Ashton Sixth Form College: Public Service Department. Name:

Ashton Sixth Form College: Public Service Department. Name:

ASHTON UNDER-LYNE SIXTH FORM COLLEGE LEVEL 2 DIPLOMA PUBLIC SERVICES Unit: 2 Employment in the Uniformed Public Services Unit: 4 Career planning for the public services Assignment Title: Understanding Careers and Employment in the Public Services Tutor name: Andrew Leech Student name. Date issued: Date due in: Feedback: Outcomes Covered: Unit 2 LO1 - Know the main roles of different uniformed public services. Unit 2 LO2 - Understand the different employment opportunities available in the uniformed public services. Unit 4 LO2 - Know the skills and qualities required for a job in the public services. Unit 4 LO3 Be able to complete an application for a role in a chosen public service. Internal Verification details: IV d prior to issue by: July 2012 Assessment Result Unit 2 Pass 1 Pass 3 Referral Unit 4 Pass 4 Pass 5 Merit 1 Referral I confirm that this is my own work... 1

Integrated Induction Assignment Scenario Uniformed public services provide important functions within society. The general public pay for these services via taxes and want services which keep them safe and provide support in times of emergency. Public services therefore include police, fire, and ambulance services as well as the prison service and the armed forces. Within this unit you will develop a clear understanding of the range of opportunities for employment within these areas. The public services take the recruitment of new officers very seriously. If they don t choose the right people for the right jobs they will not be able to serve the general public and the community s needs. The nature of the public services means that any recruits are likely to be put under pressure, face stressful situations and engage in potentially dangerous activities. Not everyone is suited for these roles, it takes special skills and abilities to work confidently in the public services and be able to deal with their day-to-day duties. Instructions You must work your way through this booklet completing all of the tasks to the best of your ability. Leave a gap if you are unsure of the answer and when you begin lessons your teacher will help you complete the missing work. Assessment and Grading Criteria Unit 2 Pass 1 Outline the main purpose and roles of two contrasting uniformed public services. Student check Staff check Unit 2 Pass 3 Outline the different employment opportunities available in the uniformed public services Unit 4 Pass 4 Carry out a personal skills audit for a given public service role. Unit 4 Pass 5 Complete an application for a role in a specific public service. Unit 4 Merit 1 Analyse your skills against a given public service role. 2

Tutor s comments Assessment Feedback Further action (referrals, action for higher grade) Tutor signature Students comments Student signature 3

TASK 1 A good way to assess your strengths and weaknesses is by completing a skills audit. A skills audit is a way of measuring and recording an individual s skills and qualities and comparing them to what attributes are needed within a certain job. Complete the skills audit below and consider how your score identifies your strengths and weaknesses for the public service you wish to join. P4 - Carry out a personal skills audit for a given public service role. Colour in the correct segment in relation to your ability and total each section. E.g 1 2 3 4 5 Ability to keep calm in difficult situations 1 = Very Poor 2 = Poor 3 = Average 4 = Good 5 = Very Good Public Service Skills 1 2 3 4 5 Total Confidence Public Speaking Coping with new situations Making friends Talking to strangers Making eye contact with others Communication Vocabulary Clear speech Body Language Respect for diversity Honesty and directness Teamwork Ability to work with others Ability to take orders Ability to listen and respond to others Respect for the opinions of others Ability to participate in discussions and offer suggestions Interpersonal Skills Sensitivity to others Ability to cope with the distress of others Diplomacy Ability to be fair and impartial Able to read body language of others Conflict Management Ability to keep your temper Ability to calm others Ability to resolve a situation without shouting or violence Confidence to step in to help others who are in conflict Ability to liase with all different kinds of people Non Verbal Communication Body language Making eye Contact Having a good posture Organisational skills ICT skills 4 FINAL TOTAL 150

TASK 2 Public Services Integrated Induction Assignment Work Booklet Now that you have identified your personal strengths and weaknesses you need to think about these skills within a public service role. Research a public service you wish to join and answer all questions honestly and openly. Weaknesses are not a bad thing, if you admit that you do have some weaknesses you can produce an action plan to turn these into strengths to help you monitor your progress towards your goal of joining a public service. Make sure you write in full sentences and give a full explanation to your answers. M1 - Analyse your skills against a given public service role. Training and career development 1. Which public service role do you wish to pursue in the future? E.g Police, Prison Service. 2. Why are you interested in that particular role? 3. What skills do you think you have which would make you a good candidate for this role? 5

