Q950: How long do I need to disclose my conviction for?

No, by agreeing to have a Penalty Notice for Disorder (PND) and paying the fine you will not receive a criminal conviction. Accepting and paying the fine is not an admission of guilt but discharges the possibility of the creation of a criminal record.

The fact that you have been given a PND will be recorded on the Police National Computer, but it will not create a criminal record. The information is recorded for administrative purposes and to establish if a person has had more than one PND.

If a criminal records check is carried out it does not automatically mean that the PND would be disclosed. However, it could be referred to if the behaviour that led to the PND was linked with the reason for the check.

A caution is a formal warning that is given to a person who has admitted the offence. If the person refuses the caution, then they will normally be prosecuted through the normal channels for the offence. Although it is not technically classed as a conviction (as only the Courts can convict someone) it can be taken into consideration by the Courts if the person is convicted of a further offence.

Cautions are covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and become spent immediately (apart from conditional cautions which will become spent after 3 months). Unless applying for particular types of work (see below), a person who has spent cautions does not have to disclose them to prospective employers and employers cannot refuse to employ someone on the basis of spent cautions.

However, when applying for particular types of employment, for example, working with children or vulnerable adults, certain professions such as law, health care and pharmacy, senior management posts within certain sectors and employment where matters of national security are involved, the application form will state that it is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. In these situations, you may need need to disclose your caution and it may be disclosed on your DBS criminal records check. See Q89 for further guidance on whether your caution will be disclosed.

Cautions will always remain on a person's record. There are only exceptional circumstances when a caution could be removed from a person's record and it is anticipated that such incidents will be rare. Examples of such possible circumstances are that it was found that the original arrest or sample was unlawful or where it was found beyond all doubt that no offence existed. Any requests that fit the above criteria should be directed to ACRO Criminal Records Office. Please see the link in the Related Information for further details.

The Data Protection Act 2018 provides that individuals have the 'right to rectification or erasure' of inaccurate or incomplete 'personal data' that is held by any organisation about them. If you become aware that the police hold personal data about you on their systems that is inaccurate, then you can make a request for them to rectify or erase the information. You can make your request by telephone, email or write to them. The police will then consider and action your request and respond within one month. They may ask you to provide documents to prove your identity. If so, the one month will start from the date they have confirmed your identity.