As of 13 August 2026, AI can only partly check whether a DBS check is needed for a role.

What to actually do

1. Hand it to a person

   The route this page recommends

   Someone with a licence or accountable authority has to sign this before it counts.

2. Use a tool built for this

   Second choice

3. Do it yourself

   The distant third

   A chat interface, chat-fluent skill, and roughly 30 minutes until you can act on the result.

   How to actually do it

   1. Open the GOV.UK guidance on DBS checks and eligibility, and note the guidance relevant to the part of the UK where the role is based.
   2. Gather the role description, workplace setting, duties, contact with children or adults at risk, frequency of contact, supervision arrangements, access to homes or healthcare, and any professional-registration requirements.
   3. Remove names and other personal data, then paste the role facts into the prompt and run it in a chatbot.
   4. Ask the chatbot to link each conclusion to the relevant GOV.UK guidance and to list every missing fact that could change the result.
   5. Compare the answer and links with the current GOV.UK eligibility guidance, checking that the proposed level of check is supported by the actual duties rather than the job title.
   6. Send any case involving regulated activity, an exception, safeguarding uncertainty or a disputed interpretation to a DBS specialist or employment lawyer, then record the final decision and its reasoning in the recruitment file.

   Prompt

   Assess whether a DBS check may be needed for this UK role. Treat your answer as a preliminary research note, not a final legal decision and not professional advice. Use current GOV.UK guidance where available and link to the relevant pages. Do not invent facts, legal exceptions or eligibility rules. Separate the analysis into: role facts supplied, missing facts, likely relevance of a DBS check, the possible level of check only if the facts support it, questions that must be answered by the employer, and points requiring confirmation from a DBS or employment-law specialist. Explain which parts of your answer are uncertain. Do not ask for names, dates of birth, criminal-record information or other personal data.
   
   Role title: [ROLE TITLE]
   Employer and setting: [EMPLOYER AND SETTING]
   Main duties: [DUTIES]
   Who the worker may have contact with: [CHILDREN, ADULTS AT RISK, PATIENTS, OTHER GROUPS, OR NONE]
   How often and how directly that contact occurs: [CONTACT DETAILS]
   Supervision and line management: [SUPERVISION DETAILS]
   Any access to homes, healthcare, education, personal care, transport or financial services: [DETAILS]
   Any regulated activity or professional registration involved: [DETAILS]
   Location within the UK: [ENGLAND, WALES, SCOTLAND OR NORTHERN IRELAND]
   Organisation's current view: [CURRENT VIEW, IF ANY]
   
   End with a short checklist of what the employer should verify on GOV.UK and what should be referred to a DBS specialist or employment lawyer before advertising or appointing.

   Open it prefilled in ChatGPT or Claude, or copy it into Gemini, which takes no prefill link.