4. What aspect of the job would you expect to find most difficult? 5. During basic training you will be learning lots of new skills and will inevitably make some mistakes. How do you deal with being corrected and given advice? 6. Describe and consider your problem solving skills in relation to this role. 7. Do you think you would make a good leader? State why 6

8. What one thing in your life are you most proud of and explain how this influences and motivates you at times? 9. How confident do you feel with making eye contact with people during a conversation? 10. How would you describe your body language when meeting people for the first time? 11. Do you have an organised lifestyle? How do you organise yourself? 7

12. How confident would you be using your ICT skills within a job? 13. What one thing about yourself would you like to change and why? 14. How do you think your school tutors would describe you? (try to be honest) 15. How would you describe your timekeeping and attendance at school? 8

16. How do you think you will have done by the end of the public service course? 17. What changes do you immediately need to make to pursue a career in a public service? Evaluate all your answers from this assignment task. 9

Task 3 P5 Complete an application for a role in a specific public service All of the public services will require you to complete an application form when application is open to join the service. This is a document where you record all the personal information the service asks of you and they use this information to make judgements about whether you would be suitable for the service. Application forms are normally available from the recruiting office of your chosen service and you can download many of them from the internet. Once you receive an application form you may have to answer a number of questions. Completing the form takes time and effort. If you complete the form incorrectly or it shows you in a poor light, you will be weeded out in what is called a paper sift. Paper sift - a paper sift is a way of getting rid of unsuitable applications and it is used by many public services as well as many other employees. It involves checking an application form through and weeding out any forms that are incomplete, do not show a reasonable standard of English or where the form demonstrates an individual is clearly unsuitable for the job or doesn't meet the entry requirements. When completing an application form there are several things that you can do to make sure you give your application form the best chance of success: Read the form thoroughly and ensure you understand every question. Read the guidance notes thoroughly, they give you specific advice on what you need to do. Photocopy the form several times so that you can practise and get it checked through before you complete the original. Be honest. If you are not it will be found out and you will ruin your chances of the career you want. Be careful about your spelling and grammar. Ensure the things you write do not breach the principles of equality and diversity. Take guidance from your local careers office or your tutors on how best to present yourself. Use the appropriate style of writing, if it says black ink and block capitals then this is what you must do. In addition your handwriting should be clear and legible. WHEN HANDING IN THIS BOOKLET, YOU MUST ALSO HAND IN THE APPLICATION FORM AS PART OF THE ASSIGNMENT 10

TASK 4 Outline the main purpose and roles of TWO contrasting uniformed public services. (Pass 1) Although the uniformed public services work closely together and often work in similar situations the jobs they do are different. This section of the unit will look at the purpose, role and responsibilities of a variety of uniformed public services. You will often find the services use words like roles, responsibility and purpose interchangeably. This can make it a challenge for you to tell the difference between them when you are researching the public services. We will look at what defines each of the terms (PURPOSE, ROLES and RESPONSIBILITIES) so that you can refer back to them when researching your chosen employment within the uniformed public services. The purpose of a public service is the overall aim of the service provided lay down by law. Find some key words within a thesaurus that relate to Purpose, Roles, and responsibility. Key Terms Purpose Roles Responsibility Find some definitions within a dictionary that define the key words : Purpose, Roles and responsibility. Define Purpose (Reason) 11

Role (Job) Responsibility (Achieving) - 12

Dog handler Task 5 - Outline the roles of TWO contrasting uniformed public services. (Pass 1) Bomb Disposal The Armed Services Police Service Main Uniformed Public Services Driver Each public service has a variety of job roles within it that you could fulfil in the near future. Not all people who work for the police service are police officers and not all people who work for the army are soldiers. The uniformed public services have a variety of different roles. Fire Safety Officer Fire Service Ambulance Service 13

Task 6 - Outline the different employment opportunities available to the uniformed public services. (Pass 3) Fill the boxes below, use books or the internet to research the different employment opportunities available, whilst serving as a police officer. Roles within the police Brief job description Dog Handler Dog handlers and their dogs work as a team. The dogs assist with catching criminals, searching buildings and policing large crowds, such as those at football matches. They are often trained to find drugs or explosives. Traffic Police Criminal Investigation Department Special Branch Firearms Unit 14

Drugs Squad Fraud Squad Mounted Police Now you have completed the above roles and descriptions, have a look at a public service of your choice and research its roles and job description. Do exactly the same as above but for another public service. This could be different roles within the army, navy, marines, fire service, paramedic or the prison service. Roles within the:- Brief job description 15

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