Guidance

Disclosure and barring service: privacy notice

Updated 2 December 2024

1. About this service

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) provides this service to enable a criminal records check to be carried out on potential and approved driving instructors and prospective driving examiners. DVSA is an executive agency of the Department for Transport (DfT).

We carry out criminal records checks on potential and approved driving instructors and prospective driving examiners to ensure that they are “fit and proper” to carry out driving lessons or driving tests.

This service lets you provide the necessary data to carry out the check and for us to assess whether you’re fit and proper to become a driving instructor or driving examiner or continue as a driving instructor.

Where you do not provide the necessary data, the criminal records check cannot be carried out and you’ll not be allowed to become a driving examiner or instructor or continue as a driving instructor where you’re already registered.

The data controller for DVSA is DfT – a data controller determines the reasons and how personal data is processed. For more information, see the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) Data Protection Public Register. DfT’s registration number is Z7122992.

We use an external company called First Advantage (formerly called GBG) to carry out the enhanced check for potential and approved driving instructors and prospective driving examiners.

2. What data we need

The personal data we collect from you on the online disclosures portal to carry out the check will include:

• title
• name (including any maiden names or previous names)
• current and former addresses for the last five years, including postcode
• gender
• date and place of birth
• nationality
• status and position – potential or approved driving instructor, or prospective driving examiner
• name of employer and workforce you’ve applied to work for
• personal reference number (where you’re currently an approved driving instructor)
• driving licence number
• ID documents, such as driving licence, passport, birth certificate or certain utility bills

Your personal data will then be shared with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) to carry out the check. The personal data created about you as part of this check will include:

• status of disclosure
• criminal records check
• confirmation that an enhanced disclosure and barring check was carried out
• date criminal records check complete and certificate issued
• outcome of check – content or no content
• police intelligence (if relevant)
• whether on DBS or children’s barred list
• DBS certificate

Where a certificate identifies content and you provide it to us, the personal data we collect from you will include:

• spent and unspent convictions – including date of conviction, details of the court you attended, details of offence committed and date of offence
• reprimands and warnings

The lawful basis for processing this data is legal obligation.

Our statutory powers are set out in sections 125 onwards of the Road Traffic Act 1988 with fit and proper criteria set out in section 125 (3) of the Road Traffic Act 1988.

3. Why we need it

We need the personal data we collect from you to:

• confirm you are eligible for an enhanced criminal records check to be carried out
• arrange for an enhanced criminal records check to be carried out
• track your criminal records check
• ask you to provide your criminal records certificate (where content has been identified)
• assess whether you are “fit and proper” to become a driving examiner or instructor, or to continue as a driving instructor
• add your criminal records reference number and the date the check was carried out to our system
• remove you from the driving instructor register if a check has been carried out which identifies content and we consider you to not be “fit and proper”

4. What we do with it

We collect, use, and store the data you give us for the reasons set out in this policy.

First Advantage will submit the information to the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), so they can carry out the check. You can read the privacy notice for First Advantage and privacy notices for DBS online.

We will not:

• sell or rent your data to third parties
• share your data with third parties for marketing purposes

We will share your data if required to do so by law – for example, by court order, or to prevent fraud or other crime.

5. How long we keep your data

We’ll only keep your personal data for as long as it is needed for the reasons set out in this policy or as long as is required by law. We keep your data in line with the DBS Code of Practice.

We will hold your:

• criminal records reference number and the date in which your criminal records check was completed either until a new check is carried out or for 10 years after date of last activity on our Integrated Register of Driver Trainers system
• criminal records certificate (where provided by you) for up to 6 months

We do not copy content from your disclosure to our systems.

First Advantage will hold your:

• name, date and place of birth, address and postcode, DBS certificate number and issue date, the workforce you applied for, a record that you had an enhanced check, and that the children’s barred list was checked for 37 months
• identity documents for 6 months after the check has been completed
• other personal data about you for up to 6 months

6. Where it might go

Our IT infrastructure and technology has been checked to make sure it’s safe and secure.

First Advantage hold your data within Microsoft Azure cloud services within the UK.

7. Protecting your data and your rights

The DVSA personal information charter sets out what steps are taken to protect your data, and the rights you have over your data.

8. Automated decision making and profiling

Your data is not subject to automated decision making or profiling as defined in data protection legislation.

9. Changes to this notice

We may change this privacy notice at our discretion at any time.

When we change this notice, the date on the page will be updated. Any changes to this privacy notice will be applied to you and your data as of the revision date.

We encourage you to periodically review this privacy notice to be informed about how your data is protected.

10. How to contact us

If you have any questions about anything in this document or if you consider that your personal data has been misused or mishandled, you can contact the DVSA data protection manager.

DVSA data protection manager

Data Protection Manager
DVSA
1 Unity Square
Nottingham
NG2 1AY

Email information.handling@dvsa.gov.uk

Contact DVSA customer services if you have a query that is not about how your personal data is used.

You may also make a complaint to the Information Commissioner, who is an independent regulator.