Disclosure and Barring Service

Our current opening hours are 09:00 to 17:00, Monday to Friday.

The Disclosure and Barring Service webchat is available Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 17:00. The webchat is available to answer general customer queries.

If emailing us, please provide 5 pieces of information, this must include:
• Full name
• Address declared on the application form (including house number and postcode)
• Date of birth

And two of the below:

• DBS Application reference number
• National Insurance Number
• Position applied for
• Employer Name
• Place of Birth (town/city and country)
• DBS certificate reference number
• Passport Number
• Driving Licence number
• Previous address

In addition to the above, Registered Bodies will also need to provide their ‘Registered Body reference number’ and ‘Countersignatory reference number’ to confirm their identity.

You may be asked some security questions to verify your identity. All calls to the above number are recorded for record keeping, training and quality assurance.

We cannot guarantee the security of information until it is in our possession, and will not take responsibility for such information until we receive it.

Go to the DBS online tracking service to check on the progress of an application. Tracking an application is much quicker online. The link to this service is available at the top of this homepage.

Contact us if you think your DBS certificate is wrong. This can include incorrect personal details, incorrect conviction information or other discrepancies. If you receive a DBS certificate with a conviction that doesn't relate to you, you should also inform the person who requested that you complete the form as soon as possible.

The phone line for certificate disputes is open 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday only.

Please note: Advisers who answer calls to the sensitive applications line cannot answer queries that do not relate to sensitive applications.

Transgender applicants are protected in legislation and are not obliged to include details indicating a previous gender in their application form.

DBS has a process in place which allows any details indicating a previous gender to be checked without being disclosed on the completed certificate.

They are, however, required by law to provide all name details to DBS in their current and any previous identity. Deliberately withholding this information may be an attempt to prevent conviction information being revealed and is an offence.

If emailing, we cannot guarantee the security of information until it is in our possession, and will not take responsibility for such information until we receive it.

We cannot guarantee the security of information until it is in our possession, and will not take responsibility for such information until we receive it. For this reason we recommend submitting referrals via our secure online referral form, however if you are using a paper referral form we recommend using registered post.

If you wish to submit a new request under the Freedom of Information Act please contact the DBS.

Most requests are free of charge but you may need to pay a small amount for photocopies or postage. When you submit a request we'll let you know if you have to make a payment.

Addresses for service of legal documents. Service is accepted by post or by email.

If you are unhappy with a DBS service, please contact DBS complaints. To help us investigate your complaint, please complete the form available on the page linked above.

Complaint forms can be submitted to DBS using the email listed above.

Customers who have used Disclosure services to obtain a DBS certificate or have contacted DBS Customer Services for support can provide feedback on their experience by completing this 5-minute survey. The survey is available in English and Welsh.

Please note, this survey should not be used to submit a complaint about DBS services. If you would like to submit a complaint, please do so using the contact details in the 'complaints' section above.