Support Staff Application Form

. Guidance Notes

1. How to complete your application

The application form plays an essential part in choosing the right person for a job. It is the information contained in your application and supporting statement that will decide whether or not you are invited for an interview or to the next stage in the selection process.

2. What are selection criteria

Selection criteria are the skills, abilities, knowledge and perhaps qualifications necessary to do the job. These are shown in the person specification. They are based on the key responsibilities of the role, which are shown in the job description. The purpose of the selection criteria is to help us to recruit the best person for the job objectively and fairly. The selection criteria are an essential part of our recruitment process and will be used to decide who is invited for an interview, or, the next stage of the selection process. The person specification should help you to match your skills, abilities and Knowledge against the selection criteria.

3. Working in the UK

Under the Asylum & Immigration Act 1996, you will be required to provide proof of your eligibility to work in the UK. We will need to see original documents. You will only be able to work for us once we are sure that you are eligible to work in the UK. If you are unsure about your status then you should contact the Home Office.

4. Current or most recent employment

We need you to provide us with your complete employment history, and any gaps in your employment history of more than one month should be explained – for example, carers and childcare responsibilities. We may ask for references to cover a full three-year history, which may include time spent at school/further education. In addition to the standard reference questions, the employer/organisation will be asked about disciplinary offences relating to children, including "spent ones" and where the applicant has been the subject of any child protection concerns and details of these. For this three-year history, please provide full postal addresses, including postcodes.

References will be taken up for short-listed candidates.

5. Qualifications & Training

Please give details of your education, qualifications and training, starting with secondary school. If we have requested that you have a professional qualification for this job, you will need to provide us with the relevant original certificates/registration documents.

6. Supporting statement and achievements

This section is your opportunity to tell us how you meet the criteria in the person specification. Take each relevant item and tell us about your skills, experience, knowledge and achievements.

Give examples of what you have done which prove your ability. If the person specification says, ‘able to organise activities’, you must do more than say, ‘I am an organised person’. Give an example by describing something that you have done, which tells us about the skills you used and the steps that you took.

You can use examples from your home life, time spent in education, voluntary work or from your hobbies/interests if you do not have any formal experience.

7. Declaration

We do not exclude people who are related to, or have a close personal relationship with our employees or school governors. We will make sure that they do not take part in the selection for this post.

Please make sure you read and sign/positively tick the declaration.

8. Monitoring

Attached to this application form is an Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form that should be completed and provided to the Trust/School alongside your completed application form. This Trust/School has an Equal Opportunity and Diversity Policy, which we ensure that we monitor to ensure that our employees reflect the community we serve. The information provided will be treated in the strictest confidence and will only be used for monitoring purposes.

. Application

What position are you applying for?* Which setting are you applying for? If more than one, please select 'Combined'* How did you learn about this job?* Preferred Title* Other Title First Name(s)* Surname* Address* Town or City* County Postcode* Country* Daytime Phone Number* Evening Phone Number* Email Address* National Insurance (NI) Number* Date of Birth* Are you an internal applicant?*

. Employment History

Please list ALL employment history since leaving school, including non-education based roles.

If currently employed, please indicate a known leaving date, or if unknown enter today's date.

Please explain any gaps in employment of three or more months.

In addition to your employment history, please list any work undertaken, voluntary or otherwise, which involved working with children or young people.

Employer 1

Date From Employer Name* Address* Town or City* County Postcode* Country* Job Title* Duties & Responsibilities* Date of Leaving* Reason for Leaving* Salary Details including details of additional payments and allowances:

Employer 2

Date From Employer Name Address Town or City County Postcode Country Job Title Duties & Responsibilities Date of Leaving Reason for Leaving Salary Details including details of additional payments and allowances:

Employer 3

Date From Employer Name Address Town or City County Postcode Country Job Title Duties & Responsibilities Date of Leaving Reason for Leaving Salary Details including details of additional payments and allowances:

Employer 4

Date From Employer Name Address Town or City County Postcode Country Job Title Duties & Responsibilities Date of Leaving Reason for Leaving Salary Details including details of additional payments and allowances:

. Education & Qualifications

	Name of School/College/University	Qualifications & Grades	Date Attained	Attended From	Attended To

. Continued Professional Development

Please list any relevant CPD, formal or otherwise.

	Course	Name of Training Institution	Brief Description & Details of Award, if applicable	Date Attained	Attended From	Attended To

. Application Questions

Refer to the Job Profile and each point in the Person profile, focusing on the essential criteria. In all situations, it is advisable to give as much information as you can about why you think you are suitable for the job, giving clear examples of experience to demonstrate your capabilities.

*

. References

Please give the names and contact details of at least two professional referees covering a period of at least five years. One of which should be your current or most recent employer.
Please note, in accordance with our Safer Recruitment processes, the right is reserved to contact any organisation detailed on the application form. To discuss this please contact the recruiting organisation direct.

Reference 1

Name* Position Held* Name of Organisation* Address* Town or City* County Postcode* Country Telephone* Email Address* In what capacity does the referee know you?

Reference 2

Name* Position Held* Name of Organisation* Address* Town or City* County Postcode* Country Telephone* Email* In what capacity does the referee know you?

. Other Details

The Equality Act 2010 states, "A person has a disability if they have a physical or mental impairment, which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities

Do you consider yourself to have a disability?* If you are invited for an interview, please give details of any special arrangements that you require

. Equal Opportunities

Monitoring of Job Applicants

The organisation is striving towards equality of opportunity in its employment practices and selection procedures. An Equality and Diversity Policy has been approved and is outlined below for you to retain if you so wish. To help us to find out how far we are succeeding in providing equal access to jobs in the organisation, we need the information detailed below. You are, therefore, requested to complete the monitoring information and return it with your application.

