Changes to regulated activity and DBS checks for volunteers

From 1 September 2026, an important change to the definition of regulated activity with children has come into force under section 139 of the Crime and Policing Act 2026.

The change removes the previous ‘supervision exemption’. This means that people who work closely and frequently with children are in regulated activity, even where their work is supervised by someone else.

For schools, the change is particularly relevant to volunteers and guidance is set out in Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) 2026. A volunteer in a role involving teaching, training, instructing or supervising children will be in regulated activity where they do so frequently, or on more than three days in any 30-day period, or overnight. Where a volunteer is in regulated activity, the school should obtain an enhanced DBS check with children’s barred list information.

Many schools will have already obtained enhanced DBS checks with barred list information for regular volunteers. However, schools should now review their existing volunteer arrangements to identify anyone who was previously treated as falling outside regulated activity because they were supervised. Schools should:

• Audit existing volunteer roles and the frequency with which volunteers attend.
• Identify any volunteers who now meet the definition of regulated activity.
• Check whether the appropriate enhanced DBS check including children’s barred list information has already been obtained.
• Arrange the appropriate check where required.

Occasional volunteers, such as parents helping on an occasional school day trip or at a one-off event, will not automatically be brought into regulated activity by this change.

Schools should also ensure that their safer recruitment and volunteer procedures reflect the new requirements.

Further guidance can be found here.

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