DBS checks for volunteers: eligibility, costs and how to apply
In short
Volunteers in England and Wales only need a DBS check if their role is eligible by law, usually because it involves children or adults who need care or support. Standard and enhanced checks are free for volunteers, but a basic check costs £20 (from 5 October 2026). Certificates have no official expiry, so organisations set their own re-check policy.
Volunteers in England and Wales need a DBS check only when their role is eligible for one by law, usually because it involves working with children or with adults who need care or support. For eligible roles, standard and enhanced DBS checks are free for volunteers. This guide explains which check a volunteer role can have, what it costs, how long it takes, how often to check again and how the rules differ in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Fees and rules in this guide were checked against GOV.UK on 3 November 2026.
What is a DBS check?
A DBS check is a criminal record check from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), which covers England and Wales. It helps you decide whether someone is suitable for a role. There are four levels of check, according to GOV.UK:
Basic: shows unspent convictions and conditional cautions.
Standard: shows spent and unspent convictions and cautions.
Enhanced: shows the same as a standard check, plus any information held by local police.
Enhanced with barred lists: shows the same as an enhanced check, plus whether the person is on the children’s or adults’ barred list.
A certificate shows what was on record on the day it was issued. It’s one part of safer recruitment, alongside references, interviews, training and supervision.
Do volunteers need a DBS check?
Not always. No law says every volunteer must have a DBS check. GOV.UK’s DBS eligibility guidance says the recruiting organisation decides whether a check is needed and at what level. The law only sets which roles are eligible:
Standard checks are only available for roles or activities listed in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.
Enhanced checks must also be covered by the Police Act 1997 or its Criminal Records Regulations.
Basic checks are available for any role, with no eligibility criteria.
Eligibility doesn’t make a check compulsory, and wanting extra reassurance doesn’t make a role eligible. GOV.UK is clear that an organisation breaks the law if it applies for a standard or enhanced check for a role that isn’t eligible for that level.
Which DBS check does a volunteer need?
The level depends on what the role involves, not on who the volunteer is. Start with GOV.UK’s tool to find out which DBS check you can get, which asks about the role and suggests the right level. It’s for organisations registered in England or Wales. DBS also publishes eligibility guidance for roles working with children, roles working with adults and roles that don’t focus on either.
Regulated activity and barred list checks
A barred list check is only available for roles in regulated activity: the work that people on a barred list must not do. With children, this includes teaching, training, instructing, caring for or supervising them often enough or overnight. With adults, it includes activities such as healthcare and personal care.
What changed on 1 September 2026
Until 1 September 2026, a volunteer who was supervised closely enough while working with children was usually not in regulated activity. That supervision exemption has now ended in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A volunteer who teaches, trains, instructs, cares for or supervises children on more than 3 days in any 30-day period, or once overnight between 2am and 6am, is now in regulated activity even if someone else supervises them. GOV.UK’s example is a weekly school reading volunteer, who is now eligible for an enhanced check with a children’s barred list check.
If you set a role’s check level because the volunteer was supervised, review it now. Our guide to DBS changes for volunteer managers covers this in more detail.
Are DBS checks free for volunteers?
Standard, enhanced and enhanced with barred lists checks are free for volunteers. Basic checks are not: GOV.UK’s guidance for volunteers says a basic check costs £20 for all applicants, including volunteers (the fee from 5 October 2026).
Who counts as a volunteer
DBS uses this definition: “A person engaged in an activity which involves spending time, unpaid (except for travel and other approved out-of-pocket expenses), doing something which aims to benefit some third party other than, or in addition to, a close relative.”
To get a free check, the applicant must not:
benefit financially from the position
receive any payment, except for travel and other approved out-of-pocket expenses
be on a work placement
be in a trainee position or on a course of study leading to a full-time role or qualification
be a paid foster carer or kinship carer, or a member of a foster or kinship care household
DBS fees for paid roles from 5 October 2026
If a role doesn’t meet the volunteer definition, the DBS fees from 5 October 2026 are:
Basic check: £20 (previously £21.50)
Standard check: £20 (previously £21.50)
Enhanced check: £41 (previously £49.50)
Update Service: £15 a year (previously £16)
Who can request a DBS check?
It depends on the level, according to GOV.UK’s DBS guidance for employers and voluntary organisations:
Basic checks: anyone aged 16 or over can apply for their own basic check online. An organisation can also request one through a responsible organisation, with the person’s consent.
Standard and enhanced checks: these go through a registered body. Organisations that submit more than 100 eligible applications a year can register with DBS. Smaller organisations use an umbrella body, a registered body that processes checks for other organisations.
DBS posts the certificate to the applicant, not to your organisation, so ask to see it. GOV.UK says employers must see the original certificate, and copies or photographs aren’t acceptable.
How to get a DBS check for a volunteer
1. Describe what the role involves
Write down the activities, who the volunteer works with, how often and where. Eligibility follows the activities, so a clear role description makes the decision easier.
2. Check eligibility and choose the level
Use GOV.UK’s tool and eligibility guidance. Record the level you chose for each role and why, especially in grey areas.
3. Apply through your registered or umbrella body
Make sure the application shows the role is voluntary, so the volunteer isn’t charged. The volunteer completes the application and you check their identity in the way your registered or umbrella body requires.
