Application for Employment

Thank you for your interest in Worcester City Council. Please take the time to look through this information. It will tell you more about Worcester , the City Council and conditions of service. If you need more information please call us on (01905) 722056

Welcome to Our City

Worcester is a vibrant, bustling and historic city. It is close to the West Midlands conurbation, yet surrounded by beautiful countryside.

Our City’s rich and varied past spans more than 1500 years. It combines the best of old and new, with many traditional skills and industries thriving alongside the technological advances of today. Worcester is one of the four top shopping centres in the West Midlands , with the award winning Crown Gate Centre being a central feature.

Worcester provides a host of sport and recreation choices. Horse racing, rugby and county cricket provide national interest, while the River Severn is home to boat trips, canoeing and an active rowing club. There are three local sports centres, an 18 hole golf course, a leisure centre, two swimming pools and many private sports, leisure and golf clubs. The city has many colourful parks, three museums and a host of arts and cultural activities.

If you would like further information about Worcester City Council, look round our website at www.worcester.gov.uk

Getting to Worcester
Worcester is easy to reach by road. The nearby M5 provides a direct route to Birmingham and excellent links with the rest of the country. There are regular train services to Birmingham and to London Paddington providing connections to the rest of the rail network. Birmingham International Airport is approximately 30 miles away.

Inside Worcester City Council
Worcester City Council is one of six District Councils within the county of Worcestershire . There are 35 Councillors representing 15 wards throughout the City. Almost 600 people work for the City Council providing a wide range of services including planning, museums and refuse collection.

Accessibility, efficiency and value for money are at the heart of our work, together with a commitment to work with the community to create and sustain a prosperous inclusive environment and a good quality of life.

Our Offices
The main offices are situated in the City Centre at:

• The Guildhall, High Street
• Orchard House, Graveney House and Wyatt House in Farrier Street and
• The Butts Depot

Our employees also work at many other sites throughout the City, such as at the Leisure Centres and Crematorium.

How to Make Your Application
Please read all information sent with the application form carefully. It is important that you complete the form clearly, accurately and as fully as possible. Your answers will be used to decide whether or not to select you for interview, so please make sure you complete all sections.

Appointments with Worcester City Council are made on merit only

All the facts you share which are relevant to the job description and person specification will be taken into account.Pleasedon’t forget to include information relating to any disability you may have. This will be used to make sure you are given equal consideration for the post you are applying for and for us to plan any reasonable adjustments that may have to be made.

Equal Opportunities and Diversity
We recognise and value the diversity of our community and encourage applications regardless of background, ethnic group, age, gender or disability.

To ensure that all applicants are judged only on merit, we have designed our application form to ensure that all personal details are removed from the application form before it is sent for short-listing. Details from the application form are entered onto our recruitment system when it is first received and then the equal opportunities insert is removed.

All application forms received will be passed on to the manager in the relevant service area for short-listing after the closing date. Short-listing will be conducted by measuring your application against the previously agreed criteria for the job as detailed in the Person Specification.

Please DO NOTinclude CV’s with your application form as they WILL NOT be accepted, as there is difficulty in removing your personal details. This is in order to comply with our equal opportunities processes and to ensure you are treated fairly.

Please note that we do not send letters to those applicants who aren’t selected for interview. If, after 4 weeks from the closing date, you haven’t been invited for interview please assume that you have been unsuccessful on this occasion

Our application form is designed to remove any information which will indicate your gender, race and exact age. This ensures that applications are judged only on merit. When your application is received by us your details will be entered onto our computerised recruitment system and the equal opportunities insert will be separated from your application form.

How To Appeal
If you are unhappy with the way your application is received and/or the way your interview was conducted, then please tell us. A formal complaint should be made in writing to the Head of Performance, Innovation and Efficiency, Orchard House, Farrier Street , Worcester WR1 3BB . She will arrange for the circumstances to be investigated.

Interview Expenses
Expenses will be reimbursed for candidates attending interviews for nationally advertised posts at the appropriate rates. However, if an advertisement is seen on a website and it is not advertised nationally no expense will be paid. In the event of a candidate withdrawing their application or refusing the offer of employment on grounds which are considered by the Head of Performance, Innovation and Efficiency inadequate, no expenses will be paid.

