The Recruitment and Selection Process

 

 

Nationality Eligibility

Appointments to roles within MOJ will be made in accordance with the Civil Service nationality rules. These can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-rules In general, only nationals from the following countries (or association of countries) are eligible to apply for posts at MOJ.

  • UK nationals in both reserved and non-reserved posts

  • European Economic Area (EEA) and Commonwealth in non-reserved posts

  • Switzerland, and in some circumstances, Turkey in non-reserved posts

  • Certain family members of EEA, Swiss and Turkish nationals in non-reserved posts

 

In addition, you must be eligible to work in the UK under current UK legislation which is detailed at http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk.

Where a role is designated a reserved post, only UK Nationals are eligible to apply. This will be clearly outlined in the job advert.

Equal Opportunity and Diversity Information

MOJ is committed to providing services which embrace diversity and which promote equality of opportunity. As an employer, it is also committed to equality and valuing diversity within the workforce. Its goal is to ensure that these commitments, reinforced by its values, are embedded in its day-to-day working practices with all its customers, colleagues and partners.

MOJ is a diversity friendly employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. It does not discriminate on the basis of age, disability, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, religion or belief, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, working pattern, employment status, gender identity (transgender), caring responsibility or trade union membership.

MOJ is committed to providing equal opportunities for all candidates during the selection process, to enable us to select staff from a diverse pool of talent. Part of that commitment is that we guarantee an interview to any candidate who has a disability, as defined by the Equality Act 2010, and declares their disability in their application, provided that they meet the minimum (essential eligibility) criteria for the post(s) in question, as set out in the job advertisement and this document.

The Equality Act 2010 defines a person as being disabled if they have a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term effect on their ability to carry out normal day to day activities.

In order for MOJ to support your needs best, If you require any adjustments to be made at your interview please make these clear in your application form so that the vacancy manager is aware and can put these in place.

In order to avoid any biases from occurring, MOJ operates a blind sift process. Personal details are removed at sift stage and are only made available to the panel once a decision has been made on which persons should be invited to an interview.

Selection Process

There are normally two stages to the recruitment process. The first stage is a sift, which identifies applicants who appear from the information provided in their application to be best suited to the role’s requirements. Those who go through the sift stage will be invited to an interview. In the event of a large number of applications, a sift on the lead competency only may take place.

In order to avoid any biases from occurring, MOJ operate on a blind sift process. Personal details are removed at sift stage and are only made available to the panel once a decision has been made on which persons should be invited to an interview.

Interviews usually last for approximately 40 to 60 minutes and candidates may be required to give a presentation or partake in other assessments. Candidates who pass the required standard for the role may be placed on a reserve list should the successful candidate decide not to take up the appointment or whereby further opportunities arise in the near future. Candidates will be kept on a reserve list for up to 12 months.

Terms of Appointment

The job profile will detail the type of appointment (loan, permanent or fixed term) in addition to the working pattern, including whether the role is being advertised as full or part time.

Civil servants recruited via fair and open competition are eligible to apply for posts advertised internally and across the Civil Service.

Staff on fixed term appointments or those joining on a loan should ensure they have prior approval from their home department before they apply for a role at MOJ.

Please note that where former Civil Servants are recruited through fair and open competition, the Department will not consider applications for re-instatement. Re-instatement is an exception where fair and open competition has not proved successful or is not deemed appropriate. Those applying from agencies, NDPBs (non-departmental public bodies) or any other bodies should check their status with their own HR Department prior to making an application. Crown or public servants (i.e. not civil servants) will be treated as new entrants to the Civil Service and any previous service and other entitlements may not be transferable.

Remuneration

The salary range for the role you are applying for will be detailed on the job profile. If you are an existing Civil Servant appointed on level transfer (either within MoJ or from another Government Department) you will transfer on your existing salary, unless it is below the relevant MOJ grade minimum in which case it will be uplifted to the MoJ band minimum. If you are joining on promotion the increase will be 10% or the minimum of the relevant MOJ grade, whichever is the higher. Specialist pay enhancements or allowances paid by other departments are not transferable to MOJ. The exception to this rule is the London weighting allowance where the exporting department does not have a separate London pay scale. New entrants into the Civil service are appointed at the pay scale minimum for the grade.

Pre-appointment Enquiries

If successful at interview, MOJ is required to carry our pre-appointment checks to ensure that the successful candidate is qualified for the appointment. These include; identification, nationality, character and security. The post recruited for will require you to undergo Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) checks and may require an additional level of security clearance. This will be either the Counter Terrorist checks (CTC), Security clearance (SC) or Developed vetting (DV). If a higher level is required for the role it will be detailed in the job profile.

The BPSS is a basic recruitment check to verify your identity and nationality. It seeks to prevent identity fraud, illegal working and deception. It requires the presentation of personal documentation, completion of a character enquiry questionnaire and the receipt of employment or educational reference covering the past three years. As part of the security clearance process, you will be asked to complete a security questionnaire which will explain the government’s vetting policy.

Please be aware that if you do not upload all of the correct documentation within 15 days of being notified that you are successful, a decision relating to pre-employment checks will be taken based on the documentation held will take place.

Probation Period

In addition to pre appointment enquiries, new entrants to the Civil Service will normally be required to serve a six month probation period. If you are an existing civil servant and have successfully completed a probation period only pre-appointment enquiries will apply and you will not need to serve a new probation period.

Legislative and Statutory Commission Requirements and Complaints

MOJ’s recruitment processes are underpinned by the principle of selection for appointment on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s recruitment principles. This can be found at http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk.

MOJ must ensure that its recruitment system delivers recruits who are appropriate to the organisation’s needs, are able to carry out the required work and are selected on merit on the basis of fair and open competition under the requirements of the Civil Service Commission’s recruitment principles http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitment-2.

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the recruitment principles and wish to make a complaint you should, in the first instance contact moj-recruitment-vetting- enquiries@sscl.gse.gov.uk. For externally advertised campaigns, if not satisfied with the response you receive from MOJ, you may bring your complaint to the Civil Service Commission who will consider complaints where the principle of appointment on merit through fair and open competition has not been met. Further information can be found at http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitment/complaints.