Recruiting care workers: the checks and documents CQC expects in every staff file
Before someone works in your service, the law says certain information must be available about them. It is a short list, set out in Schedule 3 of the 2014 Regulations. This page walks through it item by item, with what the DBS and the Home Office say about checks, how long to keep them, and one change on 1 October 2026 that affects contractors.
In short
- Regulation 19(3) says the Schedule 3 information “must be available” for each person employed. CQC’s guidance says it “must be confirmed before they are employed”.
- “Person employed” includes volunteers, contractors, agency staff and bank staff (CQC guidance on Regulation 19).
- A DBS certificate has no official expiry date. Check the date of issue and decide whether you need a newer one (DBS guidance).
- Right to work copies are kept for the whole employment and two years afterwards (Home Office guide, 1 October 2026).
- Right to work is not a paragraph of Schedule 3. It comes from the Home Office guide, so it sits in the file beside the Schedule 3 items.
- Proof of identity with a recent photograph (Sch 3 para 1)
- Right to work copy and date of check (Home Office guide)
- DBS certificate information where required (Sch 3 paras 2 and 3)
- Barring information where applicable
- Your reasons, if you took someone on despite what you found
- Full employment history (para 7)
- Written explanation of any gaps (para 7)
- Conduct in previous employment (para 4)
- Why a previous care or children’s job ended (para 5)
- Qualifications, where reasonably practicable to obtain (para 6)
- Health information relevant to the role (para 8)
- Professional registration, where the role needs it (Reg 19(4))
1. What the rule says
Regulation 19 is the “fit and proper persons employed” rule. In plain words: the people you employ must be of good character, have the skills the job needs, and be able to do the work with reasonable adjustments. You must run recruitment so that this is true, and keep the evidence.
19.— 1. Persons employed for the purposes of carrying on a regulated activity must— a. be of good character, b. have the qualifications, competence, skills and experience which are necessary for the work to be performed by them, and c. be able by reason of their health, after reasonable adjustments are made, of properly performing tasks which are intrinsic to the work for which they are employed.
3. The following information must be available in relation to each such person employed— a. the information specified in Schedule 3, and b. such other information as is required under any enactment to be kept by the registered person in relation to such persons employed.
CQC’s guidance adds two things worth knowing. The first is timing. The second is who counts as a person employed.
Information about candidates set out in Schedule 3 of the regulations must be confirmed before they are employed.
It is important to note that "person employed" will include any member of staff who currently works in the service as a volunteer or a contractor, as well as agency or bank staff.
You may use someone else to do the recruiting. The responsibility stays with you: “providers must assure themselves that all checks are complete and satisfactory” (CQC guidance on 19(2)).
2. The Schedule 3 list
This is the list the file has to hold. Read the heading and the first paragraph as printed.
Information Required in Respect of Persons Employed or Appointed for the Purposes of a Regulated Activity
1. Proof of identity including a recent photograph.
7. A full employment history, together with a satisfactory written explanation of any gaps in employment.
4. Satisfactory evidence of conduct in previous employment concerned with the provision of services relating to— (a) health or social care, or (b) children or vulnerable adults.
8. Satisfactory information about any physical or mental health conditions which are relevant to the person’s capability, after reasonable adjustments are made, to properly perform tasks which are intrinsic to their employment or appointment for the purposes of the regulated activity.
“Satisfactory” has a set meaning here. Paragraph 9(b) says it means “satisfactory in the opinion of the Commission”. That is why the file should show what you looked at and why you were content with it. CQC’s guidance says that if you take someone on despite information about anything in Schedule 3, “the provider's reasons should be recorded for future reference” (guidance on 19(1)(a)).
One caution. The Schedule 3 text we have captured is the draft laid before Parliament, which has since been made as S.I. 2014/2936. Check the current wording on legislation.gov.uk before you rely on a paragraph number in a policy.
3. DBS checks
Paragraphs 2 and 3 of Schedule 3 ask for the criminal record certificate, and barring information where it applies. The level of check is for the DBS rules, not for this page. What the DBS guidance says about the barred lists:
The Enhanced check with Barred List(s) check is only available for those individuals who are carrying out regulated activity and a small number of positions listed in Police Act 1997 (Criminal Records) regulations, for example, prospective adoptive parents and taxi and Private Hire Vehicle (PHV) licences.
Starting work before the certificate: Adult First
If you cannot wait for the certificate, the DBS describes one route for adult services.
