Introduction
We've compiled a list of the most frequently asked questions about the DBS process. Click on the links below to find out more.
If you have any questions that have not been covered here, please don't hesitate to get in touch with the DBS team at dbsapply@cumbria.ac.uk
I already have a DBS Check, do I need to do a new one?
We do not accept DBS Certificates processed by another organisation unless they meet the following crietria:
- The DBS Certificate must be registered with the DBS Update Service as part of a ‘live’ and current subscription.
- The DBS Certificate must be in your full current legal name, and show all previous names in the ‘other names’ section of the certificate.
- You must be in possession of the physical original DBS Certificate.
- The DBS Certificate must be an exact match to the type and level required for your course.
If your existing DBS check meets our requirements. This is not automatic and there is action needed by you. For full details, please see our Update Service page.
I have not yet done my online DBS application: what do I need to do?
You must complete your online DBS application without further delay. You will need your log-in email, this will have been emailed to you from an address ending ‘…@cumbria.disclosures.co.uk’ (the email may have gone into your spam/junk folder). Please ensure you access the online DBS application using a computer/laptop.
If you are not sure what your login details are, please contact the DBS Team.
Please Note: Anyone who has not completed this stage of the process and been to have their ID checked by 4 weeks after registration may have to leave the course.
When you initiate your DBS application online, you will be asked a series of questions which will determine if you can complete a Digital ID check for both your DBS and Right to Work ID. You will need to have a smartphone with you in order to complete the Digital ID check.
Please see Providing ID Documents for more information.
I’ve completed a Digital ID check as part of my DBS application, do I need to do anything else?
If your Digital ID has been issued you will need to log back into your DBS application portal and then share the Digital ID result with the DBS application. Once you have done this, you will need to complete the remainder of the online DBS application form.
- If you have failed to complete the Digital Right to Work check you will be made aware of this in the DBS application, and we will need to carry out a manual Right to Work check before we can submit your DBS application.
- If you have completed a Digital DBS and Right to Work ID check and submitted your online DBS application, your DBS application will be submitted to the DBS for processing.
Please Note: To complete your registration on course, we must see your original Right to Work ID document(s) in-person. Please ensure you bring your original ID with you to your registration session. Your registration status will be affected by any outstanding admissions conditions, and this will prevent the release of your student loan.
What happens after this?
We send your application electronically to the DBS in Liverpool for processing. This can take anything from a few days to several months.
The process is not complete until you have been issued a DBS certificate. This will be posted by the DBS to the address you used as your current address in the DBS application, it does not come from the University. Please look out for your DBS Certificate arriving in the post.
I am still waiting for my DBS certificate: is my place on course at risk?
Your place on a course is only at risk if you have not completed, submitted and paid for (if applicable to you) your DBS application. If this is with the DBS and is being processed (i.e. you have done everything you need to do), there is no threat to your place on course.
For students on Health/Social Work courses will not be allowed to go on placement if your DBS certificate has not been issued. You should speak to your tutor in this instance.
For students on Teacher Training courses, it is at the discretion of the school Head Teacher whether or not you can start placement before your DBS result is issued.
I am still waiting for my DBS certificate: can I check its progress?
You can log back in to view the progress of your application on our DBS application site using the username given in your original log-in email and the password you created on first activating your account.
You can also track your application online using the DBS’s Tracking Service. We can’t do anything to ‘speed up’ DBS applications until your application has been with the DBS for approximately 9 weeks. At this point you can ‘escalate’ it online yourself on the Tracking Service website. You will see a button ‘Click here to submit Escalation request’ if your application reaches this point. If you do this please let us know by email so that we make a record and follow-up accordingly.
Do I need to show the University my copy of the DBS certificate?
No. We receive electronic notification of your DBS result, unless you have a criminal record, in which case you need to provide us with your original DBS certificate.
In addition, if you have declared offences to us, or if your DBS Disclosure shows offences or information from the police, there is a clearance process that has to be followed that is not instantaneous, so it may take some time for your situation to be finalised.
I have recently moved/about to move house: what will happen to my certificate?
The DBS certificate is sent to the address you entered on your DBS application. The DBS can no longer amend an applicant’s personal information therefore you will be unable to change the address on your DBS application to your new address.
As some DBS applications are completed within a few days, we would still strongly advise you to set-up a mail redirection service by Royal Mail for a period of time. You can do this online here.
Please note that, if you do not put in place redirection of your mail, neither the DBS nor the University can be responsible for any later difficulties you may encounter if you do not have your DBS certificate due to moving house.
My certificate has not arrived in the post: what can I do?
If your DBS certificate has genuinely been lost in the post the DBS may issue you a 'reprint', within a certain timescale (3 months from the date of issue of the certificate). However, this will only be sent to the address you have put as current on your DBS application form, so it may not help you if you have moved house.
If you have moved house since submitting the DBS application, you must set-up a mail redirection via Royal Mail before requesting a DBS certificate reprint. Please bear in mind that mail redirection does not take effect instantly: you must allow at least 5 working days’ notice for this, so you need this to be in place before you request your certificate reprint.
The DBS will not issue a reprint for lost or accidentally destroyed certificates.
You can find more information about reprints in the DBS’s reprint guide. If you want to request a reprint, please complete the DBS’s reprint form available via this link, and email it to their Reprints Team as instructed in their reprint guide. You will need to contact the University’s DBS Team first to request certain pieces of information which the form requires.
Once we are more than 3 months (93 days) from the date the DBS certificate was issued, you can not get a reprint under any circumstances.
Can I get a copy of my DBS certificate from you or from the DBS if I lose it?
No - this is a common misunderstanding. The DBS will not issue copies, and nor can the University.
- Your DBS certificate is an important document, and you must look after it.
- To get another DBS certificate, you would have to apply again from the very beginning of the process, and pay the DBS fee (whatever that is at the time). This process can take some considerable time and you should let us know as soon as possible if you require a new DBS Check.
- The University can, if necessary, confirm your DBS details to a placement by email. This process should be automatic as part of the communications sent by our Placements Team to your placement setting. If a placement has requested confirmation of your DBS check details, please email the DBS Team from your student account giving your student number; the name of the placement setting; and the contact details (name & work email address) of the relevant person at the placement.
For Teacher Training students: Schools and Colleges are legally entitled to, and can insist to, see a student’s DBS Certificate if they wish to do so. You will need to be prepared to present your DBS Certificate on request. If you are unwilling or unable to do so the School or College is legally permitted to turn you away without further reason.
If you have lost your DBS Certificate, you will be required to complete a new DBS Check to replace this. Please email the DBS Team if this applies to you.
Do I need to bring my DBS certificate to university?
Yes. Your DBS Certificate relates to your university course, and you therefore need it with you at university. Placements may ask to see it, or ask for its reference number, and so you need it with you. However, please do look after it carefully and keep it in a safe place.
Do not let a placement keep your DBS certificate. This is your property and they do not have a right to keep it.
How long does my DBS certificate remain valid for?
DBS certificates do not have any formal period of validity and do not expire. As a student, yours will cover you for the duration of your course unless you intercalate for more than 6 months or have to do a deferred or resit placement after a greater than 6-month break in study.
In these events, you would have to apply and pay for a new DBS Certificate (via Programme Administration - PAd) before you return to course.
If you are involved in any incidents of a criminal nature or that call into question your Fitness to Practise/Teach whilst on course, the University reserves the right to ask you to apply and pay for a new DBS certificate.