All volunteers who could be alone with a child (FF, HF and Approved RF) must complete a Criminal Records Check to ensure, as far as is possible, that the volunteer is suitable to work with children and families. Anyone living in a host home over the age of 18 in England and Wales (DBS) and 16 in NI (Access NI) and Scotland (PVG) will need a disclosure check.
- The automatic volunteer application confirmation email includes the disclosure link.
- All CVMs should receive the regionally appropriate information as part of their induction to include any relevant application codes or instructions that may vary across areas. Access NI and PVG Info leaflets for volunteers can be found on SharePoint.
- The CVM needs to send an email to the volunteer with the disclosure instructions/guidelines for the process. The email should request that they complete the online section of the disclosure using the relevant link.
- Outstanding disclosure check applications should be followed up weekly until the volunteer has applied and the CVM has verified their ID.
- Once the volunteer has completed the online application the CVM must meet with the volunteer to obtain the information from three separate and appropriate forms of ID (using access site guidelines). The CVM needs to request for a current passport and driving licence as the primary ID documents if the volunteer has one. Often, the Volunteer Assessment or Module 2 training is the best context to ask the volunteer to bring their ID.
- The CVM must check the address and DOB against the ID gathered and add the data to the disclosure approval site. Ideally, this step should be completed there and then, however if the ID is held as a photo to be added to the disclosure site later, it must be permanently deleted as soon as completed on the disclosure portal.
- The CVM must then inform the Lead Recruiter that the process is complete, asking them to sanction the Section Y. The CVM will need to provide the lead recruiter with the volunteer’s name.