Recruitment and Selection Guidance for Managers Version 1 September 2014 1
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1. Introduction 2. Advertising 3. Shortlisting 4. Safer Recruitment and Shortlisting 5. Interviews/Assessment 6. Job Offer 7. Pre-employment Checks 8. Induction 9. Equality Act 2010 10. Useful forms and documents 3
1. Introduction The purpose of this document is to provide guidance for managers on the effective recruitment and selection of staff to Outwood Grange Academies Trust. It brings together good practise, key points of the Trust s Recruitment and Selection Policy and relevant employment legislation, along with safeguarding requirements. It is important that the recruitment process in the Trust is transparent, fair, and equitable and ensures that the best person for the post is recruited. Links to useful documents and templates on the staff intranet are provided in this guidance, and advice and support is available from HR at all times. Other documents you may wish to refer to include: Recruitment and Selection Policy DfE guidance Keeping Children Safe in Education April 2014 If there is anything not in this document which you think other people would find useful, please contact OGAT HR and we will look to include further information in future updated versions of this guidance. 4
2. Advertising The first thing that you will need to consider before advertising your vacancy is the reason for advertising and how the vacancy has come about. The post could be: A direct replacement for a leaver A new post If the post does not already exist on the Academy s staffing structure, approval must be gained to create a new post. For any permanent posts with a salary of above 55,000, this must be approved by the Board. For Group posts with salaries below 55,000, this must be approved by the Chief Executive, and for Academy posts, by the Executive Principal. Types of Contract Different posts will require different types of contract; for example when recruiting to cover maternity leave you will not want to advertise and offer a permanent post. Below are definitions of the different types of contract and you may wish to consider which is most appropriate for your vacancy: Permanent Contract An ongoing contract with no end date. Temporary/Fixed Term Contract A contract which is temporary for a specific purpose for example, to cover for a period of absence or for a specific project. The reason for the temporary nature of the contract should always be specified. If the end date of the contract is known, then this should also be specified. A link Casual to the Contract vacancy approval form is available under section 10 useful forms and A contract documents. with no fixed or regular hours, where work is claimed for as and when it is completed. Used for positions such as Invigilators. When you have approval and you are ready to advertise your vacancy, you will need to produce the following documents: Advert (including a statement on the Academy s commitment to safeguarding) Job Description Person Specification There are templates available for you to use when putting together these documents, to ensure that there is consistency across the Trust in terms of visual identity, branding and key messages, including the safeguarding statement. Before writing job descriptions and person specifications, please also speak to HR, as depending on the post you are advertising 5
there may also already be documents in existence, especially for posts such as Teachers or Teaching Assistants. There is also an Applicant Information Pack containing further information on Outwood Grange Academies Trust, the Trust s position on safeguarding and information on how to apply for posts. This also needs to be included with your vacancy and is a PDF document, available here. The wording in your advert should sell the post and working at the Trust, as well as providing potential applicants with key information, including where the post is based, the salary, the working hours and whether the post is permanent or temporary, and if it is temporary, the duration of the post. You must then consider the appropriate places for advertising the post in order to attract suitably qualified, high quality candidates. As a minimum, all posts must at least be advertised across the Trust for 7 days, in line with the Recruitment and Selection Policy. It may be that due to the specialist nature of some posts you wish to ring-fence these to certain staff; if you do wish to do this then you must seek advice from HR first. As a general rule, teaching posts are advertised online on the TES website, as well on the recruiting academy s website and on the Trust and Outwood Institute of Education s websites. For any difficult to recruit or senior posts, you may consider advertising in a national publication, including the TES paper. Non-teaching posts can also be advertised on the recruiting academy s website and on the Outwood Institute of Education website for free. Depending on the nature of the post, they may also be advertised on local government websites, the Job Centre website or specific job websites for that particular role; e.g. Finance posts may be advertised on a financial jobs website. All completed application forms should be returned to HR, who will arrange for the shortlisting panel to receive all applications, minus the equality monitoring sheet, and relevant shortlisting documentation. 6
3. Shortlisting Shortlisting must be undertaken by the panel who will be interviewing candidates, in line with the Trust s Scheme of Delegation as below: Post Chief Executive / Executive Principals Chief Operating Officer Principal Directors of Curriculum Subjects Directors of central functions e.g. finance, HR Vice Principals Assistant Principals and SLT Support Staff Associate Assistant Principals and Deeps Posts Head of Department / Faculty TLR Posts All other Teaching posts All Support Staff posts (other than SLT posts) Panel Trust Board (minimum of 3 members, with non-voting co-optees as required) Board Member, Chief Executive and Executive Principal Board Member/Chief Executive, Executive Principal and Chair or Vice Chair of Academy Council Chief Executive, Executive Principal and one other as determined by the Chief Executive Chief Executive, Chief Operating Officer and one other as determined by the Chief Executive Chief Executive, Executive Principal and Principal Principal, Vice Principal and one other as determined by the Principal Principal, Vice Principal and one other as determined by the Principal Principal, appropriate Director of Subject (if applicable) and one other as determined by the Principal Principal (or nominated representative), Director of Subject (if applicable) and Head of Department Principal (or nominated representative), Director of subject (if applicable) and Head of Department Business Manager and one other determined by Principal or Chief Operating Officer (Group posts below Director) When you shortlist applicants for interview, you should measure their application against the essential criteria of the person specification for the post. HR will provide the panel with a shortlisting grid which allows panel members to objectively score against the criteria, and a copy of this is available here. When a person demonstrably meets all essential criteria then they must be shortlisted. If a candidate has just stated that they have done something, but hasn t provided a specific example, then they have not demonstrated how they have met the criteria. For some posts you may find yourself with a fairly long shortlist, for example with 8 or 9 candidates. It is acceptable to reduce this number to a more manageable level of 4 or 5 candidates. However this must be done objectively to avoid potential complaints. 7
