Our Recruitment Process

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Application process

Submitting your application

All applications must be made online via our recruitment system for which you will be required to register your basic personal details. If you require support with the online application process you can contact our Resourcing Team who will be happy to support.

What to include in your application

You should complete the application form as fully as possible providing information about your relevant experience, educational history and qualifications. For all roles we ask that you provide a supporting statement outlining what skills, abilities and experience you can bring which makes you an ideal candidate for the role that you are applying for. Please ensure you refer to the requirements outlined in the job profile when completing your application which will be included on the specific job advert page. We receive a relatively high number of applications for our roles, therefore it's important to also think about including what you understand about the role, Kingston, your transferable skills and how you understand and are able to demonstrate our core values and behaviours.

Recommended reading:

If you are thinking of applying for a job at Kingston Council or preparing for an interview, the following sources will help you understand what the council is trying to achieve and some of the challenges it faces.

• Our Council Plan
• Our Inclusive Kingston Strategy
• Our Latest Equalities Report
• Our Data and Insight Pages

Closing dates

Closing dates are given as a guide. We reserve the right to close our vacancies once a sufficient number of applications have been received. Therefore, it is strongly advised that you complete and submit your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Equality diversity and inclusion

We are proud to be a diverse and welcoming Borough. Our aim is to create a workforce which reflects the community we serve, and staff feel a sense of belonging. We celebrate and respect differences and appreciate the value of having a diverse workforce. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, particularly Multi Ethnic, and disabled candidates, as these groups are currently under-represented in our workforce.

As a Disability Confident employer, we are committed to thinking differently about disability and taking action to improve how we recruit, retain and develop disabled people. We guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum essential criteria for a role, this also applies to those who are care experienced (at some point in their life they have been in the care of the a Local Authority) and those who currently or have previously served in the Armed Forces, in line with our commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant.

We are committed to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion so all personal information that can identify job applicants e.g. name, title, protected characteristics etc. is completely anonymised during the shortlisting process. Our hiring managers review applications based on the knowledge, skills and experience demonstrated in your application, and how well these match to the job profile. Our HR Shared Service with Sutton Council was recently recognised nationally for having the ‘Best Inclusion and Diversity Programme’ at the PPMA Excellence in People Management Awards 2023, something that we’re incredibly proud of.

Shortlisting and selection

Our hiring managers shortlist application through our online recruitment system and shortly after the closing date, you will be notified via email to confirm whether or not you have been shortlisted to attend an interview, which may involve some form of assessment.

Interviews

All applicants who are shortlisted will be invited to attend an interview, which may include some form of assessment - full details will be provided as part of the interview invitation. Our hiring managers and staff are trained on recruitment and selection to ensure that our process is fair, consistent and equitable. All applicants will be asked the same set of questions which will be designed to test your knowledge, skills, relevant experience and abilities as required for the role so we are able to assess all applicants consistently and make an informed decision on who best meets our requirements, questions will therefore be related to the job profile.

You will be expected to provide relevant examples when answering interview questions, so it's important you think about relevant situations and pieces of work you can use to tell us what you did, how you did it, what the result was, and what you learnt or might do differently next time. A helpful technique to use as part of your preparation is STAR:

• Situation - Describe the situation and when it took place.
• Task - Explain the task and what was the goal.
• Action - Provide details about the action you took to attain this.
• Result - Conclude with the result of your action.

Any applicants who have a disability and require reasonable adjustments in line with the Equalities Act 2010 should request these initially as part of their application and subsequently when they are invited to interview, so these can be accommodated in advance.

Please note that some of our interviews take place online, if you require any support or have any questions, please contact the Resourcing Team.

After interview

All applicants will be contacted to confirm the outcome of their interview and if you are unsuccessful you will be given feedback to support you with future applications. If it's felt that you are appointable to the role but unfortunately not the best applicant on the day, we may keep your details for future if a similar opportunity arises within six months of your interview.

Successful applicants

If you're successful, we will contact you to confirm details of your conditional offer with us and you will be invited to accept this, before being contacted by our Resourcing Team who will work with you to obtain information required as part of our pre-employment checks process. Pre-employment checks required depend on the nature of the role that you have been offered, but typically will include verification of the following:

• Your right to work in the UK
• Medical
• References
• Disclosure and Barring Service Check (level dependent on role)
• Relevant qualifications (as outlined in the job profile)
• Professional memberships (as outlined in the job profile)