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| Local Authorities
June 28 2018

Why Local Authorities Employing Ex-Offenders is Good for Everyone

Bristol City Council has become the first local authority in the UK to join Ban the Box, a Business in the Community campaign removing barriers to employment for people with criminal convictions.  There are more than 11 million people in the UK with a criminal conviction and while the clear majority (70%) are handed down as fines, many employers are reticent to hire them.

According to the campaign, doing so means employers are missing out on skilled and talented people, people who have made a mistake and are trying to turn their lives around find are unable to secure work, making them more likely to fall back into crime.

In Bristol, candidates are no longer asked about criminal convictions on their application forms for any jobs with the council that don't require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.