Job application process

• You may need to obtain permission to work in the UK if you don’t already have the unrestricted right to work in any role. There are various types of visas which include the right to work. You can check if you need a UK visa using the Government’s online tool and find information about UK visa routes and the eligibility criteria that must be met for each route.
• All staff are required to prove their right to work in the UK before they commence employment.

• This is not intended to be a comprehensive guide and should be read in conjunction with the guidance issued by the DBS.
• We are committed to abiding by the DBS Code of Practice, produced to assist bodies dealing with Disclosures. The requirements of the Code include that a body should have written statements on the recruitment of ex-offenders and on the correct handling and safekeeping of Disclosure information. It is also a requirement of the DBS Code of Practice that all registered bodies must treat applicants who have a criminal record fairly and do not discriminate because of a conviction or other information revealed.
• The DBS Code of Practice can be found on the GOV.UK website.

• The protection of children, young people and vulnerable adults is a matter of great concern to University College Birmingham in both its capacity as an employer and a provider of high quality, safe services. The best way to guard against harm to children, young people and vulnerable adults is by careful selection and vetting procedures for staff. Part of the selection process will be to check for past criminal records so that we are aware of any criminal history and associated risk. The application form enables applicants to disclose any relevant information at an early stage in the selection process.
• At interview, or in a separate discussion, we ensure that an open and measured discussion takes place on the subject of any offences or other matter that might be relevant to the position. Failure to reveal information that is directly relevant to the position sought could lead to withdrawal of an offer of employment. We undertake to discuss any matter revealed in a Disclosure with the person seeking the position before withdrawing a conditional offer of employment.
• We make every subject of a DBS Disclosure aware of the existence of the DBS Code of Practice and make a copy available on request. Having a criminal record will not necessarily bar an individual from working at University College Birmingham. This will depend on the nature of the position applied for and the circumstances and background of the offence.

• Since 29 May 2013, certain old and minor convictions and cautions, reprimands and warnings have been filtered from DBS certificates.
• The filtering rules (which will remove certain old and minor convictions and cautions, reprimands and warnings from a DBS certificate) were developed by the Home Office and Ministry of Justice and introduced with new legislation.
• The amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975 (2013) provide that certain spent convictions and cautions are 'protected' and are not subject to disclosure to employers and cannot be taken into account. Guidance and criteria on the filtering of cautions and convictions can be found at the Disclosure and Barring Service website.
• If you do have any convictions, cautions, reprimands or warnings before submitting the application form, you must check the filtering rules to determine if you should declare them or if they are now 'protected' and no longer require disclosure.
• Failure to disclose any previous convictions, cautions, warnings, reprimands or bind-overs that are not protected could result in dismissal should it be subsequently discovered. Any information given, either when returning this application form or at interview, will be entirely confidential and only considered in relation to this application.
• If you do have any criminal convictions, cautions, warnings, reprimands or bind-overs that are not protected, or are barred or disqualified from working with children, or subject to an interim prohibition order by the Teaching Agency, please include the information with your application. It is an offence to apply if you are barred from engaging in regulated activity relevant to children.

• University College Birmingham is committed to ensuring that people with disabilities are treated fairly and well, are supported at work and enabled to carry out their role effectively.
• You are encouraged to identify any particular arrangements we can make to assist you at interview on the application form. This information is requested in accordance with S.60 (6) of the Equality Act 2010.
• For further information, please contact Human Resources at recruitment@ucb.ac.uk

• Your nominated referees must be able to provide sufficient information to assist the panel in confirming your suitability for the post. Both of your referees should be your current or most recent employer(s). Where this is not possible, you may list someone else who is qualified to comment on your performance at work or in full-time education (in the case of recent graduates) or from a voluntary/community organisation with which you were involved. Referees should not be friends or family.
• In addition to the above, in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education, the University will request referees from any establishments when the applicant has worked with children/young people for the last 10 years.
• It is your responsibility to ensure that the individuals you nominate as referees consent to you providing their contact details.

• University College Birmingham strives to actively celebrate diversity and promote equality of opportunity for all who learn and work here: to create a culture where inclusion, equality and diversity are embraced, where employment and educational opportunities are open to all and where everyone involved with the University is treated with fairness, dignity and respect.
• We serve a diverse community and seek to develop a workforce that is representative of the community. No applicant will be treated less favourably than others on the grounds of age, gender, disability, family or marital/civil partnership status, race, nationality, national or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, religious or other beliefs, or for any reason which cannot be shown to be justified.
• We appoint on the basis of the best candidate for the job. Our policy is to ensure that the recruitment and selection process is as fair and objective as possible. Applications are considered purely on the basis of merit and any information you provide pertaining to your personal characteristics is removed prior to shortlisting. All candidates are assessed against the same criteria and asked the same set of questions when interviewed at first stage. You will not be asked questions about your domestic or personal circumstances which have no relevance to your ability to carry out the job.

Your application form will be considered by a shortlisting panel who will review it against the Person Specification for the job. This is an important document and you should ensure that you address the requirements of it within your application form. In particular you should address the following:

• Experience
• Skills and abilities
• Education and qualifications
• Training and continuous professional development

The panel will be looking for evidence that you meet the requirements of the Person Specification. Where possible, use examples to demonstrate how you meet each criterion. If you do not have any directly-related work experience, you may consider relevant voluntary or community work. Remember, if you do not demonstrate to the panel that you meet the Person Specification criteria, you will not be shortlisted.

The shortlisting panel will assess your application in line with each area of the Person Specification following the structure below:

Score:

• 0 = Criteria not met
• 1 = Criteria mentioned, but not clearly demonstrated
• 2 = Criteria met
• 3 = Criteria very well demonstrated

For example, if the criterion was ‘experience of working in a customer service environment’ the panel would score as follows: Your response 0 = No experience OR not mentioned at all 1 = Experience is implied but not explicitly stated 2 = Experience stated and supported by evidence 3 = Experience stated and supported by evidence AND further supported by specific examples and relevant skills gained as a result.

Criteria marked as weighted criteria will be reviewed and doubled when shortlisting.

• The dates of interview will be made available at the earliest possible opportunity. It is not normally possible to rearrange interview dates as all interviews involve a selection panel who will have agreed the dates in advance. If you are successful in being selected for interview, we will contact you by email to provide an outline of what will be involved in the interview process. In the majority of cases, the selection process will involve an appropriate assessment, which candidates will be informed of in advance.
• Selection for the post will be made by a panel of at least two (but more usually three) people, all of whom have been trained in recruitment and selection. The selection decision will be based on assessment against the Person Specification criteria, taking all elements of the selection process (interview/assessment) into account. Panel members will take notes during the interview and you will be given the opportunity to ask questions about the role and the conditions of service.
• If you are unsuccessful, you will be notified via email and feedback will be provided upon request. This will be provided from a member of the panel via Human Resources.
• If you are offered a post, the offer will be conditional upon two references satisfactory to University College Birmingham, a satisfactory medical report (taking into consideration our Equal Opportunities policy and duties under the Equality Act 2010), a Disclosure and Barring Service enhanced disclosure, confirmation of your entitlement to work in the UK and satisfactory verification of relevant qualifications. For information on any matter not covered in these guidance notes, please contact Human Resources at recruitment@ucb.ac.uk.