Anyone working in education (from school leaders to caretakers) will need a DBS and Smile teachers and teaching assistants are no exception. If you don’t already have one or it’s out of date, don’t worry, we’ll put one in to process for you when you register with us. 

We encourage all of our school and children’s residential staff to add their DBS to the Update Service as soon as it arrives as you only have 30 days after your certificate issue date to register. But why should you register with the Update Service? What are the advantages? Here are the three biggest reasons.

It saves you money

Applying for a new DBS will cost you £44. Officially, a DBS check has no expiry date. The regularity of DBS checks is determined by the employer, which in this case is us! 

We require all of our teaching and supply staff to have a new DBS every year. This means that if your DBS isn’t on the Update Service, you’ll have to fork out £44 (or more, as in most cases the fee increases a little each year) each year, with each agency you join or new role you take on. In comparison joining the Update Service costs you just £13 a year. So, by joining the Update Service you can save at least £31 per year! 

It saves you time

Following on from the above, when joining the subscription service, you can select ‘auto-renew’ when paying, which means that your DBS will automatically update every year -  making the process simple and stress-free. 

Plus, having your DBS on the Update Service means that it is always up-to-date so, you’ll no longer have to wait around for a new DBS to come back (which can sometimes take a while) giving you an edge when applying for new roles. 

It gives you flexibility 

Once your DBS is on the Update Service it can be checked by any employer or agency (with our consent, of course) and taken from role to role. This then gives you the option to work with multiple teaching agencies without the need to apply for a new DBS with each agency. 

However, make sure you keep your original paper copy DBS safe even if you’ve added it to the Update Service, as it you lose it, we’ll have to put another one into process for you. The reason? Most schools will still request to see the original copy and your DBS along with some photo ID on your arrival. 

If you would like to know more about registering with us take a look at our blogs. Alternatively, if you would like to speak to someone about the Disclosure and Barring Service or about the Update Service, get in touch.