DBS Adult First is a service available to organisations who can request a check of the DBS Adults’ Barred List. Depending on the result, a person can be permitted to start work, under supervision, with vulnerable adults before a DBS certificate has been obtained.
the position must require a criminal record check by law the position must be eligible for access to the DBS Adults’ Barred List the organisation must have requested a check of the DBS Adults’ Barred List on the DBS application form
The reply is only the first part of the check. It will say either “Registered Body must wait for the DBS certificate” or that no match exists on the Adults’ Barred List, and it states that further information will follow. Adult First is a DBS service, not a Schedule 3 paragraph, and CQC’s own wording is that Schedule 3 information is confirmed before employment. Treat Adult First as a decision to record, with the supervision arrangements, not as a shortcut.
Reusing a certificate and the Update Service
There is no official expiry date for a criminal record check issued by DBS.
Individuals can join the Update Service which allows them to reuse their DBS certificates when applying for similar jobs.
The Update Service is only for Standard and Enhanced checks, not Basic. The person must join within 30 days of the certificate being issued. If they have not joined, the guidance says: “It’s the employers’ decision to decide whether to accept a previously-issued DBS check.” It lists what to think about, including that the information may have changed since issue and that the workforce and position on the old certificate need to fit the role.
4. What to keep, and for how long
The DBS is stricter about certificates than you might expect. The certificate is not an ordinary file copy. This comes from the DBS’s sample policy for organisations, which you can adapt:
Once a recruitment (or other relevant) decision has been made, we do not keep certificate information for any longer than is necessary. This retention will allow for the consideration and resolution of any disputes or complaints, or be for the purpose of completing safeguarding audits.
We will not keep any photocopy or other image of the certificate or any copy or representation of the contents of a certificate. However, not withstanding the above, we may keep a record of the date of issue of a certificate, the name of the subject, the type of certificate requested, the position for which the certificate was requested, the unique reference number of the certificates and the details of the recruitment decision taken.
To note: organisations which are inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) or Ofsted, and those establishments which are inspected by the Care and Social Services Inspectorate for Wales (CSSIW ) may be legally entitled to retain the certificate for the purposes of inspection.
So there are two positions in the guidance and you need a written policy that says which you follow. Whatever you choose, certificate information is kept in “lockable, non-portable, storage containers with access strictly controlled” (sample policy 2.2). A record of the date, type, reference number and your decision is the minimum the DBS says you may keep.
Right to work copies are different. They are kept for the whole employment plus two years:
ensure all copies of documents are kept securely for the duration of the worker’s employment and for two years afterwards. The file or document must then be securely destroyed.
For the other items in the file, the sources we captured do not give a retention period, so we do not state one. Your data protection policy decides it.
5. Checklist
| Item | Where it comes from | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Proof of identity with a recent photograph | Schedule 3, para 1 | Hold a photograph that is recent. Date it. |
| Criminal record certificate information, where required | Schedule 3, paras 2 and 3 | Follow your DBS handling policy for what you keep. Record the date of issue. |
| Barring information, where applicable | Schedule 3, paras 2 and 3 | Enhanced with Barred List(s) is for people carrying out regulated activity (DBS guidance). |
| Evidence of conduct in previous employment in health, social care, or with children or vulnerable adults | Schedule 3, para 4 | A written reference is one way to hold it. Record how you judged it satisfactory. |
| Why the last care or children’s job ended | Schedule 3, para 5 | “So far as reasonably practicable.” |
| Qualifications relevant to the duties | Schedule 3, para 6 | “In so far as it is reasonably practicable to obtain.” |
| Full employment history and written explanation of gaps | Schedule 3, para 7 | Not required for volunteers other than service providers, directors and registered managers (CQC guidance on 19(2)). |
| Health information relevant to the role | Schedule 3, para 8 | After reasonable adjustments. A disability or long-term condition does not bar someone (CQC guidance on 19(1)(c)). |
| Professional registration, where the role needs it | Regulation 19(4) | Have a process to check registration is current (CQC guidance on 19(4)). |
| Right to work check, copy and date | Not Schedule 3. Home Office employer’s guide | Keep for the employment plus two years. |
| Reasons, where you took someone on despite what you found | CQC guidance on 19(1)(a) | Record them for future reference. |
6. 1 October 2026: right to work reaches contractors
From 1 October 2026 the Home Office guide widens who is covered. It now reaches people you engage under a worker’s contract and individual sub-contractors, not only employees. If you use self-employed or contracted care workers, read the guide, because they may now be in scope.
This guidance is relevant to employers and those who may have responsibilities under the Scheme including those who employ individuals under contracts of employment, under worker’s contracts, as individual sub-contractors, or operate as online matching services providing details of individual service providers to clients or customers.
