What is a Section 128 check?

A Section 128 Check confirms if a person has been prohibited or restricted from the management and governance of an independent school, including academies and free schools as they have been issued with a ‘Section 128 Direction’. These checks are intended to give the recruitment process a full picture of a person’s suitability.

Apply for checks

Eligibility for Section 128 checks

Section 128 Checks must be carried out on governors from independent schools, including academies and free schools, as outlined in the Keeping Children Safe in Education Act.

Academies are required to carry out Section 128 Checks for:

Trust members and trustees
Governors who sit on committees or boards with delegated responsibilities
Staff in management positions, such as headteachers, teachers on senior leadership teams or teachers that head departments

This type of check is only available for those roles involved in the management of a school and can’t be applied to all roles within the education environment.

Our process

Our process is accessible and straightforward thanks to our bespoke system. ISO 14001, 9001 and 27001 Certified, we provide a secure, reliable and efficient service that can be tailored to your needs.

We go above and beyond to provide first-class customer care, and one-to-one expert advice is available every step of the way from our dedicated and accredited team.

Get started

Register easily online for free

You can set up an account in a matter of minutes, submit applications on our user-friendly portal and manage checks on your dashboard.

Apply for checks

To ensure efficiency, our team will use their expertise to check your applications. We will make sure the information is accurate and valid.

Receive your results

You will be notified when the results are ready. Our fast turnaround provides confirmation of your checks and peace of mind.

What do Section 128 checks look at?

Section 128 Checks assess whether a person is banned from being involved in the management, leadership or governance of schools. These checks may flag non-criminal instances that reduce role suitability, helping schools to make more fitting hires across their institution. For example, an accountant who breached their professional body’s code of ethics might not have committed a crime, but still may not be suitable to oversee your school’s accounts.

This can also include (but isn’t limited to) conviction of an offence under military disciplinary proceedings and being found not guilty of an offence by reason of insanity. It also includes conduct that undermines the rule of law, individual liberty and tolerance of those with different faiths.

Section 128 check pricing

Our competitive pricing ensures organisations can maintain regulatory compliance and operational integrity without excessive costs. We offer transparent, cost-effective rates with no hidden fees, enabling you to conduct all necessary checks efficiently across your entire workforce.

No of Checks	Cost ex VAT	Cost inc VAT
Standard Rate	£10.42	£12.50
51 – 300	£9.58	£11.50
301 – 500	£8.75	£10.50
501 – 750	£7.92	£9.50
751 – 1000	£7.08	£8.50
1001+	£6.25	£7.50

Benefits of Section 128 checks with us

Carrying out employment screening is important for safeguarding. We help you save time, money and resources. You’ll also enjoy a range of other benefits:

Regulatory Compliance
Ensure compliance with regulations set out for schools & education.

Online Checks
Efficiently conduct Section 128 Checks through a user-friendly online platform.

Reassurance
Receive accurate reports & have peace of mind in your recruitment decisions.

ISO-Certified Security
Protected sensitive information with ISO-certified data security standards.

Efficient Management
Easily manage & track multiple Section 128 Checks in one central system.

Accurate Verification
Confirm suitability of leadership with reliable and up-to-date check results.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

After taking a few minutes to complete our free registration, you will have access to your own secure portal. You must have consent from applicants before requesting Section 128 Checks. Use your dashboard to progress checks and see the status of ongoing checks. A Section 128 Check can be done via an Enhanced DBS Check as part of checking the barred lists. This is suited to those working in regulated activity. To do this, you must include ‘Child Workforce Independent School’ in the ‘Position applied for’ field of the application form.

Section 128 Checks verify that individuals in senior leadership or governance positions are not disqualified from such roles due to serious misconduct.

Section 128 checks can be requested by schools, academies, and other educational institutions for individuals being appointed to senior leadership or governor roles.

Yes, Section 128 checks are a legal requirement for schools to ensure that individuals in senior management or governance roles are not disqualified from these positions.

The Section 128 prohibition prevents individuals who have been disqualified from holding senior leadership roles in education due to serious misconduct from being appointed to these positions.

No, Section 128 checks are not the same as the barred list. Section 128 checks assess if an individual is prohibited from holding senior leadership roles in education due to serious misconduct, whereas the barred list checks identify individuals barred from working with children due to safeguarding concerns.