Pre-Employment Checks: What Should Employers Check Before Someone Starts Work?
Recruiting somebody isn't simply about finding the person who performs best at interview.
Before putting someone into your business, giving them access to company information, allowing them to drive a company vehicle or placing them in a position of responsibility with children, vulnerable adults, customers or colleagues, you need to know that the appropriate checks have actually been completed.
For some roles, certain checks are legal or regulatory requirements. Others form part of sensible due diligence and safer recruitment. The checks required will depend on the person, the role and the sector in which the employer operates.
The challenge for employers is therefore not simply asking “Have we done the pre-employment checks?”
It is knowing which checks this particular person and role require, whether they have been completed properly, what the results mean and whether anything needs monitoring after the employee starts.
That is where a good pre-employment checking process becomes an important part of HR rather than simply a recruitment administration exercise.
Start With Identity
Before relying on any other information obtained during recruitment, an employer needs confidence that the individual being checked is actually the person they claim to be.
Identity verification can also form an important part of other checks, including right to work and DBS processes.
Employers should therefore have a consistent process for establishing identity and ensuring that names and other personal details correspond with the documents and information being provided.
Where discrepancies arise, they should be understood rather than simply ignored because everything else about the candidate appears satisfactory.
Every Employer Needs to Think About Right to Work
Employers must carry out an appropriate right to work check before employing somebody to ensure they are legally permitted to perform the work in question.
Depending on the individual's circumstances, this can involve a manual document check, a Home Office online right to work check or an eligible digital verification service. Carrying out the prescribed check correctly can provide the employer with a statutory excuse against liability for a civil penalty if the individual is subsequently found to be working illegally.
The important point is that right to work isn't always a one-time recruitment task.
Where somebody has a time-limited right to work, the employer will generally need to conduct an appropriate follow-up check before that permission expires if the employment is continuing.
That means the business needs more than evidence that a check happened. It needs visibility of whether anything needs to happen again.
Does the Role Require a DBS Check?
A DBS check can help employers make safer recruitment decisions by providing criminal-record information appropriate to the level of check requested.
However, employers shouldn't simply request the highest possible DBS check for every employee. Eligibility for Standard and Enhanced DBS checks is prescribed by law and depends on the role and activities being undertaken. Where legally eligible, an Enhanced check may also include a check of the relevant Children's or Adults' Barred List.
Employers therefore need to establish:
whether the role is eligible for a DBS check
what level of DBS check is appropriate
whether a relevant barred-list check can and should be requested
whether the information returned affects suitability for the particular role
whether the employee uses the DBS Update Service and whether ongoing status checks are appropriate
A DBS certificate should support a recruitment decision. It shouldn't replace one.
A DBS Check Does Not Necessarily Cover Someone's History Overseas
This is a particularly important point for employers recruiting people who have lived or worked outside the UK.
DBS cannot access criminal records held overseas.
That means a DBS check may not provide a complete picture of somebody's criminal record if they have spent time living outside the UK. Government guidance strongly recommends that employers obtain criminal-record information from the person's country of origin or countries where they have lived, and employers may need to consider an overseas criminal-record check or certificate of good conduct.
This matters particularly in sectors involving children and vulnerable people.
There are statutory overseas-check requirements in some health and education contexts, while in other sectors obtaining overseas information may form part of good recruitment practice rather than being a universal statutory requirement.
Employers therefore shouldn't assume:
“The DBS is clear, so the person's entire history has been checked.”
If an applicant has spent a significant period overseas, establish what additional checks are appropriate for the role and sector.
References Should Be Verified, Not Just Collected
Obtaining a reference isn't necessarily the same as verifying one.
A reference can look entirely legitimate while having been supplied from a personal email address, written by someone who wasn't authorised to provide it or, in the worst case, created by the candidate themselves or somebody connected to them.
Employers should therefore consider not only what the reference says, but whether they are satisfied about where it came from.
Where appropriate, verification can include independently checking the referee's identity and position and contacting the previous employer or organisation using contact details obtained independently, rather than relying solely on the telephone number or email address supplied by the candidate. This might mean finding the organisation's official contact details and asking them to confirm that the referee works there, was authorised to provide the reference and that the reference received is genuine.
