Social Work and Community Studies - Safeguarding checks
When applying to some of our courses, you may be required to complete some safeguarding checks prior to your enrolment.
Which courses require a safeguarding check?
You will be asked to complete safeguarding checks if you are applying to the following courses:
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BA Early Childhood Studies
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BA Working with Children, Young People and Families
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BA Youth Work and Communities
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BA Social Work
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MA Social Work
For detailed guidance on the checks that will be completed, select your course from the dropdown below.
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BA Early Childhood Studies
Disclosure Barring Service (DBS)
In 2012, the Criminal Records Bureau and the Independent Safeguarding Authority merged and became what is now known as the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
If you have selected Birmingham City University as your firm choice, you will receive an email inviting you to complete an online DBS application form. This will be sent from our external provider, Know Your People, closer to the start date of your course. This email will be sent from noreply@knowyourpeople.co.uk
Know Your People will provide the University with confirmation that your DBS certificate is complete. You do not need to send a copy of your certificate to the University.
Overseas Disclosure Barring Service
If you have lived outside of the UK for six months or more in the past five years, we will need to see a criminal record check from the country you were living in. You can apply for your criminal overseas check through our external provider, Know Your People, by contacting our Admissions Team who will provide you with the relevant information via your BCU Portal.
Once your criminal record check has been completed, please send your form to admissions@bcu.ac.uk and the Admissions Team will send this to Know Your People on your behalf.
If you already have a criminal record check from the country you were living in, you do not need to apply for one through our online provider. Please just send a copy of your certificate, ensuring it is translated into English where applicable, to admissions@bcu.ac.uk
Further information on your DBS can be found here.
Occupational Health Form
Birmingham City University requires an Occupational Health Form to be completed prior to your enrolment. This is to ensure that within your first year of study, you can attend your placement and maximise your learning experience.
You will receive a link from the Admissions Team closer to your start date to complete your Occupational Health Form. You will also be able to access the link from your BCU Portal. The Occupational Health checks are completed by our provider, OH Works, who will review and work with the University to inform us directly if you have passed your assessment. Birmingham City University will not hold any information disclosed in the Occupational Health Form you have submitted with OH Works.
Please note; if you are a Conductive Education applicant, you will be contacted by the National Institute of Conductive Education (NICE) to complete your Occupational Health Form.
To be successful, you must be both 'cleared for placement' and 'cleared for enrolment'. OH Works will communicate this directly to Birmingham City University. Please do not worry if you have submitted your Occupational Health Form and have not heard back yet, as the University will contact OH Works if there is any element outstanding.
Prohibition Check
Applicants who are undertaking placements at an educational institution are required to have a prohibition check against the Department for Education portal. This is done internally by Birmingham City University staff and will be completed up to 4 weeks prior to your enrolment. This check is to ensure that you are not prohibited from working with children. You are not required to provide or update anything for this check to be completed.
This check will look at prohibitions, sanctions and restrictions that might prevent an applicant from taking part in certain activities or working in specific positions.
The prohibition list will identify the following:
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Teachers who have failed induction or probation
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General Teaching Council for England (GTCE) sanctions
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Teachers and others prohibited from the profession
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Teachers sanctioned in other EEA member states
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Section 128 barring directions(prohibits or restricts a person from taking part in the management of a school)
Further guidance on probation checks can be found here.
If you are found to be on the database, the Head of College and Student Governance may invite you to attend a panel interview to discuss the disclosure.
BA Working with Children, Young People and Families
Disclosure Barring Service (DBS)
In 2012, the Criminal Records Bureau and the Independent Safeguarding Authority merged and became what is now known as the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
If you have selected Birmingham City University as your firm choice, you will receive an email inviting you to complete an online DBS application form. This will be sent from our external provider, Know Your People, closer to the start date of your course. This email will be sent from noreply@knowyourpeople.co.uk
Know Your People will provide the University with confirmation that your DBS certificate is complete. You do not need to send a copy of your certificate to the University.
