There can be some confusion about what “spent” means in relation to convictions. The Rehabilitation of Offenders (NI) Order 1978 was introduced to give people a chance to ‘make a fresh start’. After a period, convictions can become ‘spent’ making it legally right to say ‘No’ when asked the question ‘Do you have any convictions?’ The length of time (i.e. the rehabilitation period) depends on the age at the time of conviction, the type of sentence received and the jurisdiction the check is being carried out in.
For the purposes of “regulated activity”, (working with children or vulnerable adults) or certain roles in the finance or security sectors, certain convictions normally considered spent will have to be disclosed regardless. These roles will require an Enhanced AccessNI Certificate. These kind of checks are also required for voluntary roles in any organisations that have contact with minors or vulnerable adult groups too. Any education courses that require contact with these groups will also be subject to the same enhanced level of checks.
Entry into other areas of education will require a disclosure of any items on your record that are considered unspent. This is common place and you should prepare a disclosure statement to explain any items that are on your record and give context.
Currently, any prison sentences over 30 months (2.5 years) can never become spent. This means they will always show upon a basic AccessNI. Please find more information in our Disclosure statement information guide. This provides everything you need to know about the spending periods. Feel free to contact us for further information.
