Working in partnership for a safer Glasgow

Recruitment and Selection Charter

Version 5 – Effective 12 October 2015

CONTENTS

Page

1. INTRODUCTION 2

2. ADVERTISING PROCESS 2

3. DOUBLE TICK – POSITIVE ABOUT DISABILITY 2

4. THE APPLICATION PROCESS 3

5. THE SHORTLISTING PROCESS 3

6. THE SELECTION PROCESS 4

7. ELIGIBILITY TO WORK IN THE UNITED KINGDOM 4

8. DECLARATION OF CONVICTIONS 5 8.1 - Declaration of Unspent Convictions 5 8.2 - Declaration of Spent Convictions 5

9. PRE-EMPLOYMENT OFFER 5

10. EMPLOYMENT VETTING 6 10.1 - Disclosure Scotland Check 6 10.2 - Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme 6 10.3 - Other Vetting arrangements 6

11. EMPLOYMENT OF EX-SERVICE USERS 6

12. EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES 7

13. DATA PROTECTION 7

14. RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION POLICY 7

15. COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE 7

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1. INTRODUCTION

The Recruitment and Selection Charter sets out the standards which you can expect from Community Safety Glasgow during the recruitment process, including how your information will be held and used under the Data Protection Act 1998.

We are committed to achieving high standards of quality in recruitment and ensuring that our procedures remove any barriers to equality of opportunity at all stages of the recruitment and selection process. Our development and use of employment procedures and practices do not discriminate on any grounds including your:

• Age • Sexual Orientation • Disability • Marriage and Civil Partnership • Gender Reassignment • Pregnancy and Maternity • Race • Religion or Belief • Sex • Actual or perceived protected characteristic • Actual or perceived association with someone with a protected characteristic

Or any other reason which cannot be shown to be justified.

Our commitments to you as a job applicant are outlined throughout this document.

2. ADVERTISING PROCESS

www.myjobscotland.gov.uk (“myjobscotland”) is the Scottish National Recruitment Portal (led by the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities ‘COSLA’). Community Safety Glasgow use myjobscotland for all recruitment advertising, application processing and recruitment administration. Therefore, candidates/employees will be able to apply for vacancies online via myjobscotland.

Customer & Business Services, Glasgow City Council, manage the administrative, system and technical processes on the Company’s behalf.

3. DOUBLE TICK – POSITIVE ABOUT DISABILITY

Community Safety Glasgow is accredited with using the ‘double tick’ symbol and as such welcome applications from disabled candidates. Any disabled applicant who meets the minimum (essential) criteria for the job vacancy will be guaranteed an interview. If you are invited to interview, you will be asked in the correspondence confirming your interview arrangements to contact a named officer to discuss any particular requirements you have.

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4. THE APPLICATION PROCESS

The information detailed in the recruitment advert, and accompanying attachments, will provide the basis for you to make an informed decision about whether to apply for the job.

Applications should be made online through the myjobscotland website or by completing the Company’s standard application form. Please note that a CV will not be accepted. However, if you have a disability which makes it difficult for you to submit a completed application form, submission via an alternative format will be accepted as a reasonable adjustment.

The application pack is available in alternative formats. If you require this pack in an alternative format please call our Customer Care Centre on 0141 287 1054. The application pack will normally be sent out within 3 working days following request.

The information which you provide in your application form will play a vital part in shortlisting your application for interview; therefore it is important that you take time to complete it as fully and accurately as possible. If you are handwriting an application form please write as clearly as possible.

You will be asked to confirm that the information contained in your application is true and accurate. Any false information or omissions may lead to dismissal, if you have been appointed in post.

5. THE SHORTLISTING PROCESS

Shortlisting will be carried out by assessing the evidence provided on applications against the selection criteria. This process will be carried out by the Recruiting Manager for the post.

You will be advised, via e-mail, as to whether you have been successful or unsuccessful in gaining an interview and we will advise you if you are being invited to interview normally within six weeks of the closing date.

