Frequently asked questions

Matrix Security Watchdog is a leading provider of employment screening services across the UK, EMEA and internationally. Ofsted has contracted Matrix Security Watchdog to carry out the DBS application part of the registration process.

It was previously one of three suppliers contracted by the Department for Education to carry out subsidised DBS checks on staff working in childcare settings, so has a lot of experience in the sector.

An enhanced DBS check compares an applicant’s criminal record against the Police National Computer (PNC) for spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings. It also includes any information held locally by police forces that is considered relevant to the child workforce and the post applied for. This information is disclosed at the discretion of a Chief Police Officer.

Ofsted is legally required to carry out DBS checks on particular individuals working with children in regulated childcare and social care provision.

Applicants pay the full cost of a DBS check, including an administration charge. The total depends on how you apply and how you have your ID checked. Choose one option from each of sections 1, 2 and 3 in the table below.

A typical applicant who applies online and has their ID checked by a responsible person pays £49.59 (£41.00 + £6.80 + £1.30 + £0.49).

* Applicants who meet the definition of a volunteer do not pay the DBS enhanced disclosure fee. See the volunteer questions below.

Applicants who cannot provide enough Group 1 ID documents will need an additional external verification check. This costs an extra £4.80.

If you meet the definition of a volunteer set out below, your DBS application will not incur the £41.00 DBS fee. You will still pay the Matrix Security Watchdog administration fee, which depends on how you apply and how you have your ID checked.

A typical volunteer who applies online and has their ID checked by a responsible person pays £8.59 (£6.80 + £1.30 + £0.49).

To be considered a volunteer and be eligible for a free DBS check, you must be volunteering to do the work and not receive payment or reward for the role. If you receive, or expect to receive, any of the following as part of the role, you are not a volunteer and must pay the full fee:

• pay such as a wage, salary or other monetary payment (excluding out-of-pocket expenses)
• a benefit of some kind, including discounted childcare for your own child at the childcare provision
• credit towards a qualification, or working at the setting as part of a placement

You can read the DBS position on volunteers.

If you are applying to Ofsted for any of the following roles, you will not be eligible to be considered as a volunteer:

• Childminder
• Living at childminding premises
• Sole proprietor
• Registered manager
• Lives and works with childminder
• Home-childcarer (nanny)
• Assistant working at childminding premises

Marking your application as a volunteer incorrectly will lead to your DBS application being withdrawn. Any fee already paid is forfeited and you will need to re-apply, which means paying another administration fee and delays your application.

It is a criminal offence to knowingly make a false statement when applying for a DBS check. Matrix Security Watchdog and Ofsted closely scrutinise every DBS application before the DBS processes it. If an applicant falsely applies as a volunteer, the full application fee will be recovered, including any further administration costs. This may delay or adversely affect an application with Ofsted.

For a DBS check, you are not considered a volunteer if you have more than one role within an organisation and are paid for either of them. For example, a paid nursery worker may also volunteer on the committee that has overall legal responsibility for the setting. In that case they are not entitled to a discounted DBS check.

No. As a household member at childminding or childcare on domestic premises, you are not working for the benefit of others, so you do not meet the definition of a volunteer. Ofsted is legally required to check everyone living on childcare premises.

No. Although some assistants are not paid directly, they contribute to the childminding service. This lets the childminder offer an enhanced service, for example caring for more children or offering more flexible care. Because there is a monetary or reputational benefit to the childminder, an assistant is not entitled to a discounted DBS check.

Guidance on which Security Watchdog Organisation Reference you need is on Step Two.

Yes. You must choose someone, in line with our guidance, who can verify your ID and complete the ID verification form.

If you are struggling to find someone suitable, we also offer a Post Office checking service. This costs more, because the Post Office charges its own fee for the service.

Once the DBS has received your application, you should receive your enhanced certificate in the post within six weeks. This is an indicative timescale. If you have not received your certificate within six weeks, please contact the DBS on 03000 200 190 and select option 2.

If you have not already done so, register for the DBS Update Service when you receive your enhanced disclosure.

Depending on the outcome of the DBS check, Ofsted may contact you and ask for the original enhanced certificate. Do not send your original certificate to Ofsted unless you have been specifically asked to.

Ofsted strongly recommends that you sign up for the DBS Update Service, which costs £15 a year and is free for volunteers.

The Update Service keeps your DBS certificate up to date, so you can take it with you from role to role within the same workforce. This means you may not need a new DBS check every time you apply for a job or change role. With your consent, an employer can go online and carry out a free, instant check to see whether the information on your DBS certificate is still current.

Register on GOV.UK at www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service.

Registration lasts for one year and costs £15 a year, payable by debit or credit card only. There is no charge if you are a volunteer.

You must register for the Update Service within 30 days of the issue date on your DBS certificate.

Depending on the type of DBS check, the status will change if:

• any new convictions, cautions, reprimands or warnings are recorded
• there is any amendment or change to a current conviction, caution, warning or reprimand
• the individual is barred from the list or lists checked on the enhanced certificate