Shoplifting and DBS

[UndertheCedartree]

Hello,

I am just doing an enhanced DBS as my daughter is starting forest school and I will be staying with her to settle her in so will be around the other children.

A few years ago I had a mental breakdown and during a period when I was very unwell and on a lot of medication, I shoplifted. I was caught and taken to a room by a couple of men. I gave them everything I'd taken. I remember the police came. But I can't really remember exactly what happened. I know they spoke to me and then I left.

Now I'm filling in the form for the DBS and it asks if I have any convictionsand this includes a caution. I'm not sure if I was given a caution. Is there a way I can find out? I don't remember signing anything or getting any paperwork but I could have forgotten. I just don't want to give false information for the DBS.

I dont know the answer to your question but this isn’t an enhanced DBS check situation!

I agree with the pp that this isn't an enhanced DBS check situation, unless you will be volunteering with other children too on a regular basis. However, some placements do request them incorrectly and they slip through.
I would recommend that you are open ahead of time with the forest school leader. It's always better to explain beforehand than for them to get any surprises. Yes that may leave you open to issues, although not necessarily, however if something shows up you would have the same issues anyway.
Alternatively you could wait and see and then approach the leader once the certificate comes back. That then means you avoid issues if nothing shows, but you risk issues of non disclosure if it does.
I check DBS certs and I would always prefer people to be honest upfront and work through things, but I understand why people are hesitant when in your situation.

Would the police have a record? You could enquire, if they have no record of you ever receiving a DBS check, I wouldn't mention it.

It's in the past, you were unwell, so forget about it.

Well, I have been asked to get the enhanced DBS they said as I will be around the other children and don't really want to refuse.

I would have no problem speaking to them if I knew I definitely had a caution. But as I don’t know I feel a bit silly saying I don't know and of course I'd rather not have to explain it if I actually don't have one!

Keep quiet and hope for the best.

Arrests would probably show on an Enhanced but you weren't arrested so it should be all good. You cant get a caution without being arrested can you?

I think I'll have to phone the police and ask.

Go into a police station with ID and ask, you can't just call up you could be anyone

Assuming you are in England / Wales then no it would be very exceptional for you to have been given a formal police caution given that you weren't in a police station.

I'm glad you're checking with the police.

On the form it says if you don't disclose and something comes up they will cancel the check and keep the money.

I have no idea! Would I have been taken to the police station if I was arrested?

Ok, thanks.

They would read you that line if you were arrested "You are under arrest for suspicion of shoplifting, you do not have to say anything etc" and you would almost certainly be in cuffs.

Hopefully not then but I will check. I don't want to look dishonest.

I've just remembered that something about 'community resolution' was mentioned...I think. I'm not sure if that means anything. It's all so blurry! I'm mortified about it now but at the time I didn't really know what was going on.

There were definitely not cuffs but what they said to me exactly I don't know.

Believe me you would know if you were under arrest.

Are you being charged for the DBS? If you are there unpaid (as a volunteer) there should be no charge for the check - apart from
Possibly an admin fee for processing of between £5-12 if they use a bulk provider for their checks.

This sounds really inappropriate OP. You should not need a DBS to settle your child into a setting. You also shouldn’t be charged for it as a volunteer. I know you don’t want to rock the boat, but you shouldn’t be in this situation worrying about it!

The DBS have cracked down on inappropriate applications (eg applying for enhanced when it should be standard) & I’m surprised this organisation hasn’t been challenged on this.

anyway if it helps my sibling has a caution for squatting & it doesn’t show up on a DBS. When they first had one done quite soon after the offence (for working at a school) they told the head about it in advance in case it came up, the head was fine about it but it didn’t show anyway.

I have just started filling the online form in and stopped when I saw the bit about saying if you had a caution. So not got to payment yet.

Thank you. I was told to put on the DBS that I was a volunteer even though I'm not really, I'm just a parent. But there wasn't an option for that so I selected volunteer. They said I needed to show my passport for them to verify too.

Yes you will need to provide three forms of ID: passport, driving licence, birth certificate, marriage certificate, bank statement, utility bill or council tax statement are the most common ones.

There wouldn't be an option for parent as you wouldn't normally DBS check parents, so I expect volunteer is what they are claiming you are.

Reading the rest of your thread it does seem you most likely didn't get a caution or conviction, so contrary to my initial post it's probably better to wait until the certificate comes through and then have a conversation if anything comes up. It's not something that would concern enough to not allow you to attend as a parent so you should be fine either way. The certificate will come back to you so you will see the result first before them.

Just to clarify that you absolutely can get a caution on your record without being arrested for some offences, in situations where you have cooperated and attended a station for questioning.

I didn't attend a station so hopefully will be ok.

It sounds like you’ll be fine! Just clarifying the PP, is all.