Overseas Disclosure Barring Service
If you have lived outside of the UK for six months or more in the past five years, we will need to see a criminal record check from the country you were living in. You can apply for your criminal overseas check through our external provider, Know Your People, by contacting our Admissions Team who will provide you with the relevant information via your BCU Portal.
Once your criminal record check has been completed, please send your form to admissions@bcu.ac.uk and the Admissions Team will send this to Know Your People on your behalf.
If you already have a criminal record check from the country you were living in, you do not need to apply for one through our online provider. Please just send a copy of your certificate, ensuring it is translated into English where applicable, to admissions@bcu.ac.uk
Further information on your DBS can be found here.
Occupational Health Form
Birmingham City University requires an Occupational Health Form to be completed prior to your enrolment. This is to ensure that within your first year of study, you can attend your placement and maximise your learning experience.
You will receive a link from the Admissions Team closer to your start date to complete your Occupational Health Form. You will also be able to access the link from your BCU Portal. The Occupational Health checks are completed by our provider, OH Works, who will review and work with the University to inform us directly if you have passed your assessment. Birmingham City University will not hold any information disclosed in the Occupational Health Form you have submitted with OH Works.
Please note; if you are a Conductive Education applicant, you will be contacted by the National Institute of Conductive Education (NICE) to complete your Occupational Health Form.
To be successful, you must be both 'cleared for placement' and 'cleared for enrolment'. OH Works will communicate this directly to Birmingham City University. Please do not worry if you have submitted your Occupational Health Form and have not heard back yet, as the University will contact OH Works if there is any element outstanding.
BA Youth Work and Communities
Disclosure Barring Service (DBS)
In 2012, the Criminal Records Bureau and the Independent Safeguarding Authority merged and became what is now known as the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
If you have selected Birmingham City University as your firm choice, you will receive an email inviting you to complete an online DBS application form. This will be sent from our external provider, Know Your People, closer to the start date of your course. This email will be sent from noreply@knowyourpeople.co.uk
Know Your People will provide the University with confirmation that your DBS certificate is complete. You do not need to send a copy of your certificate to the University.
Overseas Disclosure Barring Service
If you have lived outside of the UK for six months or more in the past five years, we will need to see a criminal record check from the country you were living in. You can apply for your criminal overseas check through our external provider, Know Your People, by contacting our Admissions Team who will provide you with the relevant information via your BCU Portal.
Once your criminal record check has been completed, please send your form to admissions@bcu.ac.uk and the Admissions Team will send this to Know Your People on your behalf.
If you already have a criminal record check from the country you were living in, you do not need to apply for one through our online provider. Please just send a copy of your certificate, ensuring it is translated into English where applicable, to admissions@bcu.ac.uk
Further information on your DBS can be found here.
BA Social Work
Disclosure Barring Service (DBS)
In 2012, the Criminal Records Bureau and the Independent Safeguarding Authority merged and became what is now known as the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
If you have selected Birmingham City University as your firm choice, you will receive an email inviting you to complete an online DBS application form. This will be sent from our external provider, Know Your People, closer to the start date of your course. This email will be sent from noreply@knowyourpeople.co.uk
Know Your People will provide the University with confirmation that your DBS certificate is complete. You do not need to send a copy of your certificate to the University.
Overseas Disclosure Barring Service
If you have lived outside of the UK for six months or more in the past five years, we will need to see a criminal record check from the country you were living in. You can apply for your criminal overseas check through our external provider, Know Your People, by contacting our Admissions Team who will provide you with the relevant information via your BCU Portal.
Once your criminal record check has been completed, please send your form to admissions@bcu.ac.uk and the Admissions Team will send this to Know Your People on your behalf.
If you already have a criminal record check from the country you were living in, you do not need to apply for one through our online provider. Please just send a copy of your certificate, ensuring it is translated into English where applicable, to admissions@bcu.ac.uk
Further information on your DBS can be found here.
