CRB data protection

The Data Protection Act 1998 is the law which governs the processing of personal data held on living identifiable individuals.

CRB Privacy Statement

The CRB is fully committed to compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998. The following principles will apply when we handle your personal information:

Overall principles

• your personal information is only processed with your knowledge and consent
• only information that we actually need is collected and processed
• your personal information is only seen by those who need it to do their jobs
• personal information is retained only for as long as it is required
• decisions affecting you are made on the basis of reliable and up to date information
• your information is protected from unauthorised or accidental disclosure
• any information found to be inaccurate will be investigated and corrected/amended where possible

Procedures are in place for dealing promptly with any dispute.

These principles apply whether we hold your information on paper or in electronic form.

The CRB privacy policy explains your rights, as a customer of the CRB, under the Data Protection Act 1998. It explains why we require your personal data, and what you can expect from us in terms of our data protection responsibilities.

Subject Access

Under section 7 of the Data Protection Act 1998 'Right of subject access', an individual is entitled to make a subject access request to an organisation for information which may be held about them.

If you wish to obtain up-to-date details of any criminal records in the UK, you will need to make a subject access request directly to the police force in the area where you currently or last resided in the UK.

This subject access police contacts document gives the contact details of each constabulary.

Please note, a subject access from the police can also be used for visa purposes.

The CRB does not hold a copy of the police national computer (PNC) record of convictions, the system held by the CRB is known as a PNC extract. The extract contains basic identifying details such as name and date of birth of persons included on the PNC, it does not contain any conviction information. The police both own and maintain the police national computer.

A subject access request to CRB will provide you with a copy of any information that we hold about you, the information provided would not be in the format of a certificate but a print out of the information it contained. It would not be updated in any way.

It should be noted that, if you have never used the service's provided by the CRB, it is unlikely that we will hold any of your data. You should be aware that exemptions may apply.

How to apply for CRB subject access

A subject access request to the CRB will cost £10 and can take up to 40 calendar days to be processed. The fee should be in the form of a cheque, postal order or international money order crossed a/c payee and made payable to ‘The Home Office’.

If you wish to apply for subject access, application forms and guidance notes can be downloaded below. Please note - forms cannot be accepted by email, they must be submitted by post. 

Subject access request form

Subject access request guidance notes

Subject access request checklist

If you have any enquiries in relation to subject access, please contact the address below.

CRB Policy Section
PO Box 165
Liverpool
L69 3JD

Tel: 0151 676 1154
Email: subject access  

We will be happy to help you complete the request. The Citizens Advice Bureau may also be able to help.