One mistake. A £60,000 fine. A potential jail sentence. That’s the cost of getting compliance wrong.
It only takes one missed check to cause serious damage: costly delays, legal penalties, or long-term reputational harm.
Take Right to Work checks, for example. Hiring someone without valid documentation can result in civil penalties of up to £60,000 per illegal worker. But it doesn’t stop there. If the Home Office believes you knew – or should have known – the person wasn’t eligible to work, you could also face criminal charges and jail time.
And it’s not just immigration checks. In sectors like education, healthcare, or charity, failing to carry out proper DBS checks could put vulnerable people at risk. The consequences? Safeguarding failures, criminal investigations, loss of funding, or even service closure.
Compliance isn’t a ‘nice-to-have’, it’s a legal requirement. So, ask yourself:
If you’re not managing it, can you trust your team not to make a mistake?
If you are managing it, can you guarantee you won’t make a mistake?
One Missed Check Cost a Client £30,000
Before we built Employment Tools, one of our clients got hit with a £30,000 fine from the Home Office.
Here’s what happened: The employee did have the Right to Work. But it wasn’t recorded properly. The documentation hadn’t been updated in time, and by the time the audit rolled around, it was too late. The original fine was meant to be £15,000… but the penalty was doubled to £30,000. Obviously someone must have needed a little extra cash that week.
If it happened again? They’d be looking at £60,000.
That’s a hard price to pay for a bit of missing paperwork.
Why We Built Employment Tools
That £30,000 fine wasn’t just a wake-up call – it was the final straw. We realised just how easy it was for even diligent organisations to fall through the cracks. Too many were juggling different systems, chasing paperwork across departments, and relying on memory to keep compliant.
So we built something better.
Employment Tools brings all your checks into one place as a live compliance dashboard that shows exactly what’s been done, what’s missing, and what’s coming up.
From a single screen, you can:
- Carry out Basic, Standard or Enhanced DBS checks
- Automatically check Update Service status’s
- Confirm Right to Work status
- See whose Right to Work status is expiring
- Collect references
- Request International Checks
- Perform a range of other background checks (e.g. education, social media, watch lists etc.)
- Request ID checks
No more guesswork. No more “we thought it was covered.” Just clear, simple compliance done right, every time.
Designed to Make Your Life Easier
We know that compliance isn’t the only thing on your plate. That’s why we’ve made Employment Tools as simple and efficient as possible.
You don’t need to be a legal expert or IT specialist to use it – just log in and get the checks you need. Whether you’re handling a handful of new hires or processing dozens of applications a week, our platform scales with you.
We’ve also built-in features that really make a difference:
- Live tracking so you can see exactly where each check is up to
- Expiry Notifications that let you know when a new check needs to be done
- Same-day submissions to keep things moving
- Free admin credit to help stretch your budget even further
- Friendly support from real people who genuinely want to help
We’ve worked closely with organisations of all sizes across the UK, from local charities and care providers to national businesses, to ensure our system meets their real-world needs. Their input has shaped everything we do. We’ve listened, refined, and improved our platform so that it not only makes day-to-day compliance easier, but genuinely helps avoid the costly mistakes that can lead to delays, fines, or worse.
Employment Tools isn’t just another bit of software – it’s a practical solution built around the challenges you face, designed to give you peace of mind that everything is done right. Every time.
Let’s Take the Stress Out of Compliance
Staying compliant doesn’t have to be overwhelming. If you’re juggling multiple systems, unsure about the latest requirements, or just want a smoother way to handle checks, we’re here to help.
Employment Tools is designed to simplify the process and give you full control over your organisation’s compliance, without the admin burden.
We’d love to show you how it all works. Whether you’ve got questions, need advice, or just want to see if it’s a good fit, our team is ready to talk. Let’s make compliance one less thing to worry about.
About The Author
John Schofield-Antoncich
John has processed more applications than days he has been alive, and has become the DBS expert. Got a question? He knows the answer!