Charities, Volunteers & Faith Organisations

If your organisation is recruiting paid staff, managing volunteers or appointing people to positions of responsibility, appropriate employment screening can help charities and faith organisations protect the people they support and make informed recruitment decisions.

DDC’s Customer Service Team have years of experience providing volunteers with help and advice with their applications, helping your checks get completed quickly, simply and compliantly. We successfully support thousands of volunteers every month though our UK based friendly team.

Why are DBS Checks Important for Charities and Faith Organisations?

Charities, places of worship and community organisations often work with children, vulnerable adults and other people who may require additional safeguarding.

DBS checks can help organisations make more informed recruitment and placement decisions by identifying relevant criminal record information where a role is eligible for a check.

However, a DBS check is only one part of a strong recruitment and safeguarding process. Depending on the role, organisations may also benefit from checks such as:

• Employment reference checks
• Social media checks
• Identity checks (physical and digital)
• Right to work for paid staff

Taking a role-based approach to screening ensures you request the appropriate checks for each individual, without applying unnecessary checks where there is no legal eligibility.

Some of Our Partners:

Recruitment and DBS Checks for Charities:

Charities can have a wide range of roles, from office and administration staff to representatives working directly with the public, and volunteers.

The appropriate level of recruitment and DBS check depends on the duties involved, the people the individual will have contact with and whether the role meets the relevant eligibility requirements.

Reference checking may be appropriate for those roles that require more experience or high responsibility and a social media check may be more appropriate for those acting as the face of the charity.

A charity shop employee who has no contact with vulnerable groups may have different DBS eligibility from a support worker working directly with vulnerable adults. The shop worker may have a basic DBS check compared to the higher enhanced level of those supporting the vulnerable.

Similarly, a representative who regularly visits schools or works with children may require a different level of screening from someone working solely in an office. It is likely an enhanced DBS check with barred list is required for activities involving schools.

The role, duties and level of contact should be assessed before deciding which checks are appropriate.

DBS Checks for Volunteers:

The DBS does not charge for eligible Standard and Enhanced DBS checks for volunteers, so there is a great saving for charities and volunteering roles.

However, the applicant must meet the DBS definition of a volunteer.

A Basic DBS check is subject to the DBS fee whether paid or volunteering. Basic DBS checks are the lowest cost of all the criminal record check types, giving organisations some assurances in the placement.

DDC charges an administration fee per application, with no minimum application volume and free account setup.

[View our DBS pricing]

DBS Checks for Faith Organisations:

Places of worship and faith organisations may involve people in a wide range of activities, including working with children, supporting vulnerable adults, providing pastoral care and transporting members of the community.

A DBS check may be appropriate depending on the role and the activities being undertaken. 

DDC’s Experience:

With extensive experience supporting charities, volunteers and faith organisations, DDC understands the screening requirements across these sectors. Our experienced team can help understand DBS and pre-employment screening, making the process simple, compliant and easy to manage.