4. Review the certificate and decide
A certificate is information to weigh against the role, not a pass or fail. Many convictions become spent after a set period, and a record doesn’t automatically rule someone out. Our guide to volunteers with criminal records explains how to assess disclosures fairly.
5. Record your decision and plan the next check
Note your decision and the date the certificate was issued, then follow your own policy for when to check again.
How long does a DBS check take?
GOV.UK says basic checks take up to 14 days, and standard and enhanced checks usually take around 8 weeks. Times vary with the type of check, whether the details on the application are correct and which police forces are involved. Applications with errors are sent back, so check names, addresses and dates of birth before you submit.
Build the wait into onboarding. New volunteers can complete training and other steps while the check is processed, and start roles that need the check once it’s back.
How often should volunteers’ DBS checks be renewed?
A DBS check has no official expiry date. GOV.UK says it’s up to each organisation to decide when a new check is needed, using the date the certificate was issued. Some sectors have their own rules on regular checks.
Set a re-check rule for each role, write it into your volunteer policy and apply it consistently. Check again sooner if a volunteer moves into a role that needs a higher level of check, or if a role’s eligibility changes, as it did for many roles with children in September 2026.
What is the DBS Update Service?
The DBS Update Service keeps a standard or enhanced certificate up to date, so a volunteer may not need a new check for each new role. It’s free for volunteers and costs £15 a year for paid roles (from 5 October 2026).
The person must register within 30 days of the certificate being issued.
A subscription lasts one year.
With the person’s permission, an organisation that is legally entitled to that level of check can run a free online status check to see whether the certificate is still current.
Can a volunteer use a DBS check from another organisation?
Yes, if you decide it’s suitable. Accepting an existing certificate is your organisation’s decision. GOV.UK suggests checking that it’s the right level and covers the right workforce (children, adults or both) for your role, that the identity details match, and whether the record may have changed since it was issued. An Update Service status check helps with the last point.
Can 16 and 17 year olds have a DBS check?
Yes. Applicants must be 16 or over, so younger volunteers can’t be checked. For 16 and 17 year olds, assess the role in the same way as for adults. Work placements don’t meet the DBS definition of a volunteer, so those checks aren’t free. For more on younger volunteers, see how to get your youth volunteering programme ready.
How should you store DBS certificate information?
Treat certificate information as sensitive personal data. DBS’s guidance on handling DBS certificate information refers to the GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, and sets out these practices:
Use the information only for the purpose it was requested for.
Keep it securely, with access limited to people who need it for their duties.
Don’t keep it longer than necessary. The DBS code of practice says this is usually no longer than 6 months.
Don’t keep photocopies or other images of the certificate.
After you destroy it, you may keep a record of the date of issue, the person’s name, the type of check, the role, the certificate number and your decision.
DBS checks in Scotland and Northern Ireland
DBS covers England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own services, so use the one for the country where the volunteer role is based.
Scotland: Disclosure Scotland and the PVG scheme
Disclosure Scotland runs the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme. Since 1 April 2025, anyone doing a regulated role with children or protected adults, paid or voluntary, must be a PVG scheme member. The Scottish Government continues to provide free PVG membership to volunteers in qualifying voluntary organisations, and PVG membership moved to a five-year term from 1 April 2026.
Northern Ireland: AccessNI
AccessNI provides criminal record checks in Northern Ireland. Standard and enhanced checks are free for many volunteers, but AccessNI charges if the volunteer works directly for a statutory organisation, or for a non-profit delivering statutory services under contract or certain government-funded projects. The September 2026 change to regulated activity with children also applies in Northern Ireland.
Checklist for organisations
List every volunteer role and what it involves.
Check each role’s eligibility with GOV.UK’s tool and guidance, and record the level and your reasons.
Review roles with children where you relied on supervision before 1 September 2026.
Make sure volunteer applications are marked as voluntary, so they’re free.
See the original certificate and record your decision.
Store certificate information securely and destroy it when you no longer need it.
Set a re-check rule for each role and encourage volunteers to join the free Update Service.
Use Disclosure Scotland or AccessNI for roles in Scotland or Northern Ireland.
Managing volunteer DBS checks in Volunteero
When you check a lot of volunteers, tracking applications by email and spreadsheet gets hard. Volunteero’s background checks run automated DBS checks through our Verifile integration in England and Wales:
Map each role to the right DBS type once.
Add the check as a stage in that role’s onboarding journey, so it runs as part of onboarding.
The result comes back into Volunteero, and you can require staff sign-off when a check doesn’t come back clear.
A completed stage can award a qualification, so only volunteers with a valid check can join the missions and shifts that need one.
Staff can see where every volunteer is in onboarding and spot anyone who has been at a stage for a long time.
Related reading
DBS changes for volunteer managers: the end of the supervision exemption
Volunteers with criminal records: spent convictions, DBS checks and fair recruitment
Trustees’ responsibilities for volunteers: governance, risk and safeguarding
Getting started with Volunteero
Volunteero is volunteer management software for charities, nonprofits and events. Its background checks run DBS checks through Verifile in England and Wales as a stage in each role’s onboarding journey. Book a demo to see how it works.
Want to volunteer but don’t know where to start? Download our app for volunteering and find opportunities near you.
Written by
Co-founder and CEO
Ashley Staines is the co-founder and CEO of Volunteero. After seven years in investment banking, he started it to make volunteering easier to organise.
