Facing a DBS barring investigation, or do you want to challenge disclosure on your DBS certificate?
For more than a decade I have specialised in regulatory investigations, concentrating on helping people facing barring investigations or barring procedures by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), and people facing unwanted disclosure on their enhanced DBS certificates.
- Former Law Society Council member
- Association of Regulatory Lawyers (ARDL)
- Qualified since 1997
What I do
I have particular expertise in
If you have received a letter from the DBS about a barring referral or investigation, or a letter from the police offering you the chance to make representations about proposed disclosure to the DBS, contact me.
01600 735025The first call is free and you will be speaking to meWhere you are now
What has happened so far?
What you should do next depends entirely on which stage you have reached. Find the one that matches your situation.
I've received a Minded to Bar letter from the DBS
The DBS has made a preliminary decision to include you on a barred list. Your written representations are usually your one real chance to change that.
You normally have 8 weeks to respond
I've been referred to the DBS
An employer, agency or regulator has referred you. Knowing what happens next, and preparing for it now, puts you in a far stronger position.
You can keep working while the DBS considers your case
The police have written proposing disclosure to the DBS
The police are proposing to put information on your certificate. Stopping it here also stops the DBS from ever seeing it.
Acting now can prevent a barring investigation entirely
My DBS certificate shows something it shouldn't
Enhanced certificates can disclose information that never led to a charge. Inaccurate or disproportionate disclosure can be disputed and removed.
My DBS dispute has been rejected
If the DBS has refused your dispute, the Independent Monitor is your next route to a clear certificate, and it is regularly successful.
I want to appeal a decision to bar me
A barring decision can be appealed to the Upper Tribunal on a point of law or a mistake of fact, but permission is needed and the time limits are strict.
I've just found out I'm on a barred list
Barred without ever being told? You may be able to ask the DBS to accept late representations, but you must stop working in regulated activity now.
Continuing to work once barred is a criminal offence
I want a historic barring decision reviewed
Barring is indefinite. Your name is not removed automatically when the minimum period ends. You have to apply, and the application has to succeed.
Nobody comes off a barred list automatically
I'm facing the DBS and my professional regulator
Investigations or proceedings by direct regulators, for example the NMC, GMC, HCPC, TRA or Social Work England, can run alongside a DBS investigation. What you say to one can be shared with the other.
Disclosure Scotland is considering listing me
Being considered for listing on the PVG Scheme is not the same as being listed. You normally have 28 days to put your side, and what you say matters.
You normally have 28 days to respond
I need advice on DBS filtering rules
Whether an old caution or conviction is filtered from your certificate depends on rules that changed in 2020 and remain widely misunderstood.
Not sure which applies to me
Call me and I will help you understand where you stand.
01600 735025
The process
The DBS barring process, stage by stage
Most people come to me at stage four or five, but the earlier you call, the better.
- 1
Someone refers you to the DBS
An employer, agency, local authority or regulator sends a referral to the DBS barring department. In many cases they have a legal duty to do it, and a referral can never be out of time.
- 2
The DBS writes to you
You get an “Important Information” letter confirming the referral has been received. No timescale is given and you are not asked to say anything yet. You can carry on working at this stage.
- 3
The DBS gathers information
The DBS writes to your employer, the police and anyone else who might hold something. The DBS has no investigators of its own, so the picture it builds is only as good as what other people send it.
The best time to get advice
- 4
No Action, or Minded to Bar
Either the case closes with a No Action letter, or a Minded to Bar letter arrives setting out the concerns and the evidence being relied on.
- 5
You reply in writing
You normally get eight weeks. Realistically this is your one opportunity to change the outcome.
Eight weeks to respond
- 6
The decision
If you are barred, the bar is indefinite and your name is never removed automatically. From that point the only routes are an appeal to the Upper Tribunal or an application for review.
My successes
148 cases won since 2021
I have a proven track record of successes against the DBS. Here are the most recent.
| Date | Profession | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| August 2026 | Night Care Assistant | Successful representations to prevent inclusion on the Adults' Barred List following dismissal for allegations of sleeping on duty and fabricating records |
| August 2026 | Support Worker | Successful representations to remove Disclosure from DBS certificate, resulting in a clear certificate |
| July 2026 | Foster Carer | Successful representations to remove Disclosure from DBS certificate, resulting in a clear certificate |
| July 2026 | Teacher | Successful representations against inclusion on Children's Barred List and Adults' Barred List following court conviction |
| July 2026 | Support Worker | Successful representations against inclusion on Children's Barred List and Adults' Barred List following dismissal for allegations of inappropriate conduct towards service users |
| June 2026 | Residential Support Worker | Successful representations against inclusion on Children's Barred List and Adults' Barred List following dismissal for allegations of sleeping on duty |
| May 2026 | Teaching Assistant | Appeal to DBS and successful representations to Independent Monitor resulting in removal of disclosure to produce a clear DBS certificate |
| May 2026 | Support Worker | Successful representations against inclusion on Children's Barred List and Adults' Barred List following dismissal for allegations of inappropriate conduct towards service user |
Working with me
What you can expect
You deal with me
You will not be handed to a paralegal or a call centre. The person who answers the phone is the person who reads your papers and writes your response.
