Required checks for new school staff and volunteers

Find out which recruitment checks your school needs to do on staff members, contractors, agency staff and volunteers.

Last reviewed on 20 June 2023
School types: All · School phases: All
Ref: 3512
Contents
  1. Your board won't carry out checks itself
  2. Staff employed by the school
  3. Agency and third-party staff
  4. Contractors
  5. Volunteers
  6. Governors, members and trustees

Your board won't carry out checks itself

In practice, your school's admin staff will carry out these checks. But the governing board has responsibility for making sure they are carried out as part of your overall safeguarding duty.

Take a look at our list of questions to ask about safeguarding for more support with monitoring recruitment checks.

If you're unsure what these different types of recruitment checks are, look at our handy cheat sheet

Staff employed by the school

Verification of identity Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check (with barred list information for those who will be engaged in ‘regulated activity’) A separate barred list check if the individual will start work in regulated activity before the DBS certificate is available (unless you are a 16-19 academy or a special post-16 institution) Verification of mental and