One way of doing this is by examining the extent to which each of the candidates meets the essential criteria for example some candidates will have had more experience than others in terms of time on the job or, although the essential criteria is satisfied some candidates have had more in depth experience than others. Some may have attended more CPD than others, etc. The important thing is to agree the more detailed criteria (based on the previously agreed essential criteria), and apply it objectively and consistently to all the candidates. It is important that you are able to justify any decisions you make for not shortlisting applicants, in case of any questions or challenges from them. 8
4. Safer Recruitment and Shortlisting At least one interview panel member must have received Safer Recruitment training. During the shortlisting process, application forms should be checked thoroughly, and things that should be scrutinised include: Gaps in employment history Inconsistencies and gaps in employment and education dates Reasons given for leaving previous employment Leaving long term/permanent or higher paid employment to undertake supply work or lower paid employment If you do shortlist an applicant and there are gaps or questions about their work history, or anything they have put on their application form, then the panel must agree some specific questions to address these. This could be asking the applicant what they were doing between a particular timeframe if there is a gap that has not been explained. Once shortlisting has been completed, arrangements for and the format of the interview day should be confirmed, including the date if not already agreed, timings, details of classes candidates may be required to teach and whether they will be required to do any additional tasks. You will also need to agree on the questions you will be asking at interview. These should be based on the job description and person specification, and designed to elicit actual examples and experiences from candidates rather than hypothetical responses. For example, tell us about a time when you have dealt with challenging behaviour in the classroom is a better question and more likely to gain a real-life example from the candidate than what would you do if a student was misbehaving in your class? Depending on the role you are interviewing for, there may already be a bank of questions which you can use; you can speak to HR for information or advice. Once you have the details of the interview day agreed, confirm with HR the arrangements for the day and inform them of the shortlisted candidates. HR will then contact the candidates to invite them to interview. HR will also request references for candidates at this stage. 9
5. Interviews/Methods of Assessment Interview panels should always try to achieve a majority vote when deciding who to appoint; this may be difficult if there are two candidates who are very close. If this is not possible, then the Chair of the Panel will have the casting vote. The interview day is the opportunity for the panel members to assess the candidate s suitability for the role they have applied for, as well as candidates finding out more about the Trust, and considering whether our organisation is one where they would like to work. Arrangements should be made prior to the day in terms of rooms, refreshments, tours and any tasks, so that the day runs as smoothly as possible and gives the best impression of the Trust to candidates. As well as the panel interview it may be appropriate for other methods of selection to be used too. Depending on the role, these could include: Teaching a class (compulsory for all teaching posts) Presentation Task/test Leaderless discussion Student panel interview Screening interview by HR to explore the depth/detail of their application If you would like any advice on devising appropriate selection methods for your post, please contact HR. There may also be existing resources that you can use or amend as appropriate. The Chair of the Panel should be agreed prior to the interview process, and the standard interview questions for each candidate, as well as supplementary questions around individual application forms, should also have been agreed prior to the interview stage. You may however need to ask additional supplementary or probing questions in individual interviews depending on the answers you receive. Once you have concluded the questions, you should then give the candidate the opportunity to ask any questions they may have about the Trust or the post they are applying for. At the interview you must also take copies of candidates documents and sign them to verify you have seen the originals; candidates will be asked to bring in proof of ID and certificates as proof of their qualifications. This can be done either prior to or after the interview. 10
