The law on how job candidates declare past convictions has changed, meaning thousands of ex-offenders will find it easier to get work.
The new rules significantly reduce the time people with criminal convictions are legally required to declare them when applying for jobs, courses and housing.
Under the previous rules, some offenders would have to disclose a jail sentence for the rest of their lives, even if crimes were committed decades earlier. Now, custodial sentences of four years or more for less serious crimes become ‘spent’ after a seven-year period of rehabilitation, providing no further offence is committed.
Those who have committed serious sexual, violent or terrorist offences, however, will be excluded from these new rules. Stricter disclosure rules will also apply to jobs that involve working with vulnerable people through standard and enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks.
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The period after which a conviction becomes spent will become less depending on the severity of the crime, the Ministry of Justice said. Those sentenced to less than a year will have to wait only 12 months to have their conviction spent, down from four years.
The changes come as part of wider reforms designed to reduce the £18 billion annual cost of reoffending. The MoJ estimates it will benefit around 125,000 offenders sentenced in 2022 alone.
Justice secretary Alex Chalk said: “Carrying the weight of life-long criminal records even after serving their time is a huge barrier for many offenders seeking to reintegrate into society and turn away from a life of crime.
“These reforms will help ex-offenders get the steady income, routine and purpose they need which cuts reoffending and ensures fewer members of the public become victims of crime.”
The reforms came into force on Saturday (28 October) under the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022.
Being able to access paid employment significantly impacts a person’s chances of reoffending. The number of ex-offenders who have been successfully steered into jobs within six months has almost doubled since April 2021, from 14% to 30%.
Employment advisory boards have been set up at 92 prisons over the last two years, where business leaders can offer expertise on skills and qualifications to help prisoners re-enter the workforce.
The government first mooted the idea of reducing spent conviction times as part of a white paper on smarter sentencing in 2020.
Justina Forristal, joint interim chief executive of Unlock, a charity that supports those with convictions, said: “Thousands of people have woken up knowing that for the first time, they have a chance to be considered by employers for their skills and experience – not their past.
“Unlock has long argued for a simpler criminal records system and a reduction in spending periods – and against the injustice of lifelong unspent convictions.
“However, the fact that so many sentences will still be exempt demonstrates how much there is still to do in order to have a system that truly supports rehabilitation.
“Everyone should have the chance to move on positively with their lives and be valued for the contributions they can make.”
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