Information about how Disclosure Scotland deals with transgender applications: FOI release

Information requested

Please provide any information that you hold answering to any of the following descriptions:

1. When were the changes made to allow someone who identifies as transgender to apply for a PVG using a special process?

2. Has this special process been updated in legislation. If no, please detail if an employer can request information on the sex or name of a perspective employee from Disclosure Scotland. Also detail if it is planning to be added to legislation

3. Who was involved in consultation to allow a transgender person to apply using the special process?
a) Please name all organisations involved
b) Please include correspondence between these organisations and Disclosure Scotland

4. Please detail what risk assessments or impact assessment were carried out prior to allowing a person with a transgender identity to be able to withhold their previous name(s) and birth sex from perspective employers

5. Has Disclosure Scotland received training from any of these organisations:

• Stonewall Scotland (or UK)
• LGBT Youth Scotland
• Mermaids
• Quarriers
• Leap Sport
• SSSC
• Scottish Trans Alliance
• Proud Trust
• Gendered Intelligence
• SHINE
• Kooth
• TiE (Time for Inclusive Education)

If so, please detail:
a) How much Disclosure Scotland paid to these organisations
b) Any training materials provided unless privileged or otherwise exempt from disclosure (but if you claim privilege or exemption in relation to any material, please say in broad terms what the material is and the basis on which you claim to be entitled to withhold it)

Response

1. When were the changes made to allow someone who identifies as transgender to apply for a PVG using a special process?

The principal purpose of disclosure is safeguarding and it is information about past conduct that will be relevant for an employer or other party to assess in that regard. The Disclosure Scotland process protects an individual’s right to a private life but does not afford the opportunity for any party to conceal any past criminal behaviour or names.

Whilst former names are not disclosed, any criminal history information, including convictions and other relevant information, that the law says must be disclosed will be, even if that information predates the current name or gender of the applicant. This is the case whether or not a person has changed their gender or name.

The process for transgender applications has remained the same since the PVG scheme came into effect in February 2011. In June 2021 a change was made to the “Information for transgender disclosure applicants” webpage to advise people that they can email their details to Disclosure Scotland, rather than sending a letter as it previously stated, and other changes were made to ensure the information was clear and in plain English.

The process providing a route for transgender applicants to provide previous name(s) directly to Disclosure Scotland predates the electronic Record and Document Management system (eRDM) which was introduced in 2005. This means that we hold no record of its implementation. Consequently, this is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that Disclosure Scotland does not have the information you have requested.

The existing process was originally applied to basic, standard and enhanced disclosure applications issued under Part V of the Police Act 1997 and was subsequently applied to PVG (Protecting Vulnerable Groups) applications when the PVG Scheme was launched in 2011.

2. Has this special process been updated in legislation? If no, please detail if an employer can request information on the sex or name of a perspective employee from Disclosure Scotland. Also detail if it is planning to be added to legislation.

The disclosure application process for transgender individuals is non-legislative.

Disclosure Scotland provide criminal conviction certificates, criminal record certificates and enhanced criminal record certificates under the Part V of Police Act 1997 and PVG scheme records, short scheme records and statements of scheme membership under the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007. Disclosure certificates do not provide the sex of an individual. The individual’s name is included on the certificate. Previous names are not included, whether the individual is transgender or not. The criminal history information disclosed is set out in legislation and does not change when an individual has used the transgender disclosure applicant process.

3. Who was involved in consultation to allow a transgender person to apply using the special process?
a) Please name all organisations involved
b) Please include correspondence between these organisations and Disclosure Scotland

Information not held. This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that Disclosure Scotland does not have the information you have requested.

4. Please detail what risk assessments or impact assessment were carried out prior to allowing a person with a transgender identity to be able to withhold their previous name(s) and birth sex from perspective employers.

Disclosure Scotland provide criminal conviction certificates, criminal record certificates and enhanced criminal record certificates under the Part V of Police Act 1997 and PVG scheme records, short scheme records and statements of scheme membership under the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007. Disclosure certificates do not provide information on previous name(s) or sex of individuals. The criminal history information disclosed is set out in legislation and does not change when an applicant has used the transgender disclosure applicant process.

Information not held.

5. Has Disclosure Scotland received training from any of these organisations:

• Stonewall Scotland (or UK)
• LGBT Youth Scotland
• Mermaids
• Quarriers
• Leap Sport
• SSSC
• Scottish Trans Alliance
• Proud Trust
• Gendered Intelligence
• SHINE
• Kooth
• TiE (Time for Inclusive Education)

If so, please detail:
a) How much Disclosure Scotland paid to these organisations
b) Any training materials provided unless privileged or otherwise exempt from disclosure (but if you claim privilege or exemption in relation to any material, please say in broad terms what the material is and the basis on which you claim to be entitled to withhold it)

Disclosure Scotland has not received training from any of the above organisations.
Not applicable
Not applicable

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