Employers should also consider whether:
the employment dates and job title match the information provided by the candidate
the referee had an appropriate relationship with the candidate
there are unexplained inconsistencies between the reference, application and employment history
any required safeguarding or suitability questions have been answered
further clarification is needed before the recruitment decision is completed
This becomes particularly important in safer recruitment environments such as Early Years and care, where collecting a document without establishing its authenticity can undermine the purpose of obtaining the reference in the first place.
A discrepancy doesn't automatically mean that a candidate has been dishonest. There may be a straightforward explanation. The important thing is that the employer identifies and resolves material inconsistencies before relying on the reference.
How Leo HR Helps With Reference Checking
Leo HR can help employers make reference checking part of the candidate's structured due diligence process rather than leaving references buried in individual managers' inboxes.
Employers can maintain visibility of whether references have been requested, received and appropriately considered alongside the candidate's other pre-employment checks. Where information doesn't match, Leo can also help the employer work through what needs clarifying before the recruitment decision is made.
The objective isn't simply to have a reference on file. It's to have reasonable confidence that the reference is genuine and that the information you're relying on has actually come from the person or organisation you believe provided it.
Check Employment History and Gaps Where Relevant
Employment history can provide important information about a candidate's experience and suitability.
In some sectors, particularly those involving safeguarding, employers may also need to understand gaps in employment rather than simply collecting a CV and filing it away.
A gap doesn't automatically indicate a problem. There may be an entirely straightforward explanation.
The purpose of checking is to establish that explanation rather than making assumptions.
This is another reason why safer recruitment should be viewed as a process of establishing information, not simply collecting documents.
Qualifications and Professional Registration
If a role requires a particular qualification, don't simply rely on the candidate stating that they have it.
The employer may need to verify the qualification and retain appropriate evidence.
For regulated professions, professional registration may also need checking with the relevant body. Depending on the role, the employer may need to establish whether registration is current, whether restrictions apply and whether renewal needs monitoring.
Again, the issue doesn't necessarily end on the employee's first day.
If maintaining a qualification, licence or registration is essential to the role, the employer needs to know if that position changes during employment.
What About Employees Who Drive?
If driving is required as part of somebody's work, driving-related checks may form part of the employer's due diligence and ongoing risk management.
Depending on the role and the employer's requirements, this could include checking the employee's driving licence, entitlement to drive the relevant category of vehicle and information relevant to their continued suitability to drive for work.
The important word here is continued.
A driving licence checked during recruitment doesn't tell an employer that nothing changes six months later.
Where driving is an important part of the employee's role, employers should consider what ongoing monitoring is appropriate rather than treating the initial licence check as permanently sufficient.
Different Roles Need Different Checks
There isn't one universal pre-employment checklist suitable for every employee.
An administrator working from home doesn't necessarily require the same checks as a nursery practitioner, care worker or employee driving company vehicles.
A sensible process starts with the role.
Depending on the circumstances, pre-employment due diligence might involve:
identity verification
right to work
DBS and barred-list checks where legally eligible
overseas criminal-record information where appropriate
employment history
references
qualifications and certificates
professional registrations
driving licence information
sector-specific safeguarding or regulatory checks
other checks that are lawful, necessary and proportionate to the role
The objective isn't to check everything simply because it is possible.
It is to understand what needs checking for this particular appointment and why.
Pre-Employment Checks Should Be Completed Before the Person Starts Where Required
One of the risks for busy employers is allowing operational pressure to overtake recruitment controls.
The team is short staffed. The candidate is available immediately. Everybody wants them to start.
Suddenly a required check becomes something that will be “sorted next week”.
That can create obvious problems where a check is legally or regulatorily required before the person undertakes particular work.
Where an offer is conditional on satisfactory pre-employment checks, employers should also be clear about those conditions and avoid treating the appointment as completely unconditional before the relevant requirements have been satisfied.
Safer recruitment works best when the process is established before the vacancy needs filling urgently.
Pre-Employment Checks Don't Necessarily End at Employment
This is one of the biggest weaknesses in treating due diligence purely as part of recruitment.
Some information only needs establishing once.
Other requirements can change.
