Online dating makes it easy to meet someone whose background nobody in your circle can vouch for. Most people rely on conversation, video calls and instinct. In cases where a relationship is developing and there are concerns about violence or abuse, there is also an official route: police-run disclosure schemes. This guide explains how the scheme in England and Wales, often called Clare’s Law, and Scotland’s separate scheme work. Northern Ireland is not covered in detail, because the Police Scotland page consulted says only that people there should contact the Police Service of Northern Ireland.
England and Wales: the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme
A Home Office factsheet explains that the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS), also known as “Clare’s Law”, enables police to disclose information to a victim or potential victim of domestic abuse about their partner’s or ex-partner’s previous abusive or violent offending. It was implemented across all police forces in England and Wales in March 2014. The Home Office’s easy-read guide says it is named after Clare Wood, who was murdered by her ex-boyfriend in Manchester in 2009, and that ex-partners have been covered as well as current partners since 2015.
Two routes: right to ask and right to know
The scheme has two elements. Under the “right to ask”, an individual, or a relevant third party such as a family member, can ask the police to check whether a current or ex-partner has a violent or abusive past. If records show a person may be at risk of domestic abuse, the police will consider disclosing the information. Under the “right to know”, the police can make a disclosure on their own initiative if they receive information about someone’s violent or abusive behaviour that may affect the safety of their current or ex-partner, for example from a criminal investigation, an agency or other police intelligence.
What the police can and cannot disclose
The factsheet says a disclosure can lawfully be made where it is based on the police’s common law powers to disclose information necessary to prevent crime, and where it complies with case law, data protection and human rights legislation. It must be reasonable and proportionate, based on a credible risk of violence or harm. The easy-read guide adds that abuse for this purpose includes emotional abuse, controlling behaviour and financial abuse, and that information shared must also follow laws such as the Human Rights Act 1998, the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. It lists examples of information the police might give, including violence, threatening behaviour, sexual assault, harassment, stalking and criminal damage.
Because disclosure depends on police records and a risk judgement, a reply that gives no information cannot be treated as proof that someone is safe. The scheme is one tool, alongside the usual precautions for meeting a new person.
How to apply in England and Wales
The easy-read guide says requests can be made by going into a police station, where you can ask in private, or by asking online, where a “quick escape” button is provided. Applicants have to give personal details, such as where they live and work, date of birth and whether they have children, describe the relationship with the person they are worried about and how long they have known them, and say whether that person knows information is being requested. The police will need to see identification, such as a bank statement or electricity bill. Any information disclosed is confidential; the applicant may be asked to sign a paper agreeing to keep it to themselves. It can be given to the person at risk or to someone responsible for their safeguarding, such as a social worker, and it will be told to the person rather than written down. The guide says it should take 28 days (four weeks) to get an answer.
Scotland: the Disclosure Scheme for Domestic Abuse Scotland (DSDAS)
Police Scotland describes its own scheme, DSDAS, which lets people ask the police to share information on whether someone has an abusive past, to help prevent domestic abuse. An application can be made if you or someone you know is at risk. Police Scotland says it will make a disclosure only after considering all factors, assessing the threat carefully and deciding whether sharing information is needed to prevent a person from experiencing domestic abuse, and it may speak to other agencies first. It will act immediately if it thinks someone needs protecting from harm.
A key difference for friends and relatives: if an application is made on someone else’s behalf, Police Scotland says it cannot make the disclosure to the applicant, only to the person who is at risk. To apply, a person can complete the online DSDAS form, visit a nearby police station or phone 101. The page notes that in England or Wales people should speak to their local police for Clare’s Law information.
Where this fits in online dating
The England and Wales scheme is framed around current and former partners, and applicants are asked to explain the relationship and how long they have known the person, so it is relevant once a relationship is developing rather than at the first message. Police Scotland’s page speaks more broadly of people at risk of domestic abuse.
Frequently asked questions
Can a friend or relative apply for me?
Yes. In England and Wales a relevant third party can ask, and in Scotland an application can be made on someone else’s behalf, though the disclosure goes only to the person at risk.
Is the scheme the same across the UK?
No. England and Wales use the DVDS, Scotland uses DSDAS and Northern Ireland has its own arrangements through the Police Service of Northern Ireland.
The bottom line
Where a relationship is developing and there are worries about violence or abuse, England and Wales offer Clare’s Law and Scotland offers DSDAS, both run through the police and both based on a risk judgement about whether disclosure is necessary. Applications can be made online or in person, third parties can ask on someone’s behalf, and a lack of disclosure should not be read as a clean bill of health.