What Disclosure Scotland does

Disclosure Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government, established in 2007 under the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007. It is the sole statutory operator of the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme and the sole processor of Basic, Standard and Enhanced disclosure checks for individuals and organizations based in Scotland. The agency's purpose is to vet individuals seeking roles involving contact with vulnerable groups (children and protected adults) and to maintain ongoing monitoring of those it certifies as PVG scheme members.

The agency serves a broad mandatory constituency: paid employees, volunteers, and self-employed individuals across regulated sectors (healthcare, social care, education, justice, sport and childcare), together with the employers, agencies and registered bodies that sponsor those checks. In 2025 it processed approximately 627,955 disclosures and 374,477 PVG scheme applications, with 115,129 new members joining the PVG scheme. Service delivery is increasingly digital — the November 2024 launch of the Online Account Service replaced earlier paper-based and partial-portal workflows with an end-to-end digital application and case-management channel.

Disclosure Scotland operates as a statutory monopoly with a regulated fee-and-appropriation revenue model. Statutory fees are set in legislation (Basic Disclosure £25, PVG Scheme Join £59, PVG Existing Member £18) and are supplemented by Scottish Government appropriations that fund policy, oversight, and continuous lifetime monitoring of PVG members against police records and barred-list data. The business model is therefore hybrid — fee-bearing transactional volume plus block grant funding — and is structurally insulated from competitive displacement, with growth driven primarily by regulatory expansion (notably the April 2025 move making PVG membership a legal requirement for relevant roles) and product modernization rather than market share capture.

Name

Disclosure Scotland

Legal name

Disclosure Scotland

Website

https://disclosure.gov.scot

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Disclosure Scotland is a Scottish Government executive agency that operates the country's PVG scheme and processes criminal background disclosure checks for individuals working with vulnerable groups across regulated sectors in Scotland.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Criminal Record Disclosure and Vetting Services

NAICS

Investigation and Personal Background Check Services (561611), Investigation and Security Services (5616)

SIC

Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374)

akta.pro primary industry

Social Media & Online Reputation Screening (BPACALAL)

Keywords

• Criminal background checks
• Vulnerable groups vetting
• Disclosure certification
• PVG scheme membership
• Barred list screening

Headquarters

HQ city

Glasgow

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Disclosure Application Fees: Fees charged for processing disclosure applications at various levels. Level 1 and Level 2 disclosures are £25 each. PVG scheme (Join) applications are £59. PVG scheme (Existing) applications are £18.
2. PVG Scheme Membership Fees: Fees for PVG scheme membership applications including Confirmation of PVG scheme membership for self-employed individuals at £59 (Join) or £18 (Existing).
3. Accredited Body Annual Subscription: Organisations registered as accredited bodies with Disclosure Scotland pay an annual subscription fee of £125 from 1 April 2025.
4. Volunteer Fee Waiver: Free PVG scheme membership provided to volunteers since 2011. This is a cost subsidy rather than revenue generation, supporting the voluntary sector.
5. Social Care Fee Waiver: PVG scheme fee waiver for eligible social care workers starting new roles in commissioned adult or children's social care services, covering fees of £18 to £59 during the period 1 August 2026 to 31 July 2027.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

Disclosure Scotland is a Scottish Government executive agency that processes criminal record disclosure checks at Level 1, Level 2, and Level 2 with Barred List Check, and operates the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme covering membership applications, continuous monitoring of scheme members, and maintenance of national barring lists for individuals working with children and protected adults. Services are delivered through a digital-first online platform on mygov.scot, with individuals applying and sharing disclosures, and organisations (accredited bodies, countersignatories) submitting applications and managing PVG memberships online.