Canvassing
Candidates who canvass any member of the council either directly or indirectly will be disqualified. The Standing Orders of the Council require any candidate who knows that they are related to any Councillor or to any employee of the Council to disclose the relationship when making an application. A candidate who fails to disclose such a relationship shall be disqualified for the appointment and if appointed shall be liable to instant dismissal.

General Conditions of Appointment
Appointments are normally subject to the National Joint Council for Local Government Services, or other appropriate negotiating body. Certain local conditions as adopted by the Council also apply.

Medicals
Successful applicants must complete a medical questionnaire and send it unopened to Occupational Health. You must be medically cleared before your appointment can be confirmed. Any disabilities you have will not be referred to during the interview unless you request us to take account of the comments as part of a discussion on reasonable adjustments. We are committed to being positive about disability.

References

Please note that relations and friends are not admissible as referees and alternative referees will be requested.

You are asked to supply two referees from employers who you have worked for over the previous 3 years. They should be your current and/or most recent employers. Please provide more than two referees if you have worked for more than 2 employers in the last 3 years. ‘Character’ references should only be provided if you have no previous employment. If you have no option but to provide a character reference they should ideally be employed in a professional capacity i.e. lecturer, solicitor, doctor, teacher etc.

All appointments are subject to the receipt of at least two references considered satisfactory by the Head of Performance, Innovation and Efficiency.

Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 - Prevention of Illegal Working

To comply with this Act you will be required to produce one of the following documents before your appointment can be confirmed. It proves to us that you are entitled to work in the UK .

You must show one of the following:

• A residence permit from an EEA country or Switzerland
• A passport or other document to show you can stay indefinitely in the UK
• A passport or other document to show you can stay in the UK and allow you to do the type of work we are offering you if you do not have a work permit
• An application Registration Card issued by the Home Office to an asylum seeker stating that you are permitted to take employment

If you are unable to provide an original of one of these documents please contact the Personnel Section on 722056.

Disclosure Clearance
All successful applicants that are appointed to jobs that have access to children or young people have to undergo a CRB disclosure. It should be listed in the advertisement if this is necessary and you should also receive important Disclosure Information, plus a copy of the Policy Statement on the recruitment of ex-offenders and the Policy Statement on the secure storage, handling use, retention and disposal of disclosures and disclosure information.

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Please bear in mind that you will need to provide original documents prior to the confirmation of your appointment and, if travelling some distance to the interview, check with Personnel beforehand whether you should bring any original documents to Personnel prior to your interview to be copied.

Relocation Scheme
If the job you are applying for has been nationally advertised you may need to move nearer to Worcester to take up the post. For example employees on emergency call-out may be required to live within a reasonable travelling distance of the City. If this is the case you may be eligible to apply for a relocation grant. This provides help with removal costs, legal fees, estate agent’s fees, lodging and travel costs and other disturbance expenses. Details are available on request. Please note if the advertisement is seen on a Council’s website and not advertised nationally no relocation expenses will be paid. In addition no grant is payable where:-

• An employee already resides within 25 miles of the City Centre,
• An employee relocates less than 25 miles from their previous residence,
• An employee, following relocation, resides more than 25 miles from the City Centre.

Probationary Period
All appointments are subject to a probationary period of six months, even if you have continuous Local Government Service. This probationary period is also subject to all Mandatory Training, currently Induction Course and Equal Opportunities/Diversity Course. If this is your second job and you have other employment preventing you from attending these courses, you need to consider this when applying for a position with us, e.g. you may have to take annual leave.

Notice
The minimum period of notice of termination of employment which employees are required to give the Council is one calendar month unless the grade for the post includes the grades within the range 9 – 14 in which case a minimum of two calendar months notice is required. This is incorporated in the Contract of Employment.