Occupational Health Form
Birmingham City University requires an Occupational Health Form to be completed prior to your enrolment. This is to ensure that within your first year of study, you can attend your placement and maximise your learning experience.
You will receive a link from the Admissions Team closer to your start date to complete your Occupational Health Form. You will also be able to access the link from your BCU Portal. The Occupational Health checks are completed by our provider, OH Works, who will review and work with the University to inform us directly if you have passed your assessment. Birmingham City University will not hold any information disclosed in the Occupational Health Form you have submitted with OH Works.
Please note; if you are a Conductive Education applicant, you will be contacted by the National Institute of Conductive Education (NICE) to complete your Occupational Health Form.
To be successful, you must be both 'cleared for placement' and 'cleared for enrolment'. OH Works will communicate this directly to Birmingham City University. Please do not worry if you have submitted your Occupational Health Form and have not heard back yet, as the University will contact OH Works if there is any element outstanding.
Social Work Declaration
To meet the requirements of the Social Work programme, we require our applicants to be registered with Social Work England and, once registered, to be able to be practise as a Social Worker. To do this, we require our applicants to complete and disclose information under the Social Declaration which can be found in your online BCU Portal.
Disclosing information against the Social Work declaration allows transparency between you and your course tutors which can be discussed at the point of your application, prior to your DBS being issued.
Find out more about Social Work England’s professional standards.
MA Social Work
Disclosure Barring Service (DBS)
In 2012, the Criminal Records Bureau and the Independent Safeguarding Authority merged and became what is now known as the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
If you have selected Birmingham City University as your firm choice, you will receive an email inviting you to complete an online DBS application form. This will be sent from our external provider, Know Your People, closer to the start date of your course. This email will be sent from noreply@knowyourpeople.co.uk
Know Your People will provide the University with confirmation that your DBS certificate is complete. You do not need to send a copy of your certificate to the University.
Overseas Disclosure Barring Service
If you have lived outside of the UK for six months or more in the past five years, we will need to see a criminal record check from the country you were living in. You can apply for your criminal overseas check through our external provider, Know Your People, by contacting our Admissions Team who will provide you with the relevant information via your BCU Portal.
Once your criminal record check has been completed, please send your form to admissions@bcu.ac.uk and the Admissions Team will send this to Know Your People on your behalf.
If you already have a criminal record check from the country you were living in, you do not need to apply for one through our online provider. Please just send a copy of your certificate, ensuring it is translated into English where applicable, to admissions@bcu.ac.uk
Further information on your DBS can be found here.
Occupational Health Form
Birmingham City University requires an Occupational Health Form to be completed prior to your enrolment. This is to ensure that within your first year of study, you can attend your placement and maximise your learning experience.
You will receive a link from the Admissions Team closer to your start date to complete your Occupational Health Form. You will also be able to access the link from your BCU Portal. The Occupational Health checks are completed by our provider, OH Works, who will review and work with the University to inform us directly if you have passed your assessment. Birmingham City University will not hold any information disclosed in the Occupational Health Form you have submitted with OH Works.
Please note; if you are a Conductive Education applicant, you will be contacted by the National Institute of Conductive Education (NICE) to complete your Occupational Health Form.
To be successful, you must be both 'cleared for placement' and 'cleared for enrolment'. OH Works will communicate this directly to Birmingham City University. Please do not worry if you have submitted your Occupational Health Form and have not heard back yet, as the University will contact OH Works if there is any element outstanding.
Social Work Declaration
To meet the requirements of the Social Work programme, we require our applicants to be registered with Social Work England and, once registered, to be able to be practise as a Social Worker. To do this, we require our applicants to complete and disclose information under the Social Declaration which can be found in your online BCU Portal.
Disclosing information against the Social Work declaration allows transparency between you and your course tutors which can be discussed at the point of your application, prior to your DBS being issued.
Find out more about Social Work England’s professional standards.
Important note
Failure to provide relevant Safeguarding requirements for your course will result in your offer being withdrawn, so it is important to ensure that all safeguarding checks are met prior to your enrolment.