DBS expertise
This is not a sideline of a general regulatory practice. DBS work is my specialism and my main practice, which is why I know how the DBS weighs up a case and what is actually required to secure you a positive outcome.
Plain English
Nobody in your position wants legal jargon. You will be told clearly where you stand, what is likely to happen next, and what it will cost before you commit.
Considerably less than a firm
JJW Legal does not carry the compliance overheads of a traditional law firm, or incur VAT charges, so specialist help stays affordable.
About me
Why I started doing this on my own
I qualified as a solicitor in 1997 and spent nearly ten years in London defending complex business crime and fraud. I then moved to Richard Nelson LLP, where I became a partner, and set up the firm’s DBS department.
I started to see a pattern. People whose entire working life was about to end had almost nowhere to turn for genuinely specialist advice, and the little that existed was priced well beyond the reach of the care workers, teaching assistants and foster carers who needed it.
In 2021 I left and started JJW Legal, deliberately without the overheads of a traditional firm. This means I can deliver the same specialist advice for a fraction of what it would otherwise cost.
Alongside DBS work I have more than twenty years in regulatory investigations by the Insolvency Service, Companies House, HMRC, the Financial Conduct Authority and Trading Standards.
When your career is at stake, there is no substitute for someone who has done this many times before and knows exactly what the DBS is looking for.
More about how I work“Very professional, and within no time he sorted my case with great results. I definitely recommend it to anyone who has issues with DBS. Reliable, friendly, and the professionalism of Jonathan is outstanding. I cannot recommend him enough.”
“He was quick to get involved, face to face, and explain complex legal situations and options in a straightforward, calm manner. He is a safe pair of hands and a reassuring presence in a crisis.”
Questions
Common questions about DBS investigations
Questions I am frequently asked. There are more questions, and far more detail, on each service page.
A Minded to Bar letter is a letter from the DBS telling you it has provisionally decided you should be considered for inclusion on the Children's Barred List, the Adults' Barred List, or both. It sets out its concerns and the information it is relying on, and it invites you to reply in writing. You normally only have eight weeks to do this.
In some cases the law says the DBS must consider barring because a specific offence has taken place. If a person has received a conviction or caution for one of those offences, the DBS may send an Intention to Bar letter. The process is the same as the Minded to Bar process, with eight weeks to respond. Whether it is a Minded to Bar letter or an Intention to Bar letter, JJW Legal has the expertise to assist.
If you have received a Minded to Bar letter, it does not mean you will be barred. It means the DBS has concerns which will lead to barring if they are not answered. If you ignore the letter, or reply badly, you will be barred. But a full response that deals with every issue raised and satisfies the relevant DBS risk criteria can persuade the DBS to close the case with no further action, and regularly does.
No. The fact that you have been referred to the DBS, or have received a Minded to Bar letter, is not disclosed on your DBS certificate. Only actual inclusion on a barred list shows up on future enhanced DBS checks.
It is only if you have received a Minded to Bar letter and you have either failed to reply, or your representations were unsuccessful, that your name will be included on a barred list, which will appear on any future DBS certificate.
Yes. The DBS does not prevent you from working or volunteering while it considers your case. The first letter from the DBS confirms you can carry on working with children or vulnerable adults while it looks at the referral. That changes the moment you are barred. Continuing to work in regulated activity once you are barred is a criminal offence.
People often assume barring runs for a fixed period and then lapses. It does not. It lasts indefinitely, but there is a minimum period before you can even ask for a review, which is one year, five years or ten years depending on how old you were when you were barred, and your name only comes off if that review succeeds.
The opportunity to ask for an earlier review may arise if there are material changes to your circumstances after the barring decision was made. If you want to speak to an expert about your chances of a review, contact JJW Legal.
No. JJW Legal is not a solicitors firm and is not itself regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. It is an unregulated legal practice carrying out non-reserved legal services.
The advice you get is given by qualified solicitors who are regulated by the SRA individually, and your conversations carry the same legal privilege they would anywhere else. Because JJW Legal does not carry a traditional firm's compliance overheads, or pay high city centre property rental costs, the fees you pay are considerably less. JJW Legal is dedicated to providing high quality advice at a more affordable price.
Talk to me before you reply to anything
The first conversation is free and it costs you nothing to find out where you stand. Whatever you have been sent, I have almost certainly seen it before.