6. Job Offer Once you have completed your interviews and the panel have reached agreement on who they wish to appoint, the Chair of the Panel should contact the successful candidate by phone and offer the post to them, subject to references which are satisfactory to the Trust, DBS check and employment health questionnaire. They must also ask the compulsory questions; a copy of these is available in the appendix. Once the preferred candidate has verbally accepted the post, the unsuccessful candidates can then be notified. This should be done by telephone, and feedback should also be offered to the unsuccessful candidates. It is a good idea to compile this feedback after the decision of who to appoint has been made and before candidates are contacted, so that all panel members can have an input and individual candidates performance is fresh in their minds. You will also need to complete a Notification of Appointment form and pass this to HR so that the conditional offer letter can be issued to the successful candidate. Salary Offers Salary offers for teachers starting from September 2014 should be made at their current pay point. HR will then seek confirmation from their current school that they have passed their performance review and are able to move up the scale (if applicable). Newly qualified teachers will commence on M1, unless they have relevant previous teaching experience or relevant previous employment. Additional points may be granted at the discretion of the Chief Executive/Executive Principal/Principal. For teaching staff moving on to a different pay scale, for example Mainscale to Leadership, appointments should be made on the minimum point of the scale range. A business case should be put forward by the recruiting manager if they wish to appoint on a higher point on the scale. For existing teaching staff currently employed by the Trust and who will be moving on to a different pay scale (e.g. if a member of staff gets a promotion and moves from UPS to the Leadership pay scale), appointments should be made on the minimum point of the scale range for that post, as long as it matches or exceeds their current salary. For example, if a member of staff is on UPS3 with a TLR of 4,268 per annum (total salary 41,392), and they were then appointed to a post with a salary range of L4-L8 ( 40,743-44,971), then they would generally start at point L5 ( 41,757 per annum). This is also the case for existing support staff the general rule is that staff should not lose out financially through taking up a new, higher paid post. Salary offers for support staff are made on the minimum point of the scale range for the post. If the candidate is currently on a higher salary then they should still be appointed on the bottom point, unless they can demonstrate that they will bring relevant experience and skills at a higher level than would be usual for a new appointee to the role. A business case should be put forward by the recruiting manager to explain why they wish to appoint on a higher point on the scale. 11
7. Pre-employment Checks All appointments to the Trust are conditional upon the following checks: Verification of entitlement to work in the UK Enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) Check At least two references which are satisfactory to the Trust Verification of qualifications Verification of QTS (for teaching appointments) Completion of a health questionnaire HR will request references for all candidates who are invited to interview stage prior to the interviews. References will be scrutinised for any discrepancies between what the candidate has said on their application form and what the reference says, as well as ensuring that the questions around disciplinary, child protection, suitability to work with children and whether the candidate would be re-employed are satisfactory. At least one of the references must be from the candidate s current or most recent employer if not currently in employment, and for teaching posts or staff who have been employed in a school, the reference should be from the Headteacher/Principal of the current school. If the candidate has not put down their current/most recent employer as a reference, then contact will be made with them anyway. Candidates are also asked to complete a health questionnaire as part of the preemployment checks. They can only be asked to do this after a job offer is made, and HR will send the relevant form to them. Information gathered from the questionnaires will be used to assess whether any reasonable adjustments are required for the candidate to carry out the role, whether a referral to occupational health is needed for further advice, and for monitoring of applicant information in terms of disabilities. All appointments are also subject to an enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check. The DBS was created following the merger of the CRB (Criminal Records Bureau) and ISA (Independent Safeguarding Authority). A DBS check will check for spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings, plus any additional information held by local police that is considered relevant. If a candidate has a conviction, this will not necessarily preclude them from working for the Trust. It depends on the nature of the conviction, how long ago it was and also whether the candidate declared it on their application form. For further advice, you can speak to HR. 12
8. Equality Act 2010 When conducting a recruitment process you should always be mindful of your responsibilities in terms of equality legislation. The Equality Act 2010 offers protection to people from discrimination, victimisation, harassment or any other detriment because of any of the following protected characteristics : Age Disability Gender reassignment Marriage or civil partnership Pregnancy and maternity Race Religion or belief Sexual orientation Sex (gender) An example of ensuring that equality legislation is adhered to in the recruitment process is if a candidate requires any reasonable adjustments at interview. This could include giving a dyslexic candidate extra time for a written task, to ensure they are able to perform the task to the best of their ability. When invited to interview, candidates are asked whether they require any reasonable adjustments to be made in order for them to participate in the interview. If they do, HR will consult with you and inform you of any adjustments which are required. 13
9. Induction The recruitment process does not end when you have completed the interviews and passed all the paperwork on to HR. You will need to ensure that you develop an induction for your new employee, providing them with a thorough introduction to their role, working practises and how the Trust operates. Time and thought should be given to this prior to your new employee starting work, as a good induction into the Trust means that your new employee will feel more valued, be more productive from an earlier point in their employment, and be more likely to stay with the Trust longer-term. There are also some essential aspects you will need to cover as part of the induction, including: Working arrangements Relevant procedures including who to contact in case of absence Dress code Health and safety arrangements including fire evacuation procedures Copies of the teaching and support staff induction checklists and an induction pack which is specific to your Academy are available from the Business Manager. 14
10. Useful Forms and Documents Vacancy authorisation form Vacancy advertisement form (for Point 13 Media) Job description template Person specification template Applicant Information Pack Shortlisting form Interview pack Compulsory questions job offer Notification of Appointment Form to follow Reference request template (Teaching) to follow Reference request template (Support) to follow 15