Guidance for applicants
Guidance for applicants
It really matters to us that we invite people to come and work at Scouts that share our values and are committed to helping us build Skills For Life for young people.
Therefore, we take our recruitment processes seriously and make sure we are testing the right areas. However, we also want to make sure we enable you to shine through the process and that you’re able to demonstrate your strengths and capabilities.
If you decide that you do want to apply to join our team, here is some advice to help you on the way.
We’ll often use different selection methods depending on the role and the skills and experience we’re looking for. You'll be asked to apply through our online portal and to submit an up-to-date CV and supporting statement. We'll then use this to shortlist a final group of candidates.
If you're shortlisted, you’d normally expect to be invited for a panel interview which would include the manager of the role and two other panel members. Sometimes we may also ask you to give a presentation or undertake a written exercise depending on the role. Details about the selection process will be provided in your invite.
- Always try to keep your CV focused and to the point. If it’s too long it might suggest that your communication is not a strength.
- You'll be asked to submit a supporting statement with your most up-to-date CV. Use this to demonstrate how you meet the criteria in the person specification – possibly using the same headers. Make it as easy as possible for the panel to see how you meet the criteria.
- Try to give concrete evidence rather than vague statements. Anyone can say “communication skills are a personal strength”, but can you give an example of a work achievement or project that proves this?
- Always spell check.
- Be honest about any gaps. If you went travelling for a year or cared for a family member that is 100% fine. We value all different kinds of experience and don’t expect candidates that have seamless careers histories.
- We're committed to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, so will only include the essential criteria required in the person specification for our roles.
- If you don't hear from us within two weeks of the closing date of the recruitment campaign, it's likely you've not been shortlisted. Due to the number of applications we receive, we're not able to provide individual feedback at this stage.
- The most important thing in our interviews is to be authentic and be true to yourself. Be clear about your strengths and how you would add value to the team at the Scouts.
- Come prepared with some interesting questions (although not too many) that show us you’re interested and inquisitive about the role and organisation.
- Do a bit of research. We don’t expect you to be an expert on us, but looking at our values, strategy and website shows us that you care about the job. If you’re new to scouting it may also be useful to find out a bit more about what we do as a Movement.
- If we ask you about your weaknesses or development areas it’s not because we’re trying to catch you out. Be honest. We know everyone has strengths and weaknesses and we want to employ people that are self-aware, not just people that have polished interview answers.
- We have a competency framework that we use for all staff. It’s worth reading through this to help your interview preparation.
If you come to an interview, we’ll let you know what the decision-making process is and when we’ll be able to let you know the outcome.
If you’re unsuccessful in one of our interviews we’ll always take the time to offer you some constructive feedback to help with your future applications and preparation.
You can apply for any of our roles using our online portal and you can read our full Recruitment and Selection Policy.