Growth in CRB check mistakes

The number of errors by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) has doubled in the past 12 months according to the Daily Telegraph.

According to the newspaper, in the year up to 31 March 2009, 1,570 people were either mistakenly given criminal records, wrongly given a clean record, or accused of more serious offences than they had actually committed.

The CRB's annual report will be published next month and, according to The Telegraph, shows that 3.9 million certificates were processed by the agency in the 12-month period to March 2009. This is an increase of 500,000 on 2007-08 and the highest figure since the agency was set up.

The CRB was launched in 2002 and aims to enable organisations in the public, private and voluntary sectors to make safer recruitment decisions by identifying candidates who may be unsuitable for certain work, especially that involve children or vulnerable adults.

Organisations wishing to use the service can ask successful job applicants to apply for either an Enhanced or a Standard Disclosures, depending upon the nature of the position.