In relation to employment under a worker’s contract, as an individual sub-contractor or in the case of an online matching service providing the details of a service provider to clients or customers, a civil penalty may only be imposed where the employment commenced on or after 1 October 2026.
No. There is no blanket exclusion simply because a worker is described as a contractor, freelancer or consultant, or provides services through a PSC.
No. The requirements apply from 1 October 2026 and there is no general grace period.
We have covered only these points. The guide has more on agency workers, written statements for supply chains and existing contracts. It also says the check must be done before work starts: “employers must do one of the following checks before the worker commences employment”.
How MyCareGuard handles this
MyCareGuard keeps a Staff and checks register for each service. It records every DBS and right to work check with its issue and re-check dates, and flags what is due and what has expired on your dashboard. Each person shows DBS, right to work and training in one row, so you can see whose file has a gap, including people with no record at all. We hold the dates and the outcome only, never the disclosed certificate content. A references feature has been built on the staff record but is not yet switched on, so we do not describe it as available. The register records what you tell it. It does not make the decision that a check is satisfactory: that stays with you.
Related reading: the CQC single assessment framework explained, CQC notifications: what to report and when, managing medicines in home care and care staff training: what is actually required.
Questions people ask
What must be in a care worker’s staff file?
Regulation 19(3): “The following information must be available in relation to each such person employed— a. the information specified in Schedule 3”. Schedule 3 lists identity with a recent photograph, criminal record certificate information where required, evidence of conduct in previous employment, the reason a previous care or children’s job ended, qualifications, a full employment history with a written explanation of gaps, and health information (paragraphs 1 to 8).
Can a new starter begin work before the DBS certificate arrives?
The CQC guidance on Regulation 19(2) says Schedule 3 information “must be confirmed before they are employed”. The DBS describes one route that allows an earlier start: an Adult First check, where “a person can be permitted to start work, under supervision, with vulnerable adults before a DBS certificate has been obtained”. It has strict criteria, and the reply may say you must wait for the certificate.
Can I accept a DBS certificate from a previous employer?
The DBS guidance says: “It’s the employers’ decision to decide whether to accept a previously-issued DBS check.” It also says there is no official expiry date for a certificate, that the information is accurate only at the date of issue, and that you should check the date of issue to decide whether to ask for a newer one. If the person is on the Update Service, the same guidance sets out a different route, which we have not reproduced here.
Can I keep a photocopy of the DBS certificate?
The DBS’s sample policy says it will not keep a photocopy or image of a certificate, but may keep a record of the date of issue, the name, the type of certificate, the position, the unique reference number and the recruitment decision. A note on the same page says organisations inspected by CQC “may be legally entitled to retain the certificate for the purposes of inspection”. Write your own policy and check which applies to you.
How long do I keep right to work copies?
The 1 October 2026 guide says copies are kept “for the duration of the worker’s employment and for two years afterwards”, and then securely destroyed (manual check, step 4, “Record and retain”; the online check, step 3, says the same).
Do these checks apply to agency staff, bank staff and volunteers?
CQC’s guidance says “person employed” includes volunteers and contractors as well as agency or bank staff. For checks done by someone else, providers “must assure themselves that all checks are complete and satisfactory”. The full employment history requirement does not apply to volunteers, except service providers, directors and registered managers (guidance on 19(2)).
Sources
- CQC: Regulation 19, Fit and proper persons employed (regulation and guidance)Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014; CQC guidance book, section dated 30 June 2022; read 2 October 2026 · GOV.UK
- The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, Schedule 3Text from the draft instrument laid before Parliament (document generated 2023-04-24; since made as S.I. 2014/2936); check legislation.gov.uk for the current text; read 2 October 2026 · GOV.UK
- DBS checks: guidance for employersPublished 27 March 2013, last updated 16 January 2026; retrieved 2 October 2026 · GOV.UK
- Handling of DBS certificate informationUpdated 4 July 2018; retrieved 2 October 2026 · GOV.UK
- Employer’s guide to right to work checks: 1 October 2026In force 1 October 2026 (GOV.UK page updated 1 October 2026); no paragraph numbers, cited by section heading; retrieved 2 October 2026 · GOV.UK
MyCareGuard is software, not a legal adviser or a CQC inspector; it does not give legal advice. This page describes what the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, the CQC’s published guidance and the other named documents say, with the paragraph for each point, so you can read the source yourself. Versions and dates are those in force on the date shown; the documents change, so check the current version before you rely on any of it.
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