Thirtyone:eight is our provider for all DBS checks within the Diocese of Newcastle.
Who do I contact about anything related to DBS?
If you need assistance, you can call the Thirtyone:eight Disclosure Helpline on 0303 003 1111, which is open on weekdays from 9am to 5pm. Alternatively you can email disclosure@thirtyoneeight.org
Overarching Principles
- Every parish should have a DBS Administrator (sometimes known as an ID checker). This is often, but not always, the same person as the Parish Safeguarding Officer.
- Certain roles within religious organisations require a DBS check, depending on the type of role undertaken and how often that role is carried out.
- The need to apply for a DBS is not based on job title, but on the responsibilities the individual undertakes.
- It is important that guidance is followed and allows a DBS check to make certain that the applicants data protection rights are not breached.
Information for DBS Administrators
How do I start processing DBS applications?
If you have just been appointed as your parish’s DBS Administrator, you should first contact the Diocesan Safeguarding Team to notify them of your appointment: safeguarding@newcastle.anglican.org. This will begin the process towards getting setup on Thirtyone:eight’s DBS Management system.
As you get set up, you should take the time to read through this guidance, which is essential for your role and for using this service. Once ready, you will be able to administer DBS Checks through Manage Applications
How will I receive my login details to Manage DBS Applications?
Once you have been in touch with the Diocesan Safeguarding Team, and your parish account is ready to be set up, you will receive two emails from Thirtyone:eight. One will be entitled 'Welcome' and a second entitled 'Notice', containing important login instructions for accessing Manage Applications. Please do read them carefully to make sure you have all the right information for your account.
What is my Organisation Reference?
During the onboarding process, you will have been sent an email directly from Thirtyone:eight containing your organisation reference. Please make a note of this number and keep it safe, as it will be required for logging in to process DBS checks and for contacting the Disclosure Helpline (0303 003 1111).
How do I decide what level of DBS check needs to be requested?
The interactive eligibility guide, found within the Recruiters Hub, is there to help you decide what level of DBS check can be requested, based on the responsibilities and duties of the role. You can also find a list of church-specific roles from this guide.
If you have not done so already, you will need to create a new user profile to be able to view the interactive eligibility guide (this is a separate login to your recruiter account, but we recommend that you use the same login details for both). If you encounter any problems with this, please call the Thirtyone:eight Membership Team on 0303 003 1111 (option 5), who will be able to resolve any access issues.
The UK Government also provide a useful online DBS Eligibility Tool which parishes can use to determine if a DBS check is required for a role and the level of check: https://www.gov.uk/find-out-dbs-check
This document, from a recent DBS Disclosure Workshop, can also give you additional information on Eligibility.
How do I invite people to start a DBS application?
In Thirtyone:eight’s guidance, you will find full details of how to invite people to start a DBS application, directly from within the system. This helps to keep track of who has been invited and will automatically chase them after a week. The system will generate a personalised link for the applicant to click to start their application.
You will also see the option of manually inviting the applicant to start their application here. If starting the application manually from this page, the applicant will need to be provided with the organisation reference.
Safeguarding Systems Together
DBS Checks through the Safeguarding Hub
Once this feature is ready to use later into 2026, the Diocese of Newcastle will enable a feature that will allow your parish to submit DBS requests directly to Thirtyone:eight from the Safeguarding Hub. This is part of a wider “Safeguarding Systems Together” project, led by Clearly Simpler, to bring as many parish safeguarding systems under one destination as possible.
If you request a DBS check through the Safeguarding Hub, a completed disclosure would then be automatically added to the applicant’s Hub entry in the People Manager – removing the need for certificate details to be manually inputted.
Help with setting this up can be found in this guide. This feature is entirely optional, and each parish would need to agree to sharing information from the Safeguarding Hub with Thirtyone:eight – you can do this in the Settings under “Data Sharing”.