Politically Restricted Posts

The Local Government and Housing Act 1989 designates some posts as politically restricted. Holders of such posts cannot stand for public elected office (other than to a parish council) and are subject to restrictions on more general political activity. If the post you are applying for is politically restricted it will be clearly stated in the job details.

Salary and Progression
Unless there is a valid reason to do otherwise, your starting salary will normally be on the bottom of the advertised scale. This rises by annual increments to the top of the scale subject to satisfactory performance. Salary scales are revised nationally each April.

Salaries are normally paid by credit transfer on the 21 st of each month.

Continuous Service
If you are transferring to Worcester City Council from another local authority, your previous local authority service will be taken into account. It must be continuous with no break in service.

Working Hours
The standard working week is normally 37 hours, from Monday to Friday for all employees except those who are contractually required to work otherwise.

Wherever possible employees work flexible working hours. You are required to work between 9.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. each day. Flexible working allows you to start work between 7.30 a.m. and 9.30 a.m. and to finish between 4.00 p.m. and 6.30 p.m. subject to the needs of the service. The lunch period is from 12 noon to 2.15 p.m. During this time you should take a break of at least 20 minutes and no more than two hours. If you do not take a break of at least 20 minutes you must deduct 20 minutes from your total working hours daily. You can take a maximum of 2 days flex leave per 4 week cycle subject to the needs of the service and you being in sufficient credit prior to taking the leave.

Leave

The Council operates an individual leave year system commencing on the first day you join the Council and entitlement in days is as follows:

These entitlements apply to all new employees who commence on or after 1 st July 2004 .

For example, if you started with the City Council on the 26 September you would be entitled to leave from your start date to the following 30 August, after which the 1 September to 30 August each year.

Bank, Public and Extra-Statutory Holidays

 Employees that commence employment on or after 1 July 2004 are entitled to the statutory days holidays and two additional extra statutory days. Generally one of these days is to be taken at the Christmas Bank Holiday period, the other day being added to your annual leave entitlement to enable greater flexibility to keep days of celebration and special requirements specific to your personal life style and to provide a better service to the public.

However, special arrangements may result in the two extra statutory days being added to your annual leave entitlement, depending on service requirements.

Pensions
All our employees are eligible to join the Local Government Pension Scheme. This is a contributory pension scheme. You contribute 6% of your salary and the Council also makes a contribution. Contributions are automatically deducted from your pay and full tax relief is given. Further details of the scheme are available on request.

You could also opt to pay Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVC’s) if you wish. Full details are available on request.

Alternatively you may opt to contribute to a personal pension or to join the State Earnings Related Pension Scheme (SERPS).

Sick Pay
You are entitled to sick pay if absent through illness in accordance with the sick pay scheme. The allowance normally depends on your length of service ranging from one month at full pay during the first year of service and (after completing four months service) two months at half pay, to a maximum of six months at full pay and six months at half pay after five years service.

Car Allowances and Loans
Some posts carry casual car allowances and car loans are available to certain users. A car loan with your present authority will normally be transferred to Worcester City Council. If you require further information please contact us.

Cycling Scheme
The Council pays an allowance for work-related travel of 20 pence per mile. It also runs a cyclescheme that allows contracted employees to ‘sacrifice’ some of their salary over the course of 12 months to buy a new bike, up to the value of £1,000. This cyclescheme can save employees between 40-50% of the usual retail price of a bike from selected outlets. A full information pack is available that lists all the details of the scheme. Finally there are also bike loans of up to £500 available for employees who don’t qualify for the cyclescheme.

Car Parking
Car park passes are available to our employees giving them free access to certain Council car parks whilst on official duties. A car park pass costs £60 a year for most employees.

Concessionary Rates for Recreational Facilities
All our employees are able to use Council run recreational facilities at concessionary rates. These include swimming, fitness introductions, sports and leisure centres, horse race meetings and golf. Full details are available on request.

Trade Union Membership
You have the right to join a trade union and take part in its activities if you wish to do so. Details of specified trade unions are available on request. The two trade unions to which employees belong are GMB and UNISON.

