Introduction

This policy sets out the minimum requirements of the recruitment process that aims to:

• Attract the best possible applicants to vacancies

• Deter prospective applicants, who are unsuitable for work withchildren, young people, and vulnerable adults

• Identify and reject applicants, who are unsuitable for work with children, young people and vulnerable adults.

This policy also refers to the appointment of any subcontracted tutors SWITCH Community Ltd seeks to work with

All appointing managers and interview panel members must have been briefed on thispolicy before selecting applicants for interview or interviewing. They must also be made aware that this policy does not replace the general recruitment policy but in fact operates alongside it.

Inviting Applications

All our recruitment advertisements will include the statement:

“SWITCH Community Ltd is committed to safeguarding children, young people, andvulnerable adults. All appointments are subject to a satisfactory Criminal Records Bureau disclosure.”

Prospective applicants will be supplied, as a minimum, with the following:

• Job description and person spec

• SWITCH Community Ltd Safeguarding Policy;

• SWITCH Community Ltd Safer Recruitment Policy

• Application form.

All prospective applicants must complete, in full, an application form, any incomplete forms will be rejected.

Short Listing and References

Short-listing of candidates will be against the person specification for the post

Where requested and where possible, references will be taken up before theselection stage, prior to taking up the post, so that any discrepancies can be investigated during theselection stage.

References will be sought directly from the referee. References or testimonialsprovided by the candidate will not be accepted.

Where necessary, referees will be contacted by telephone or e mail in order toclarify any anomalies or discrepancies. A written record will be kept ofsuch exchanges.

Where necessary, previous employers who have not been named as refereeswill be contacted in order to clarify any anomalies or discrepancies. A written record will be kept of such exchanges

Referees will always be asked specific questions regarding

• The candidate’s suitability for working with children, young people, andvulnerable adults;

• Any disciplinary warnings, including time-expired warnings that relate tothe safeguarding of children, young people, and vulnerable adults;

• The candidate’s suitability for this post and their stated reason for leaving the previous post.

SWITCH Community Ltd employees are entitled to see and receive, if requested, copies of their employment references

The Selection Process

Selection techniques will be determined by the nature and duties of the vacantpost, but all vacancies will require an interview of short-listed candidates.

Interviews will nearly always be face-to-face but may in exceptional circumstances take place over Skype or another similar media form where a web cam is present

Safeguarding questions will always form part of the interview process

Candidates will always be required to:

• Explain satisfactorily any gaps in employment

•Explain satisfactorily any anomalies or discrepancies in the informationavailable to us as the potential employer

•Declare any information that is likely to appear on a CRB disclosure

•Demonstrate their capacity to safeguard and protect the welfare of

children, young people, and vulnerable adults.

SWITCH Community Ltd will always:

•Confirm the outcome of the interview to the applicant within one week

•Give detailed feedback on the interview if requested by the applicant

Employment Checks

All successful applicants are required to:

• Provide proof of identity

•Complete a CRB disclosure application and receive satisfactoryclearance

•Provide actual certificates of qualifications

•Provide proof of eligibility to live and work in the UK

Induction and Probation

All new staff will receive an Induction that includes:

•An awareness of all of the organisations policies with signatures to indicate their understanding and acceptance

All new staff will be subject to a 3 month probation period after which the candidate will be asked to attend a short interview to evaluate progress where they will again be questioned on safeguarding awareness.

The person responsible for the monitoring of this policy is

Gavin BoltonDirector

Signed on Behalf of SWITCH Community:

Name: Gavin BoltonSignature

Position: Director

Date19/04/16

Review date19/04/17