FAQs
Screening helps employers and employees identify, manage and mitigate risks involved in recruiting for roles that allow access to classified information, systems or sites. Screening facilitates conversations surrounding any ongoing risk and works to manage them for as long as is required.
Reed Screening conducts pre-employment checks on individuals who are successful in the recruitment process. We work on behalf of various businesses (such as your current or prospective employer) to ensure that they are compliant in following government mandated regulations in addition to decreasing the risk associated with recruitment.
The time taken to complete screening differs for everyone as it is dependent upon the complexity in screening requirements for that role. Third party checks such as police checks may take longer, so please ensure that you respond to any queries from us in a timely manner to avoid delays. You can read more about the various checks we perform on our A-Z check directory and you can identify aspects of your screening are outstanding by logging back into your application.
A to Z directory
Any personal information requested by Reed Screening is required for the purpose of processing your pre-employment checks. We gather the minimum amount of data required to process the required checks for your role and all data is processed and held securely in accordance with GDPR. More details regarding this can be found in our privacy policy.
Privacy Policy
You are entitled to access a copy of the data we capture and hold about you for the purposes of your screening. You can request this either verbally or in writing by contacting your employer (as they are the overall decision maker when it comes to your data), where they will provide instructions on how to submit a Subject Access Request (SAR).
If you are interested in the progress of your screening, there are a few ways you may find more information:
- You can log back into your application here. Once logged in, you can view the status of your screening at any time through the 'View Screening Progress' pod on your homepage which will give you a high level overview, or view more detailed information via the ‘View my screening request’ function.
- You can also contact the team responsible for your screening via telephone (our lines are open 24/7) or email using the contact information for your team within any emails from Reed Screening.
Within certain industries, dependent upon a businesses risk appetite, you may begin working whilst aspects of your screening are outstanding. Your continuation in role however, is subject to the completion of your screening. You can log back into your application here to check which parts of your screening are outstanding and should we need further information, we will contact you for this. Please respond promptly to any queries to avoid delays with completing your screening.
Your start date can only be confirmed by your prospective employer. A representative from Reed Screening cannot confirm this information for you. In the instance where you haven't been provided a start date, it would be best to contact your hiring manager.
If you do not wish for your current employer to be contacted, then ensure to let us know on your application by leaving the consent to contact box for that reference unticked. If you have submitted your application and think you may have missed this, then please call the team responsible for your screening (details can be found in communication from us or on your homepage when logged into your account). Our phone lines are open 24/7.
There are a number of documents you can use to provide your identity and your address, the most common types are: Passport, Driving licence and Bank statement. If your role requires a police check, then you are required to provide identity documentation before we can apply for this. The number and types of documents will be requested during your application. If you are struggling to provide enough documentation then please contact the relevant screening team who will be able to offer further guidance.
The type of police check you require is dependent upon the country you will be working in. If you will be working in England & Wales, you will require a police check from the DBS (Disclosure Barring Service) and what is revealed to us is dependent upon the type of role you have applied for. For example, the DBS offer Basic, Standard and Enhanced levels of disclosure which would reveal Unspent, Spent and Spent plus relevant barred list information respectively. Scotland (Disclosure Scotland) and Northern Ireland (AccessNI) have similar disclosure levels that are also dependent upon the role you've applied for.
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The financial checks we conduct will not impact your credit score. They leave soft footprints, which allows you to identify any checks conducted against you by creating a record on your personal credit report. This isn't visible to others or companies, meaning your credit score won't impacted. Financial checks reveal information such as whether you maintain payments on any money you owe in addition to looking at public records to show bankruptcy information or county court judgments (CCJs) against you.
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Most of our clients require all contact details provided to be linked to the employer before we request any information from them. Once we have verified this information or found a verified alternative, we will contact them for a reference. We are required to obtain all references so we will contact all employers provided unless you mark them as in confidence. If you have chosen to mark your reference(s) in confidence then we will request consent from yourself to chase your references prior to doing so. We will chase your references until we receive a response and if we struggle to hear back from that company then we may request your assistance with this.
If it is identified later in the screening process that there are additional employment periods in the specified timeframe, then we are required to chase them as mentioned above, which can cause delays in the process. Therefore, please provide details of all employers in the specified timeframe in your application or contact the relevant screening team to provide further details as soon as possible.
Once your screening has begun, the team responsible for your file will contact you and provide the relevant contact information, should you need further assistance. You can also find their contact details on your homepage when you log into your account. Alternatively, call our general helpdesk on 0161 200 1086. Our phone lines are open 24/7, so please don't hesitate to contact us.
Once your screening is complete we will ask for your feedback in the form of a short, anonymous survey where you can provide your feedback.
Once you have received your invitation to log in, you will need to set up your account (if you haven’t previously used the XMS system) and once logged in you need to complete your application, which is accessible from your homepage. You may save and return to the application at any time. If you experience difficulties in accessing your application, please contact the team responsible for your screening. These details can be found on your homepage or your logon invitation.
During the screening process, if the team need further information, they will send a request for this through the system which will notify you via email. Once you follow this you will be brought into your file, where you can provide documents and details securely within the ‘information required’ tab. To respond, select the actions button beside the relevant field and submit your response.