We will normally give you at least one week’s notice of the interview and we ask that you promptly confirm your attendance, or otherwise. If you are unable to attend on the day or at the time requested, we will try, where possible, to make alternative arrangements, however this cannot be guaranteed.

If you have been unsuccessful in gaining an interview, feedback on the reasons for this will not normally be provided.

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6. THE SELECTION PROCESS

The selection process will be conducted in a professional manner. The Manager responsible for making the selection decision (The Recruiting Manager) will have completed training in fair and effective recruitment and selection.

If the job you are applying for asks for qualifications, accreditation or a driving licence as essential selection criteria, you will be asked to bring original documentation to your interview to verify this information.

You will be informed in advance of your interview about the selection techniques to be used, e.g. presentations, assessment centres, etc. The selection techniques will always relate directly to the role and the selection criteria.

The final selection decision will be made by assessing against the selection criteria and the evidence which the panel has obtained from your:

• Application;• Interview;• Any other interview assessment(s);• Pre-employment checks, including references.

If the selection process includes pre-employment vetting checks you will be advised how this will be carried out. For further information, please refer to Section 10.

If you are successful following interview, we shall advise you as soon as possible. Confirmation of a conditional offer of employment, subject to pre-employment checks, will normally be made in writing within three weeks of the conclusion of the interviews.

If you have been unsuccessful at interview, we will normally advise you via e-mail within three weeks of the interview and you will be advised of the procedure for requesting feedback.

7. ELIGIBILITY TO WORK IN THE UNITED KINGDOM

Under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, we are legally required to check that you are entitled to work in the UK. Further details of evidence you will need to provide will be given to you before your interview.

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8. DECLARATION OF CONVICTIONS

8.1 Declaration of Unspent Convictions

You are required to declare any unspent convictions when you are applying for a job with us.

We ask for this information because we have a duty to balance our commitment to help ex-offenders find work with our need to protect the public and those who receive our services.

Our ‘Policy Statement on Recruitment and Employment of Ex-Offenders’ states that any relevant convictions are taken into account, please refer to this policy statement for further information.

8.2 Declaration of Spent Convictions

If you are applying for a job which involves working on a regular basis, with children and/or vulnerable adults, we also need you to declare certain spent convictions as these posts are exempt from the provisions of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exclusions and Exceptions) (Scotland) Amendment Order 2015.

A full list of convictions that must always be disclosed and convictions that should be disclosed subject to rules is available on the Disclosure Scotland website: www.disclosurescotland.co.uk.

9. PRE-EMPLOYMENT OFFER

An offer of employment will be conditional subject to pre-employment checks, including the receipt of suitable references. If you are an external candidate, you will be required to provide details of two employment referees, ideally with two separate employers, which cover at least three years previous employment. One referee must be your current or most recent employer. Further references may also be obtained where those received are lacking in detail and the Company reserve the right to approach any of your previous employers should the need arise.

If you are an internal candidate, you will be required to provide details of one referee which should be a manager in your current Management structure. References will be obtained for the successful candidate once a conditional offer of employment has been made.

Where it has been identified as being applicable to the post, you will be required to complete a medical questionnaire at the point of offer, and may also be required to attend a consultation with Occupational Health who will then advise the Human Resources Section as to your suitability for employment.

Employment vetting is essential to ensure the preferred candidate’s suitability for employment in a particular role and the Company has identified the employment vetting checks that apply to each post within the Company to ensure that appropriate checks are carried out that support the needs of the business. For further information, please refer to the Company’s Guidance on Employment Vetting, available on our website: www.communitysafetyglasgow.org.

All appropriate pre-employment checks, confirming your suitability for the post, must be obtained prior to a formal offer of employment being made.

A formal offer of employment will be made confirming start date and the terms and conditions of employment upon receipt of satisfactory pre-employment checks which confirm that you are suitable for employment.

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10. EMPLOYMENT VETTING

10.1 Disclosure Scotland Check

For positions that require access to the Public Services Network (PSN), a system designed to help public services work together and share information more effectively, the prospective employee will require a basic disclosure before they can access the system. In addition, there are some positions that require a standard disclosure.

