Recruitment and Selection policy (PS 173)
Policy Statement
1.1 Scope
The policy applies to internal and external recruitment of police officer, police staff and OPCC Staff posts; whether they are fixed term or substantive appointments.
1.2 Key principles
Nottinghamshire Police and the OPCC will:
- Recruit and select will be conducted in a professional, timely,
consistent and cost effective manner - The Force and OPCC establishment will be managed within agreed budgets
- All recruitment and selection activity will be fully compliant with employment legislation and Police Regulations 2003
- Nottinghamshire Police and the OPCC will seek to recruit the best
quality candidates for roles based on objective merit - All recruiting managers will be appropriately skilled, comply with the policy
and procedures and fully understand Equality Duties and Diversity standards, to ensure that all applicants are treated fairly, equitably and with dignity and respect - Nottinghamshire Police and the OPCC are high profile employers in the area and therefore the reputation of the Force and OPCC will be enhanced by professional recruitment and selection activities
- Nottinghamshire Police and the OPCC will promote best practice in
recruitment and selection - Recruitment and selection procedures will be continuously monitored and
evaluated to ensure consistency and continuous development - Nottinghamshire Police and the OPCC will consider taking Positive Action
where there is enough evidence to reasonably conclude that people from a
specific group suffer some sort of disadvantage because of their personal
characteristic or are disproportionately under-represented, in line with the
Equality Act 2010.
3.3 Financial control
- The Deputy Chief Constable is responsible for the people establishment of
the Force and the OPCC Chief Executive is responsible for all staff and
volunteers within the OPCC. All budgeted established vacancies must have
financial authorisation from the Force Managing Resources Panel/Tactical
Workforce Planning, or the OPCC Chief Executive or Chief Finance Officer if
it is an OPCC vacancy, prior to a vacancy being confirmed and advertised - Any external agency recruitment must be handled via the Force’s or OPCC’s preferred suppliers, in the first instance. Advice should be sought from People Services Recruitment Team
- All confirmed vacancies will be advertised on the Force intranet and
externally as appropriate - Any additional advertising expenditure must be authorised by the Head of
People Services & OD nominated representative - Nottinghamshire Police and the OPCC will not provide travelling expenses at any stage of the recruitment process
3.4 Data Protection Act 2018 and General Data Protection Regulations
- Documents relating to all applicants will be treated confidentially and in
accordance with the Data Protection Act and General Data Protection
Regulations - Disclosure requires all documentation to be accessible. Individuals may
request for data about themselves - All recruitment documentation for unsuccessful applicants will be retained by People Services for 12 months
- All recruitment documentation relating to an individual’s successful
appointment will be retained on their electronic personal file
3.5 Assessments
- All police staff posts will be recruited to an up-to-date job description
evaluated using the Korn Ferry evaluation procedure (previously known as
HAY) - Assessments will always be made on merit, following a fair and objective
selection process designed to test applicants (officers and staff) fit with the competency and values framework (CVF) and/or job description and person specification. All candidates will undertake the same assessment process for the same role and will be free from bias and any form of discrimination - Assessments for Police Officer appointments and promotions will as a minimum comply with national standards and be in accordance with the CVF
- New appointments to Nottinghamshire Police and the OPCC will be subject
to successful referencing, medical, attendance management, vetting checks and must be legally eligible to work in the UK without restriction.