Product overview

Disclosure Scotland is a Scottish Government executive agency offering a unified disclosure and vetting service portfolio. The core offering consists of PVG Scheme (Protecting Vulnerable Groups) membership with continuous monitoring, combined with Level 1 and Level 2 disclosure certificates at various check depths. From April 2026, all PVG memberships operate on a five-year renewable cycle. The Online Account Service serves as the unified digital platform enabling individuals to apply, view results, and share disclosures, while providing organisations with tools for application tracking, membership management, and self-service features. The product suite also includes sector-specific guidance, e-learning courses, regulated roles checker tools, and review application capabilities for greater applicant control over disclosure information.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Level 1 Disclosure Basic disclosure check showing unspent convictions. Available to any individual aged 16 and over for any purpose. Costs £25 per application. Available to countersign through online accredited body accounts from June 2025.
• Level 2 Disclosure Enhanced disclosure showing spent and unspent convictions, notification requirements, unspent cautions, and other relevant police information. For certain roles such as accountants or solicitors. Costs £25 per application.
• Level 2 Disclosure with Barred List Check Level 2 disclosure that additionally checks if the person is barred from working with children or protected adults, or under consideration for barring. Replaced the enhanced disclosure with suitability check. Costs £25 per application.
• PVG Scheme Membership (Join) Application for new individuals to join the Protecting Vulnerable Groups scheme. Legal requirement for those carrying out regulated roles with children or protected adults. Results in five-year membership from 1 April 2026. Costs £59 per application.
• PVG Scheme Membership (Existing) Application for existing PVG scheme members continuing to work with the same vulnerable group. Adds the organisation to the existing membership. Costs £18 per application.
• Confirmation of PVG Scheme Membership (Join) Application for self-employed people joining the PVG scheme, or self-employed PVG members wanting to work with a new vulnerable group. Costs £59 per application.
• Confirmation of PVG Scheme Membership (Existing) Application for self-employed PVG scheme members continuing to work with the same vulnerable group on their membership. Costs £18 per application.
• Accredited Body Annual Subscription Annual subscription for organisations registered as accredited bodies with Disclosure Scotland, enabling them to countersign disclosure applications and manage PVG scheme memberships. £125 per year from 1 April 2025.
• Online Account Service Unified digital platform on mygov.scot allowing individuals to apply for disclosures, view results, and share with employers. Allows accredited bodies and countersignatories to submit applications, track status, manage PVG memberships, and use self-service features such as bulk organisation-interest removal via CSV upload. Integrated with the Scottish Government's ScotAccount for secure sign-in.
• Barring Service

Quantifiable outcome

• 627,955 total disclosures processed in 2025, averaging 2,672 checks per working day
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Volunteer Scotland Disclosure Services (VSDS)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorVSDS serves volunteer organisations in Scotland, processing PVG applications on behalf of volunteers. Disclosure Scotland is working with VSDS to allow their customers to use the new self-service features in the future.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS): The UK Government agency responsible for criminal record checks and barring in England and Wales. Most direct functional peer to Disclosure Scotland, operating the same type of PVG-equivalent checks (Enhanced with Barred List) under a separate statutory framework but covering the same core use cases.
• Checkr: US-based background check platform providing automated criminal, identity, and compliance screening via API. Although geographically focused on the US, the technology model (digital-first, continuous monitoring, employer integration) is directly comparable to Disclosure Scotland's online platform ambitions.

Broad incumbents

• HireRight: Global commercial background screening provider covering criminal records, employment, education, and identity verification. While Disclosure Scotland is a government monopoly, HireRight is the leading commercial counterpart that multinational employers often use alongside or instead of governmental schemes for cross-border hiring.
• Accurate Background: Commercial background screening provider with strong enterprise footprint in regulated industries. Comparable to Disclosure Scotland in the employer-facing disclosure and vetting use case, particularly for multi-jurisdiction employers.
• Sterling (Sterling Talent Solutions): Global background screening and identity verification provider serving employers of all sizes. Comparable in functional offering to Disclosure Scotland, particularly around regulated-role screening, though operating as a commercial entity rather than a government agency.

Emerging players

• Certn: Background screening platform offering criminal, employment, education, and right-to-work checks with continuous monitoring features. Comparable to Disclosure Scotland's PVG-plus-continuous-monitoring model in the commercial sector, particularly for hiring in regulated sectors.
• Veremark: UK-based background screening provider with a focus on digital, candidate-friendly verification workflows. Closely comparable to Disclosure Scotland's online account service experience and continuous monitoring ambitions in the commercial sphere.
• Onfido: Digital identity verification provider using document and biometric verification. While not a direct background screening competitor, Onfido's ScotAccount-equivalent identity verification technology underpins the front door of Disclosure Scotland's online account service.

Regional players

• AccessNI: Northern Ireland's criminal record checking service administered by the Department of Justice. Equivalent to Disclosure Scotland and DBS but serving Northern Ireland, offering Basic, Standard, and Enhanced disclosures with similar safeguarding legislation.
• National Vetting Service (Garda Vetting): Ireland's Garda Síochána vetting service for roles involving children and vulnerable persons. Closest cross-border peer covering the Republic of Ireland, with a similar mandate to screen individuals working with vulnerable groups.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/DisclosureScot
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC_0NlQPJ3ce2f1QRATsPtnQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/DisclosureScotland
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/disclosure-scotland
• Instagraminstagram.com/disclosurescotland

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Disclosure Scotland