Disclosure Scotland, run by the Glasgow-based Scottish Criminal Record Office (SCRO), has launched a certificate known as a Basic Disclosure.

The certificates will provide details of a job candidate’s unspent criminal convictions under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

Basic Disclosures are the lowest-level criminal checks and are provided to individuals, not employers. But recruiters and employers will be able to request the certificates from job applicants to make informed decisions about which candidate to choose.

Justice minister Jim Wallace said: “Prospective employees can also demonstrate that they are a responsible citizen and employee by producing a Basic Disclosure when applying for a post.”