Applying for public sector jobs with a criminal record

Having a criminal record does not rule you out of most public sector jobs. What matters is the level of check the job needs, whether your conviction or caution is spent or filtered, and how the employer judges it against the role. Some roles, such as those involving unsupervised work with children, are stricter than others.

What the check level decides

Public sector employers ask for one of three DBS checks, and each shows a different amount of your history.

Check	Fee (from 5 October 2026)	What it shows
Basic	£20.00	Unspent convictions only
Standard	£20.00	Spent and unspent convictions and cautions, subject to filtering
Enhanced	£41.00	Standard check plus relevant police information, and barred lists where the role requires it

A basic check is the type used for jobs with no special exemption, such as many office and facilities roles. Teaching, patient-facing NHS work and social care use enhanced checks. The full explanation is in DBS checks: basic, standard and enhanced.

Spent and unspent convictions

Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, many convictions become spent after a set period. Once spent, you generally do not need to mention them when an employer asks about your record. That rule has exceptions. For roles listed as exempt, which include teaching and most healthcare jobs, the employer is allowed to ask about spent convictions too, and you must answer honestly.

Whether a particular conviction is spent, and when, depends on the sentence you received and your age at the time. This varies enough that guessing is risky. Gov.uk has a page on telling an employer about a criminal record, and the charity Unlock and Nacro both run advice lines for people who are unsure.

Filtering

Even for standard and enhanced checks, some old and minor matters do not appear on the certificate. This is called filtering. Whether a conviction or caution is filtered depends on its age, the sentence, whether it was a custodial sentence, and whether it is on a list of specified offences that never filter, such as serious violent and sexual offences. If you have more than one conviction, filtering usually does not apply to them.

The DBS publishes a filtering guide that sets out the rules in full. You do not have to work this out yourself in advance. If the certificate comes back, it will show only what is not filtered, and the employer sees exactly the same document you do.

What to say on the application

Read the application form carefully. Some ask about unspent convictions at shortlisting stage, others only after a conditional offer, and many public employers separate the criminal record question from the form scorers, so those reading your answers do not see it. Where the form asks, answer truthfully and completely. A conviction you declare and explain is far less damaging than one the employer finds on a certificate after you left it out, because the omission itself can be treated as dishonesty and lead to an offer being withdrawn.

If you have something to disclose, a short factual statement works better than a long defence. Say what happened, when, and what has changed since. Keep it to the facts and avoid blaming others. A few sentences is usually enough, and the employer may invite you to talk it through.

How employers weigh a record

Employers carry out a risk assessment. They look at the nature of the offence, how long ago it was, your age then, your pattern since, and whether it is relevant to the duties. A theft conviction is looked at differently for a cashier role than for a gardener. A safeguarding concern is looked at very differently for a classroom job.

Public sector employers also sign up to policies on recruiting ex-offenders. Many councils and some NHS trusts run schemes aimed at people with convictions. Under Disability Confident and similar commitments, some are open about welcoming applicants with a record. This varies by employer, so look for a statement in the recruitment pack.

Where an offer is made, it is normally conditional on a satisfactory DBS check. See Conditional job offers for what can lead to an offer being withdrawn, and Safer recruitment in schools for how schools handle the process.

Barred lists and automatic bars

Some people are on the children’s or adults’ barred list. It is a criminal offence for a barred person to apply for work in regulated activity with that group. If you are on a barred list, you cannot take a teaching, social care or patient-facing role in that area, whatever the employer thinks of you.

Who can help

If you are not sure what must be disclosed, get advice before you apply. Unlock and Nacro both give free guidance, and a solicitor or your probation officer can also help. The DBS also answers questions about certificates, and you can dispute an error on a certificate through them.

Timescales matter if you are applying for a job with a start date, so ask the employer when they will send the DBS application. How long it takes is covered in How long does a DBS check take?.