St John’s Hospice, Lancaster Policies, Protocols, Guidelines & Procedures

  1. As an organisation using the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checking service to assess applicants’ suitability for positions of trust, St John’s Hospice complies fully with the Code of Practice and undertakes to treat all applicants for positions fairly. It undertakes not to discriminate unfairly against any subject of a DBS check on the basis of a conviction or other information revealed.
  2. St. John’s Hospice is committed to the fair treatment of its staff (paid or unpaid), potential staff or users of its services, regardless of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, responsibilities for dependants, age, physical/mental disability or offending background.
  3. We actively promote equality of opportunity for all with the right mix of talent, skills and potential and welcome applications from a wide range of candidates, including those with criminal records. We select all candidates for interview based on their skills, qualifications and experience.
  4. Unless the nature of the position allows St John’s Hospice to ask questions about your entire criminal record, we only ask about ‘unspent’ convictions as defined in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.
  5. A DBS check is only requested where a risk assessment has indicated that one is both proportionate and relevant to the position concerned.
  6. All positions (paid or unpaid) within St John’s Hospice or St John’s Hospice Charity Shops Ltd with direct patient contact; access to patients in the course of their normal duties or responsible for supervising those under the age of 18 or/and with disabilities will require applicants to declare all convictions both spent and unspent as defined in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and a DBS check will be required.
  7. For those positions where a DBS check is required, all application forms, job adverts and recruitment documentation will contain a statement that a DBS check will be requested in the event of the individual being offered the position.
  8. Where a DBS check is to form part of the recruitment process, we encourage all applicants called for interview to provide details of their criminal record at an early stage in the application process. We request that this information is included in the relevant section of St John’s Hospice Application Form, which is only seen by those who need to see it as part of the recruitment process.
  9. We ensure that all those in St John’s Hospice who are involved in the recruitment process have been suitably trained to identify and assess the relevance and circumstances of offences. We also ensure that they have received appropriate guidance and training in the relevant legislation relating to the employment of ex-offenders, e.g. Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.
  10. At interview, or in a separate discussion, we ensure that an open and measured discussion takes place on the subject of any offences or other matter that might be relevant to the position. Failure to reveal information that is directly relevant to the position sought could lead to withdrawal of an offer of employment.
  11. We make every subject of a DBS check aware of the existence of the Code of Practice and make a copy available on request.
  12. We undertake to discuss any matter revealed in a DBS check with the person seeking the position before withdrawing a conditional offer of employment.

Disclosure & Barring Service Policy