Appointments of existing staff/officers to roles may also be subject to G32a attendance management approval, vetting and medical checks (dependent on the role) - Drug and biometric and fitness testing will be undertaken for certain roles
3.6 Feedback
- Nottinghamshire Police and the OPCC will contact all unsuccessful
candidates who are declined from any of the assessment stages outlined in the relevant procedure - Applicants can request specific feedback relating to the person
specification/role profile/CVF. This will be provided wherever possible
3.7 Equality of opportunity
- The following applicants that meet the minimum criteria for the person
specification will be shortlisted for initial assessment - Applicants with a disability defined under the Equalities Act
- Applicants that are currently serving in the Armed Forces are within 12
weeks of their discharge date - Applicants whose last long term employer was the Armed Forces and
have not more than 3 years since they left the Armed Forces - All applicants will be considered against the agreed person specification/role profile/CVF and will be objectively assessed on merit
- We will complete equality and diversity monitoring to check that our Diversity, Equality and inclusion policy is working effectively
- Any request for reasonable adjustments to the recruitment and selection
process to support disabled and/or neurodiverse applicants will be
implemented with advice from the People Services Department and
appropriate specialist reports - The right people with the right skills will be appointed, and any requests for flexible and/or agile working will be considered against PS 149 Flexible
Working Policy and/or PS 313 Agile Working Policy - Nottinghamshire Police and the OPCC will exercise discretion and
prioritise candidates at risk of redundancy or requiring redeployment
throughout recruitment processes
3.8 Transfers
- Nottinghamshire Police welcomes applications from suitably qualified police
officers currently serving with other Home Office police forces to transfer to Nottinghamshire Police subject to organisational requirements - Police officers may apply to transfer to an alternative department/division
within Nottinghamshire Police at the same rank. There may be restrictions on this facility for certain areas/roles. The Force business and operational requirements will prevail - Police staff may only apply to transfer within Nottinghamshire Police to an alternative department/division in the same role/position and grade (as determined by Job Descriptions and Person Specifications). There may be restrictions on this facility for certain areas/roles. The Force business and operational requirements will prevail
- The transfer date will normally be agreed within 28 days of the decision to transfer, subject to approval by Tactical Workforce Planning meeting. This will be mutually agreed between the relevant line managers. In exceptional circumstances an extension to this transfer date may be authorised by Tactical Workforce Planning Meeting
- All potential transferees will be subject to normal pre-transfer assessments and checks including vetting by the Professional Standards Directorate
3.9 Secondments
All applications for an internal or external secondment will be considered against organisational requirements and operational needs.
• Out of Force secondments will be managed as per PD 634 Out of Force Secondment Procedure.
• Secondments within the Force will be advertised internally and externally as appropriate as determined by the grade/rank of the role and the duration of the secondment.
3.10 Promotions
All police officers applying for higher ranks must have completed the necessary promotions process.
3.11 Induction
All successful applicants will undergo an induction programme, which is the responsibility of their line manager to facilitate.
3.12 Statement of Expectation
There are certain police officer specialist posts that have a statement of expectation and this will be outlined in the relevant advert and/or in the PIP 1 and PIP 2 Pathways policy. This should be discussed as part of the annual Career Conversations.
3.13 Exceptions
a) The Chief Constable reserves the right to transfer or promote police officers to any post, if it is in the interests of the operational requirements of the Force, without prior advertising. In the interests of operational efficiency, police officers on adjusted duties may be placed in specialist posts in accordance with the provisions of the Equality Act 2010.
b) Where a police officer or police staff member or staff of the OPCC are subject to:
- Performance Written Improvement Notice/Performance Development Plan
- Attendance Written Improvement Notice
- PSD or Police Staff Misconduct live warning
- PSD or Police Staff Misconduct Investigation (unless the individual is carrying out their normal full role and responsibilities during the investigation in which case they may still be eligible to apply and each situation will be considered on its merits)
The circumstances of the individual applying for jobs will need to be considered by the Head of People Services and OD and the recruiting manager alongside the Head of PSD where required. This could potentially exclude the individual from the recruitment process until conclusion of the process that they are subject to.
3.14 Monitoring
- All applicants will be required to complete an on-line equal opportunity monitoring form and these will not be visible to the Recruiting Manager during the short-listing process
- The Head of People Services and OD is responsible for monitoring the implementation and impact of this policy, including supporting the Deputy Chief Constable in the management of the establishment
- The outcomes of recruitment and selection procedures will be monitored on an annual basis, including monitoring for any adverse effects on minority groups
Section 4 - Statement of legislative compliance
This document has been drafted to comply with the general and specific duties in the Equality Act 2010; Data Protection Act; Freedom of Information Act; European Convention of Human Rights; Employment Act 2002; Employment Relations Act 1999, Immigration Act 2016 and other legislation relevant to policing.
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PS 173:
Recruitment and Selection Policy
Type of Document:
Policy
Version:
1.3
Registered Owner:
Claire Salter - Head of People Services and Organisational Development
Author/Reviewer:
Susan Sullivan
Effective Date:
September 2023
Review Date:
September 2028
Linked Documents:
PS 173 Recruitment and Selection Policy
PD 381 Police Staff Recruitment & Selection Procedure
PD 136 Police Officer Specialist Post Recruitment and Selection Procedure
PD480 Police Officer Recruitment Selection
PD127 Job Evaluation Procedure
PD 482 Pre-appointment Drug Screening Procedure, PD 633 Biometric Vetting Procedure
PS 122 Management of Change (Police Staff) Policy, PD 587 Management of Change Procedure
PG 043 Management of Change – Managers Guide, PS 197 Diversity, Equality and inclusion Policy, PD 132 PIP 1 and PIP 2 Pathways Policy/Procedure, PS 149 Flexible Working Policy
PS 313 Agile Working Policy