On a regular basis we are asked to ensure that contractors bring their DBS checks with them. I am not sure if this is because LAs have said something to schools; somebody in school has been on a safeguarding course; or the school in question has reviewed its own safeguarding procedures. Often it is linked to schools not wanting to accompany contractors on site. In the latter case DBS has nothing to do with health and safety or site security. We have recently had to reiterate our position that if you give contractors access to school when there is no responsible person from school on site we can not be involved in any dispute which may arise with the contractor should an incident occur.
DBS clearances can only be obtained for people who carry out "regulated activities" which in most cases building contractors working on compliance or reactive maintenance are not carrying out such an activity.
To help schools with this issue we have produced the following additional guidance
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