Where a Disclosure Scotland Check is required, reference will be made to this on the post advert and individuals will be advised of this at interview stage. Any new appointments, including external applicants and internal applicants moving to a new post within the Company, will be required to meet the cost of Disclosure Scotland Check.

10.2 Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme

Successful applicants, appointed in posts which involve regulated work with children and vulnerable adults, will require membership of the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme. Where membership is required, reference will be made to this on the post advert and individuals will be advised of this at interview stage.

Any new appointments, including external applicants and internal applicants moving to a new post within the Company, which involve regulated work with children and vulnerable adults, will be required to meet the cost of their PVG Membership (if not already registered) or a PVG Scheme Update (for those who are already registered).

Where it has been identified that a post requires membership of the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme, membership must be obtained prior to a formal offer of employment being made.

10.3 Other Vetting arrangements

In the recruitment advert, we will have detailed the vetting arrangements that will be applicable for the post. It is important that you are aware of what these vetting arrangements entail; therefore, please refer to the Company’s Guidance on Employment Vetting, available on our website: www.communitysafetyglasgow.org.

11. EMPLOYMENT OF EX-SERVICE USERS

The Company has a duty to all ex-service users not to exploit their involvement with a particular Service by inappropriately offering them a volunteering opportunity or paid employment within that Service.

When applying for employment or volunteering opportunities with the Company, applicants are asked to disclose if they are an ex-service user. Ex-service users will not automatically be discounted from the recruitment and selection process. However, it is important for the Recruiting Manager to balance the Service’s responsibilities to provide a good quality service to existing service users and to support the well-being of employees.

For further information, please refer to the Company’s Policy Statement on Recruitment and Employment of Ex-Service Users, available on our website: www.communitysafetyglasgow.org.

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12. EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

Community Safety Glasgow is committed to promoting equality and diversity in the workplace and to providing equality of opportunity to all applicants at every stage of the recruitment and selection process. The Company operates a policy which aims to ensure that unlawful or unjustifiable discrimination does not occur within the recruitment and selection process. To help the Company monitor the effectiveness of this policy, you are asked to provide the information requested on the Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form.

The Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form will be detached before the application form reaches the selection panel and this information will not be provided to them.

If you have indicated on your application form that you have a disability you will be invited to an interview if you meet the minimum selection criteria.

The information you provide will be held in confidence. The information will be used for statistical purposes to enable the Company to carry out its equal opportunities monitoring obligations.

13. DATA PROTECTION

The information you provide will be treated in confidence and with discretion. Your details, once received, will be stored in a confidential recruitment database. Your application will be stored confidentially for a period of 6 months, after which time it will be confidentially archived/destroyed. Only authorised staff involved in the recruitment and selection process will have access to your application.

14. RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION POLICY

You can obtain a copy of the Company’s Recruitment and Selection Policy from our website: www.communitysafetyglasgow.org, by e-mail to: CommsafetyRecruitment@glasgow.gov.uk or by telephoning 0141 276 7492.

15. COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE

You will be treated in a polite, helpful and friendly manner at all times. We are committed to achieving these standards and acting on constructive feedback received, therefore if you feel dissatisfied with the service you have received, please write to:- Paul McGaulley, Human Resources Manager, Community Safety Glasgow, Eastgate, 727 London Road, Glasgow G40 3AQ or by e-mail to: CommsafetyRecruitment@glasgow.gov.uk.

For further information, please refer to the Company’s Recruitment and Selection Policy (Appendix 2 - Complaints Procedure).

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Eastgate, 727 London Road, Glasgow G40 3AQ.

Tel: 0141 276 7400 Email: enquiries@communitysafetyglasgow.org

Community Safety Glasgow is a limited company incorporated in Scotland (No. 130604)

and a registered charity (SCO17889). Managing Director: Phil Walker,

Community Safety Glasgow is an equal opportunities employer.