You will need the Read Background Checks and Write Safeguards permissions to review results and record a decision, plus the Limited Read People permission to open the Contacts listing where background checks live. All three are campus-scoped, so a campus override can change them at one campus, and you need them at the person's campuses. See People for what these permissions cover, and Campuses and organizations in Version 8 for how campus access works.
When a background check comes back from Protect My Ministry, One Church Software does not approve anyone on its own. Someone on your team reads the report, decides, and records that decision on the person's Background Check safeguard. Until a decision is saved, the check stays flagged as Ready For Decision.
This article walks you through that review. If you haven't ordered a check yet, start with How do I run a background check?
Review results and record your decision
Know when results are ready
Protect My Ministry sends the results to One Church Software automatically, so there is nothing to check or refresh. When they arrive, the background check changes to Complete and your team is notified in three places:
Email - sent only to the staff member who placed the order. The subject reads "Background check complete for" followed by the person's name.
System Tasks - the To Do List on the Home dashboard shows background check ready for a decision with a count. Only users with both the Read Background Checks and Write Safeguards permissions see it.
Ready For Decision - a red flag on the check in Contacts > Screenings > Background Checks, and red Ready for decision text under the safeguard on the person's Safeguards tab.
All three stay in place until a decision is saved.
Tip: Complete means the report is ready to read. It does not mean the person passed.
Open the background check
On the Home dashboard, click background check ready for a decision under System Tasks. This opens Contacts > Screenings > Background Checks, already filtered to checks that are ready for a decision and not archived.
Find the person. A check that is waiting on you shows Complete, View Report and a red Ready For Decision link in the Status column.
You can also go to Contacts > Screenings > Background Checks at any time and use the Ready For Decision filter to show only the checks waiting on you. See Narrow the list with filters below.
Read the report
Click View Report. The report opens on Protect My Ministry's website in a new tab. One Church Software keeps a link to the report, not the findings themselves, so you read the results there.
View Report also appears in the View Background Check window and in the Screening Details section of the safeguard. What counts as disqualifying is up to your church's own policy. One Church Software doesn't make that call.
Record your decision
Your decision is the Status of the person's Background Check safeguard. There is no separate approve or deny button. The safeguard was created for you, set to Pending, when the check was ordered, so don't add a second one by hand.
1. Open the linked safeguard
Click the red Ready For Decision link in the list. The Edit Safeguard window opens directly.
To see the check's details first, click the package name, or click the 3-dots menu at the start of the row and choose View. In the View Background Check window, click Edit linked safeguard.
You can also start from the person's profile. Open the Safeguards tab and click Background Check in the Type column. The red Ready for decision text under it is a reminder, not a link.
2. Choose a status
Once the report is complete, the Status field unlocks. Open it and choose the outcome:
Cleared - the person has been cleared and is allowed to perform the associated duties.
Not Cleared - the person has not been cleared.
Exception - there was an issue resolving the check, and clearance cannot be determined.
A status your church added - also counts as a decision. Your church's list may include statuses not shown here.
Pending - not a decision. If you leave the status on Pending, the check stays flagged.
3. Set when it expires
Enter an Expires On date that matches your church's re-screening policy. Completed On was filled in for you when the results arrived, and it can't be changed.
Tip: One Church Software never fills in Expires On for you. If you leave it blank, the clearance never expires. Once an expiration date passes, the person's Safeguards tab shows a red Expired label. No reminder email is sent before then.
4. Add notes or files if needed
Use Comments for a short note about your review. Use the Files tab for any supporting documents. Files stay in One Church Software and are not sent to Protect My Ministry.
5. Save
Click Save. Your decision is recorded, the Ready For Decision flag clears everywhere, the dashboard task goes away, and the change is saved in the safeguard's history.
Reading the report is not the last step. Your decision is only recorded once the safeguard's Status is set to something other than Pending and saved.
Track your background checks
Background check status and safeguard status
A background check has its own status, and the person's safeguard has a separate one. Keeping the two apart answers most questions.
| Background check status | Safeguard status |
What it tracks | Where the order stands with Protect My Ministry | Your church's decision about the person |
Who changes it | One Church Software, automatically | You, by editing the safeguard |
Values | Invited, Pending, Complete | Pending, Cleared, Not Cleared, Exception, plus any statuses your church adds |
Where you see it | Contacts > Screenings > Background Checks, and Report Status inside the safeguard | The person's Safeguards tab, and the Status field in Edit Safeguard |
What the Status column shows
Each row in Contacts > Screenings > Background Checks shows where that check stands:
Invited with an Invite Link - the applicant hasn't submitted their information yet. An invited check can still be deleted, which also removes its safeguard.
Pending - the applicant has submitted and Protect My Ministry is running the searches. There's nothing to do yet, and the safeguard's Status is locked.
Complete, View Report and Ready For Decision - the results are in and nobody has recorded a decision yet.
Complete and View Report - the results are in and a decision has been saved. The report stays available.
Why can't I change the status yet?
While a check is Invited or Pending, the safeguard's Status can't be changed, and Completed On and Expires On are hidden. The info icon next to Status explains why: "Status will be editable once the background check report completes."
Report Status under Screening Details shows where the check stands. Once it changes to Complete, the Status field unlocks.
Narrow the list with filters
Click Filter above the table to open the Filters panel. The filters you will use most are:
Ready For Decision - limits the list to checks that are finished and waiting on your decision. Choose Yes, No, or Both.
Is Archived? - defaults to No, so archived checks are hidden until you change it. Choose Yes to see only archived checks, or Both to see everything.
Status and Package - narrow by where the check stands or which package was ordered.
Reports, Name, Email and Phone - narrow by report type or by the applicant.
Click Search to apply your filters, or Clear All Filters to start over.
Common questions
I saved, but the check still says Ready For Decision.
The safeguard's Status was left on Pending, or only the View Background Check window was saved. Open the safeguard, choose any status other than Pending, and click Save.
I can't change the status.
Either the report isn't complete yet (check Report Status), or you don't have the Read Background Checks permission at the person's campuses. Recording a decision takes both Read Background Checks and Write Safeguards, and both are campus-scoped. Without both, the dashboard task doesn't appear for you either.
Nobody got the email.
Only the staff member who placed the order is emailed. If that person is away or has left, the dashboard task and the Ready For Decision flag still let the rest of your team know a decision is waiting.
The dashboard task went away, but nobody made a decision.
The check was probably archived. Archiving removes a check from the task and from the default list, even without a decision. Click Filter, set Is Archived? to Yes, and click Search to find it.
We chose the wrong status.
Open the safeguard and change it. After the first decision, the status can be changed like any other safeguard, and every change is kept in its history. Click view history at the bottom of the Edit Safeguard window to see past changes.
Can I delete this safeguard?
Not while it is linked to a background check. Delete still appears in the menu, but confirming shows "This safeguard is linked to a background check and cannot be deleted." Its Type and Completed On are also locked.
How do we renew a clearance?
There is no automatic renewal. When a clearance is about to expire, order a new background check. That creates a new safeguard. Protect My Ministry's free re-verification happens on their side and doesn't change anything in One Church Software.
Does Cleared give someone access to check-in or serving?
Not automatically. Safeguards are records your staff can view and filter people by. Check-in, groups and service planning don't look at them.
Other Helpful Articles
Background checks
Safeguards