Last updated: April 2026
Review date: April 2027
As a Company using the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) to help assess the suitability of candidates for positions of trust, we need to review disclosure information contained on individual records and must comply fully with the DBS Code of Practice. Amongst other things, this obliges us to have a written policy on the correct handling and safekeeping of disclosure Information.
As an organisation using the DBS to help assess the suitability of candidates for positions of trust, Paint Pots complies fully with the DBS Code of Practice regarding the correct handling, use, storage, retention and disposal of Disclosure Information.
Paint Pots also complies fully with its obligations under the Data Protection Act 1998 and other relevant legislation pertaining to the safe handling, use, storage, retention and disposal of disclosure Information and has a written policy on these matters, which is available to those who wish to see it on request.
Note: A DBS certificate is issued directly to the home address of an individual and remains his/her property. Paint Pots will not handle or store these. We will ask to review certificates and record the relevant information(see below). Additionally, Paint Pots requires all employees to maintain a subscription to the DBS update service and to allow Paint Pots Preschool & Nursery Ltd. to check the status of this on an ongoing basis. A permission form to check status will be requested and kept in the staff file.
The DBS update service is a subscription service that enables applicants to have their status maintained by the DBS on an ongoing basis. Paint Pots requires every employee to register for this service. The cost is currently:
£16 per annum and lasts for one year. If a direct debit is set up for annual repeat payments, the subscription will be automatically renewed. Advance notification of the intention to take payment will always be issued via email from the DBS.
Notification of any issues with the specified payment method e.g. expiry of a credit card, will be notified by email at the time payment is attempted to be taken by the DBS. When such an notification is received, it is imperative that action is taken immediately to update payment details on the DBS system, to enable the annual subscription payment to be taken, otherwise it will be cancelled and employees will need to make another full application to the DBS.
Update service application can be made at the time of the DBS application, by providing the DBS check application number on the update service application screen.
Alternatively, an application can be made on receipt of the DBS certificate, but this has to be completed within 19 days of the issue of the certificate.
The applicant is required to pay for the DBS application and for the update service subscription, as this is his/her own property. Paint Pots pays for the applications of managers and apprentices.
Once registered for the update service, from the employee’s point of view, he/she is able to take the DBS certificate from one job to the next.
Registration Process
Before an employee starts work at Paint Pots we have to check that they are a part of the DBS update service. If they are not, then we need to apply for a DBS check on their behalf.
Paint Pots uses a company called APCS to process our DBS applications online.
The Operations Manager will send the unique reference code and link to the service to the employee for them to register for their DBS. It is the responsibility of the manager to check the forms of identification brought by the employee for their DBS check and call the Operations manager to verify the ID from the online form.
The employee will be asked to make payment for the application on registration of the DBS. If he/she is not able to pay at this time, Paint Pots will do so and deduct payment from their first lot of wages.
Checking Existing DBS status