1. Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to clarify the requirements of the Civil Service Commissioners’ Code of Recruitment. As a Civil Service employer, it is mandatory that all recruitment undertaken by The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre is compliant with this code.
2. Policy
The Civil Service Commissioners’ Code of Recruitment exists to ensure that all recruitment into Civil Service roles is carried out by means of Fair and Open Competition.
3. Responsibility
The Chief Executive is responsible for all recruitment at the Centre and he must ensure, with the support of the HR Director, that all recruitment undertaken by the Centre is compliant with the Civil Service Commissioners’ code.
4. Advertising vacancies
- It is the policy of the QEII Conference Centre to advertise all vacancies internally, within the Centre, for at least 1 week before advertising externally.
- All vacancies must be opened up to external competition and therefore must be publicised in a readily available medium such as a national newspaper or journal.
- Industry specific press is also acceptable for vacancies that are specific to that industry.
- The use of Recruitment Consultants is acceptable but Recruitment Consultants’ processes must be subject to the same rigorous standards of fair and open competition.
- At the time of applying for a vacancy candidates are asked to complete the confidential and optional Equal Opportunities Data form. Following the completion of a recruitment campaign equal Opportunities data is available upon request from The Centre’s HR team. Equal opportunities data is published along with recruitment equal opportunities data from DCLG Central once a year.
5. Sifting responses
- Methods for sifting applications received for vacancies must be structured and transparent and all applications must be judged upon the same criteria.
- Managers responsible for sifting applications should complete a Sift Form for each application. The Sift Form should list the criteria by which each application is scored. Once all applications have been sifted the Recruiting Manager should complete a Sift Report that indicates who has been selected for interview.
- All completed Equal Opportunities Data forms should be collected and stored by HR at the time of recruitment so that equal opportunities information can be published by HR following completion of the recruitment campaign.
6. Selection interviews
- Selection interviews must refer closely and visibly to the vacancy and, as such, to the job description and person specification for that vacancy. Questions posed at interview that fall outside the criteria outlined in the person specification or job description and outside the Centre’s standard Competencies are deemed inappropriate questions and should not be asked.
- An Interview Assessment form should be completed by each interviewer for each candidate interviewed.
- Once all the interviews have taken place an interview Board Report is to be compiled by the Recruiting Manager. This report will indicate the individual scores awarded to each candidate, a summary of the interviewers’ assessments and the final decision of the Board. This report must be signed off by the HR Director the Chief Executive before a job offer is made.
- The Centre’s Recruitment Policy and supporting documentation will be made available to managers so that at any stage during the course of a recruitment campaign the recruitment campaign file can be consulted.
7. Failure to comply with the Recruitment policy
Recruitment campaigns that have not complied fully with the Recruitment Policy are likely not to have complied with the Civil Service Commissioners’ Code of Recruitment. Since all recruitment into the Civil Service is required to be compliant with this code or an authorised exception to the Code, an appointment made as a result of a non-compliant recruitment campaign will not be recognised by the Civil Service Commissioners. As such the selected candidate’s employment will be deemed invalid.
8. Published information
The following information regarding recruitment at the Centre is published on the QEII Centre’s website.
- The Recruitment Policy.
- Statistics on the number of vacancies filled at the Centre
- Equal Opportunities statistics
- Statistics on the number of permitted exceptions to the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Code allowed by the Centre’s Chief Executive.
- A statement on the system of internal control to ensure compliance with the Civil Service Commissioners’ Code of Recruitment.
- Information regarding any remedial action taken as a result of an internal check for compliance with the Code that revealed an instance where recruitment activity was not compliant with the Code.