should come under the same rules.