A person's time-limited right to work may require a follow-up check. A professional registration may expire. A qualification or certificate may require renewal. A driving position may need ongoing licence monitoring. An employer using the DBS Update Service may decide that appropriate status checks form part of its safeguarding arrangements.
The candidate has become an employee, but the compliance requirement hasn't disappeared.
Recruitment due diligence needs to flow into employee compliance.
The Real Challenge Is Managing All of This
Consider what this looks like without a proper system.
The right to work evidence is in one folder. The DBS information is somewhere else. References are sitting in a manager's inbox. Qualifications were emailed during recruitment. Somebody has put a reminder in their calendar for an immigration follow-up check. Driving information sits in another spreadsheet.
Everything may technically exist.
The employer still doesn't have a clear picture.
That creates both administrative burden and risk, particularly where several people are recruiting or the person who originally managed the appointment leaves the business.
Good pre-employment checking isn't simply about obtaining information.
It is about knowing what has been checked, what remains outstanding and what will need attention again later.
How Leo HR Brings Pre-Employment Due Diligence Together
Leo HR is designed to connect recruitment with the wider employee lifecycle rather than treating hiring and employment as separate worlds.
Within Talent, employers can manage candidates and the recruitment journey, including the due diligence that needs to happen before an appointment is completed. Once the candidate becomes an employee, relevant requirements can continue within the employee's HR and compliance environment.
That means employers can maintain greater visibility over areas such as right to work, DBS information, references, qualifications and driving requirements rather than relying on disconnected spreadsheets, folders and individual reminders.
Leo doesn't just help you recruit somebody. Leo helps you know whether the appropriate checks have actually been completed before you put them into the business.
Connecting Leo HR With CareCheck
Leo HR can also connect with specialist services such as CareCheck, bringing external checking processes closer to the recruitment and employee journey.
Rather than employers having to treat DBS and other screening activity as a completely separate administrative process, the CareCheck connection can support checks from within the wider Leo HR environment.
This is particularly valuable for employers in sectors such as Early Years and care, where safer recruitment and employee suitability are fundamental parts of operating responsibly.
The objective is simple: reduce the number of disconnected systems and manual steps the employer needs to manage while maintaining visibility of the checks that matter.
Reminders Matter as Much as Records
Recording an expiry date is useful.
Knowing that the date is approaching is much more useful.
Leo HR can help employers keep important employment requirements visible and provide reminders where follow-up action is needed.
That could include a time-limited right to work check, an expiring qualification or another requirement the employer needs to revisit.
For roles involving driving, ongoing licence monitoring can also form part of the employee's compliance picture rather than disappearing after the recruitment process.
This is the difference between storing compliance information and actively managing it.
Leo Can Help When a Check Raises a Question
Pre-employment checking isn't always binary.
A reference may contain unexpected information. An employment date may not match the CV. A DBS certificate may contain information requiring consideration. An overseas check may be difficult to obtain. A candidate may explain a gap in employment.
The existence of an issue doesn't necessarily tell the employer what decision to make.
That is another area where Leo can help.
Employers can ask Leo about the situation and work through what information is relevant, what may need clarifying and what should be considered before reaching a recruitment decision.
The aim isn't to automate decisions about people's suitability.
It is to give employers better information and HR support before they make those decisions.
A DBS Certificate Isn't a Recruitment Process
Good recruitment due diligence is much broader than obtaining a DBS certificate and putting it in a file.
Employers need to understand the role, determine which checks are required, complete them properly, consider what the information means and maintain visibility of anything that needs monitoring after employment begins.
That is particularly important where employees work with children or vulnerable adults, drive for work, require professional registration or have lived and worked overseas.
The objective isn't to collect as many documents as possible.
It is to know that the person entering your business has been appropriately checked for the work they are going to perform, that you can evidence those checks and that ongoing requirements won't simply be forgotten.
Leo HR helps employers bring that entire journey together, from candidate due diligence and CareCheck screening through to right to work, DBS, references, qualifications, driving licence monitoring and ongoing employee compliance.
Because safer recruitment shouldn't end when somebody starts work.
This article provides general information for employers in England and Wales. The checks required will depend on the role, sector and circumstances. Employers should refer to applicable statutory and regulatory requirements where relevant.