Audit Commission’s Data Matching Exercise
The Audit Commission has exercised its powers under Section 6 of the Audit Commission Act 1998. This means they have instructed the Council to give them details of all payroll system data. They use this information to match it with national data to help prevent and detect fraud relating to state benefits and awards, including local government pension payments.

The Council’s Equal Opportunities Policy Statement
Worcester City Council is an Equal Opportunities Organisation. It is committed to equality of opportunity for both its customers and its employees. This means that Council services and employment opportunities are equally available and accessible to all. The Council has overall responsibility for the implementation of this policy.

The aim of our policy is to ensure that no job applicant, employee or customer is discriminated against on the grounds of sex, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, disability, race, colour, age, nationality, marital status, parental status, caring responsibilities, hours of work, political or religious belief, trade union activities, ethnic or national origins or is disadvantaged by conditions or requirements which cannot be shown to be justified.

Employment selection criteria and procedures are frequently reviewed to ensure that individuals are selected, promoted and treated on the basis of their relevant merits and abilities. Equality of Opportunity , embedded within our procedures, is intended to ensure that all employees can compete on the same basis for promotion; and take advantage of personal development and training opportunities.

The Council further recognises that the variety and diversity of cultures represented in Worcester serves to strengthen and enrich the life of the area. In 2002 it adopted its Race Equality Scheme which now forms an active part of the Equality Standard for Local Government to which the Council committed in 2003. The Council buys in a local interpretation service to support its service to non-English speaking citizens and employees.

In order to further develop its Equal Opportunities Policy, the Council will monitor and review annually its progress both in employment and service delivery. It will consult its stake-holders and change its practices to improve performance impact on groups indicated as disadvantaged. It is the responsibility of every employee to seek to ensure the practical application of this policy.

Positive about Disabled People – ‘Two Ticks’ Symbol

The Council is ‘Positive About Disabled People’ and commits itself to taking positive steps in the employment of people with disabilities. It is accredited to use the two ticks Disability Symbol. It has an Access Officer, and Disability Discrimination Act Working Party to improve customer access through consultation, with specialist support organisation in the community.

The Council is committed to interview all applicants with a disability who meet the minimum criteria for a job vacancy and will consider them on their abilities. This is to apply to all vacancies without exception. The minimum criteria details are stated in the person specification.

Code of Conduct
The public is entitled to expect the highest standards of conduct from all our employees. Worcester City Council has adopted a Code of Conduct which outlines existing laws, regulations and conditions of service and provides guidance and assistance for our Councillors and employees in their day-to-day work. There is a separate Code of Conduct specifically for Councillors and employees who deal with planning matters.

No Smoking Policy
The Council provides a healthy working environment and, in line with legal requirements, smoking is not allowed within Council workplaces.

Training and Development
We are committed to a high level of training and development for our employees. This means helping them to achieve the qualifications and skills required for successful performance and career development. A range of training opportunities is available.

Corporate Priorities and the Community Strategy for Worcester

Worcester City Council is committed to improving the quality of life for the people of Worcester . We have five corporate priorities:

• A Cleaner and Greener City  
• Safer and Stronger Communities
• Urban Renaissance
• Customer Care and Citizen Engagement
• Performance, Innovation and Efficiency

  You can find out more about these priorities on this webite.

The Council is also a key member of the Worcester Alliance and is helping to deliver a sustainable Community Strategy for the city. This is being done in partnership with other public sector organisations, local businesses and voluntary and community groups. For more information see www.worcesteralliance.org.uk

Other Council Policies

 The Council also has policies to provide guidance for our employees in the following areas:-

• Training and Development
• Health and Safety
• Employee Attendance
• Violence at Work
• Alcohol Awareness in the Workplace
• HIV/AIDS
• Bullying and Harassment at Work
• Whistleblowers Policy
• Information Communication & Technology (ICT) Policy
• Health at Work Strategy

This information is available in other formats on request. For example, braille, audio tape or p.c. disk

Please ring 01905 722042 or use minicom (text phone) 722156 to ask for your copy or e-mail personnel@cityofworcester.gov.uk

If you have difficulty understanding this document we can help. We can provide an interpreting service for most documents if needed.

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