Customer facing roles in the CPS require the ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English and/or Welsh where required. Where this is an essential requirement this will be tested as part of the selection process.
The recruitment process will consist of an online application and an interview which will be held remotely via Microsoft Teams between the following dates: Tuesday 4th July and Friday 7th July 2023
A member of our recruitment team will be in touch with further guidance should you reach this stage in the process. If you have any queries about this please contact the CPS Recruitment Team at [email protected]
You should keep these dates free or notify us if you are not available. We will make every effort to accommodate you in your preference for dates; however we cannot guarantee that they will be met.
We will also be holding meet and engagement sessions on the following dates, these sessions give candidates the chance to ask the resourcing team queries on the selection process/ role advertised:
9th June 12pm: https://meetandengage.com/alia8a2dd
16th June 4pm: https://meetandengage.com/alia8ahiu
To join these sessions, please use the links that are included on page 14 of the candidate pack to sign up.
The successful applicant will be required to secure, at minimum, DBS clearance. To speed up this process; you should bring 3 forms of ID with you on the day of interview. Data gathered from unsuccessful candidates will be destroyed in accordance with our Data Retention Policy.
If successful in obtaining an interview you will be asked to complete the Character Enquiry Form and Nationality and Immigration Questionnaire.
(If you are an internal member of staff, you will not be required to undergo this DBS check as you will already hold this clearance)
Personal Statement (using the text box provided online)
You will also be asked to complete a behaviour based personal statement of no more than 1250 words between three behaviours, setting out how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience, match the requirements as detailed in the candidate pack. You will also need to address the core behaviours for this role, detailed in the behaviours section of the candidate pack, which are;
1. Motivation - Why would you like to join the Crown Prosecution Service as a Paralegal Assistant?
2. Communicating and Influencing - Can you describe a time when you have communicated an important message to someone face to face?
3. Managing a Quality Service - Can you explain when you have delivered a good quality service to an individual or a group of people?
Information about the behaviour descriptors can be found here - https://bit.ly/CSBehaviourGuide
The panel reserve the right to only assess the lead behaviour or raise the standard / pass mark as required, including for the Online Tests.
You will need to submit your full application form by 23:55pm on the 16th June 2023
Please refer to the Candidate Pack for further information as to the process and what is being tested at each stage.
Merit List and Deployment of Offers
Candidates are required to provide two office location preferences from the list provided. Please note that you will only be offered the locations noted down on your application.
Please note this campaign will be using a locational merit list system of appointment. This means the highest rated candidate will be appointed from the region in which the vacancy has arisen. This means that even if you have scored higher than the candidate being selected, you will not be selected as you are not within the region with the vacancy.
The localised merit list you are included in will be based on your first choice location preference from your application form.
After these appointments have been filled under the locational merit list process, the remaining candidates who have successfully passed their assessments will remain on a merit list for 12 months.
This would be in the instance where all the posts are filled for your first choice preference and you therefore are placed on the waiting list. In this instance, there may be opportunities remaining for your further location preferences or other locations around the organisation. In this instance you may be approached for one of these further locations which may sit outside of your initial preference.
If a candidate is offered a position that they are unable to accept they can remain on the reserve list and may be offered a position for their location preference should one become available, however the reserve list will expire 12 months after the interviews take place and positions for candidates first preference cannot be guaranteed.
Timeline
These dates are subject to change; however it may not be possible to accommodate alternative requests for interviews. Please refer to candidate pack for the scheduled timeline.
Please note, if you are successful following the shortlist, you will be invited to book an interview slot online with a minimum five working days’ notice. If you have an issue with the interview date selected please let us know as soon as possible and we will look into the possibility of rearranging, however this cannot be guaranteed.
Other
Candidates can apply to this vacancy in Welsh, and will not be treated less favourably if you do so. When completing your application form, you will be asked whether you wish for your interview to be conducted in Welsh.
From April 2018, the CPS will provide a Fair Processing Notice (FPN) to all new applicants after they have been successful at interview. These candidates will be informed that, as one aspect of pre-employment screening, their personal details – name, National Insurance Number and date of birth - will be checked against the Internal Fraud Database (IFD) and that anyone included on the IFD will be refused employment unless they can demonstrate exceptional circumstances.
On behalf of the vacancy holder the Strategic Resourcing team in the CPS will inform applicants when they are refused employment because of their inclusion in the IFD.
Current Civil Servants
Please note, if you are a current civil servant and you are currently undergoing any of the following formal actions your application will not be progressed any further;
Formal discipline action, any formal action regarding attendance, poor performance or any restriction of duties as a result of disciplinary action
Civil Service Commissioners
Written feedback and comments will only be provided to those at the interview stage and will not be provided until the vacancy is complete.
If you are dissatisfied with the recruitment process and wish to make a complaint, please contact [email protected] with your concerns.
If you remain dissatisfied and wish to make a further complaint, please click on the following link to the Civil Service Commissioners complaints page https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/recruitment/civilservicerecruitmentcomplaints/
Civil Service Commissioners Recruitment Principles can be found here –
https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/recruitment/
Details of the Civil Service Nationality Rules are located at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-rules
Candidates will be subject to UK immigration requirements. For the most up-to-date information on the requirements of working in the UK, please go to the UK Visas and Immigration website: https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/work-visas
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.