DBS processing times and police performance

Care England is publishing monthly information from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) on processing times and police force performance.

DBS checks are an essential part of recruitment across adult social care. Delays can affect how quickly providers are able to complete recruitment, onboard new colleagues and bring much-needed capacity into services.

This page brings the latest information together in one place, allowing providers to track changes in processing times, identify where police forces are experiencing delays and access previous monthly reports.

The page will be updated each month as new information becomes available.

 

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Latest update

August 2026

Performance data for July 2026

Average DBS processing times

• Enhanced: 13.1 days
• Standard: 1.1 days
• Basic: 0.7 days

Police performance

• 26 days average time for police to return a check referred to them
• 11 forces experiencing delays
• 8,390 aged cases held by forces at the end of the month
• 79% of aged cases held at the start of the month were completed by month end

The number of aged cases reduced from 11,434 to 8,390 during July, the lowest level reported for more than two years.

Download the August 2026 Police Performance Information report

Previous month’s update

July 2026

Performance data for June 2026

Average DBS processing times

• Enhanced: 13.5 days
• Standard: 1.2 days
• Basic: 0.9 days

Police performance

• 27 days average time for police to return a check referred to them
• 10 forces experiencing delays
• 11,434 aged cases held by forces at the end of the month
• 75% of aged cases held at the start of the month were completed by month end

The number of aged cases reduced substantially during June, from 23,661 to 11,434, as outstanding cases linked to the Hampshire IT issue continued to be resolved.

Download the July 2026 Police Performance Information report

Monthly report archive

New reports will be added here each month so providers can follow performance over time.

2026

August 2026
Performance data for July 2026
View report

July 2026
Performance data for June 2026
View report

Further monthly updates will be added as they are published.

 

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What does the information mean?

DBS processing time

This is the average time taken to process applications across the relevant DBS check type: Basic, Standard or Enhanced.

Enhanced DBS checks generally take longer because additional checks may be required.

 

Police processing

Enhanced DBS applications can be referred to one or more police forces where there is a potential match against information held on police systems.

Where this happens, the relevant force considers whether it holds information relevant to the role being applied for and whether that information should be disclosed.

This means an Enhanced DBS application can sometimes take longer even where the applicant does not live in an area experiencing delays.

 

Aged cases

Aged cases are applications that have remained with a police force beyond the expected processing period. Tracking the number of aged cases provides an indication of outstanding workload and whether backlogs are increasing or reducing.

 

Why Care England is tracking this

Reliable and timely DBS processing is important to the functioning of the adult social care workforce.

Recruitment delays can leave providers waiting longer to bring new staff into services, adding pressure to existing teams and potentially increasing reliance on agency staffing or overtime.

By maintaining this monthly record, Care England will provide members and the wider sector with a clearer picture of how DBS and police performance is changing over time and where persistent pressures remain.

 

Important information

The figures published here are national performance information supplied by the Disclosure and Barring Service. Individual DBS applications may take more or less time depending on the circumstances of the application.

Police force involvement applies to Enhanced DBS checks where further checks are required. A delay at a particular police force does not mean that every application involving that force will experience the same processing time.