Equal Opportunities Policy Statement

As a major employer, the organisation is taking positive steps to eliminate discrimination, and to redress imbalances, in order to provide genuine equality of opportunity at all levels within the organisation.

The organisation aims to treat all employees with dignity and respect and provide a working environment free from discrimination and harassment.

Every possible step will be taken to ensure that employees and job applicants are treated equally and fairly and that decisions on recruitment, selection, training and promotion are based on agreed criteria. In particular, no applicant or employee will be placed at a disadvantage by requirements or conditions which are not necessary to the performance of the job, or which constitute indirect unfair discrimination.

The organisation believes that it is in the Authority's interests and those who work for it to be committed to the use, development and retention of the full range of skills and talents of its employees, and will work to provide an employment environment in which everyone has the opportunity to contribute and develop.

Employees will be involved in the regular reviewing and monitoring of the Equality and Diversity Policy to ensure its relevance and effectiveness.

Ethnic Origin

I would describe myself as (please select the appropriate entry from the drop down list provided):*

Age Group

Please select*

Faith/Religion

Please select*

Gender

Please select*

Gender Identity

Please select. Is your gender identity...*

Sexual Orientation

Which of the following best represents your sexual orientation?*

. Declaration & Checks

Relationships

Are you related to or personally know any employee or Governor/Trustee/Member at this organisation?* If yes, please details Do you have any business, financial and/or political interests that might conflict with the duties or responsibilities of this post?* If yes, please detail

Rehabilitation of Offenders

If you are shortlisted for the position you are applying for, you will be required to complete a Declaration giving details of any relevant criminal offences and other relevant information relating to our safeguarding duty. Further information and the declaration form is provided at Appendix A of this application form.

Any offer of employment will be made conditional upon a satisfactory enhanced DBS check and barred list check (where applicable to the role in question).

The Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) provides wider access to criminal record information through its Disclosure service. This service enables organisations in the public, private and voluntary sectors to make safer recruitment decisions by identifying candidates who may be unsuitable for certain work, especially that involving children and vulnerable adults.

More information on The Disclosure & Barring Service can be found at www.gov.uk/disclosure-barring-service-check.

Prohibition Checks

Following successful interview, the School/Trust will carry out the necessary prohibition checks for all staff, irrespective of whether the role permits for unsupervised “teaching work” as defined by The Teachers’ Disciplinary (England) Regulations 2012. This check will provide verification that the candidate has not been prohibited from teaching or carrying out teaching work by the Teaching Regulation Agency in the past.

Childcare Disqualification Requirements

In addition to undertaking checks to ensure that members of staff are suitable to work with children, schools are also specifically required to establish that members of staff are not disqualified from working with children who have not yet reached the age of 8 in order to comply with the Childcare Act 2006 and the Childcare (Disqualification) and Childcare (Early Years Provision Free of Charge) (Extended Entitlement) (Amendment) Regulations 2018. All shortlisted candidates whose role would involve being responsible for the provision or management of such childcare (including teaching) shall be required to declare that they are not disqualified from undertaking such work.

A disqualified person is not permitted to provide or manage care for children under age 8 unless they apply for, and are granted, a waiver from Ofsted. In summary, a person may be disqualified from working in a school setting through:

• Inclusion on the Children’s Barred List;
• Being cautioned for, or convicted of, certain violent and sexual criminal offences against children and adults;
• Grounds relating to the care of children (including where an order is made in respect of a child under the person’s care);
• Having registration refused or cancelled in relation to childcare or children’s homes or being disqualified from private fostering.

Disqualification also applies to equivalent offences committed overseas. The Regulations do not automatically apply to all posts in a school or to settings where there is no provision for children under 8. You will therefore be informed if the Regulations are relevant to the post you are applying for.

Should you need to, you can find out more about disqualification in the Department for Education’s guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/disqualification-under-the-childcare-act-2006

Further information and the declaration form is provided at Appendix B of this application form.

Safeguarding

The Trust/School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and we expect all staff to share this commitment.

Where the role for which you are applying involves engaging in regulated activity, it is an offence to apply for the role if you are barred from engaging in regulated activity relevant to children.

A copy of the Trust’s Child Protection policy can be found on the Tapscott Learning Trust’s website

Data Protection

The Trust/School processes personal, special category data and criminal records data in accordance with our data protection policy and in accordance with data protection laws.

I understand that providing misleading or false information/qualifications may affect any recruitment decision made relating to me or if appointed, may lead to disciplinary action and dismissal.

I authorise School/Trust to check the information supplied and hold all such information in both paper and electronic formats.

If you are successful in your application, you will be asked to sign the declaration

Signature Print Name Date

Review Application Form

By ticking this box, I declare that all the information set out in this application form is true in all respects and I understand that false information may render me liable for dismissal if I am appointed.

By ticking this box and submitting this form, I consent to the processing of personal data relating to me for the purposes of managing my application, provided that such processing is in accordance with the GDPR 2016 and Data Protection Act 2018.

. Appendices

If you are shortlisted, you’ll be asked to complete the following declarations:

Appendix A - Declaration of Offences - Disclosure of Criminal Convictions/Cautions Self-Disclosure Form

Appendix B - Disclosure of Disqualification under the Childcare Act 2006