Monthly summary – June 2019

Welcome to our monthly update for June 2019.

This provides a summary of:

1. thelatest updates to our self-help information site for people with convictions
2. recent posts to our online magazine, theRecord
3. discussions on our online forum
4. other news and developments that might be of interest to people with a criminal record.

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Updates to our information site

Here’s a summary of updates that we’ve made recently to theinformationhub. There are links within each update to where you can find more information about the update. There are also links next to many of the update, which links to threads on our online forum where you can discuss these with other people with convictions.

Work and volunteering

• Long list of spent/disposals and how long it takes them to become spent under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 – We’ve updated this page to give examples of how a relevant order can affect other convictions.

Travelling abroad

• Identifying whether your offence is a Crime Involving Moral Turpitude – We’ve published some new information which sets out a list of the 80 most common UK offences and those which, in our opinion, would be deemed to be a Crime Involving Moral Turpitude.
• Travelling to Japan – We’ve updated this page to include an individual’s personal experience of travelling to Japan with a criminal record.

Coming to the UK

• Deportation due to a criminal record – We’ve added the details of a Court of Appeal deportation appeal case to this page where a deportee successfully resisted deportation not merely because he had a British child residing in the UK, but because of the impact his deportation would have on the child.

theRecord posts

Below are links to recent posts to our online magazine, theRecord. These are often linked to the practical information that we have, to help give some personal experiences.

Success – Volunteers Week 2019 – A shout out to Unlock’s volunteers – “Volunteer Week is celebrated between 1st and 7th June every year. It’s a week in which the UK celebrates volunteers and says thank you to them for the contribution they make. The week hopefully also raises awareness of the benefits of volunteering …..”

Struggles and stigma – What’s the point of having a policy if an employer doesn’t bother to follow it? – “A couple of years ago I applied for a job at a large organisation famous for its inclusive values. Having unspent convictions for drugs-related offences, I was nervous about applying but the organisation’s online policy on recruiting people with criminal records was clear and seemed progressive. Although applicants were asked to disclose unspent convictions on their application form, the policy said …..”

Success – The inconsistencies of travelling when you have a sexual offence – “I was convicted of a sexual offence and currently have to sign the Sex Offenders Register. I believe my conviction was harsh, but I’ve accepted it and understand that every year I’ll have to sign the register and, when I want to go abroad, I’ll have to inform the police …..”

Success – Forgiveness won’t change the past but it has improved my future – why I wasn’t added to the DBS barred list – “Prior to my conviction in 2002, I was a law-abiding citizen with an impeccable record. I’d been in the same job for 20 years and also volunteered for several charities in my spare time. Other than my work and charity interests, my only other focus was my wife and children …..”

Discussions on our online forum

Below are links to recent posts to our online forum. If you’d like to join in the discussion but are not currently a forum member, find out how you can join here.

Applying for work through a recruitment agency – DisplacedR has been having a lot of difficulties finding work through a recruitment agency due to his unspent conviction. He’s interested in hearing other people’s experience of applying for jobs with an unspent conviction. Can you help?

Things going well – Although things have been going well for Square, he’s just come up against an unexpected problem, namely disclosing his conviction to a new partner. Does anybody have any advice they can offer him?

Other news and developments

Below are links to other news and developments that might be of interest to people with a criminal record. For more news, check out the news and media section of our main website.

New dates announced for criminal record disclosure training

We’ve just announced details of our upcoming disclosure training for practitioners. Find more information here.

Report backs tax breaks for employers that recruit people with convictions

Commenting on a report published by Onward, Christopher Stacey, Unlock’s co-director has said “We welcome Onwards recommendations that government should deliver on the manifesto commitment to give employers a national insurance tax break to those who recruit people with convictions. Read Chris’ comments and Onwards Unlocking a better life report.