Completing the application form

Page by page guidance

You can use these guidance notes to help you complete and submit your application accurately.

Personal information page

In this section, we ask you to provide your name, address and contact details.

If you've made a recent application, the online system will use the address details you have already supplied. You need to check that they are correct.

You can update your details using ‘edit’. Once you’ve finished, select ‘save and summary’. You only need to select ‘add another entry’ if you want to add another address.

We use email to contact you about your application. You must makes sure you have registered with your correct email address.

You can use the contact details section to give us more ways to get in touch with you.  However we will only use the email address you’ve registered with to contact you.

Employment history page

You can use this section to give us details of:

  • your present or most recent employment
  • your previous employments

If you've made a recent application, the online system will use the employment history you've already supplied. The details will be under the blank fields. The system doesn't save any information you previously entered in the 'brief description of duties' field. You will need to re-enter your relevant information in these fields.

You must enter the start and end dates of your previous jobs in the following format: dd/mm/yyyy.  You can also use the calendar icon to select the relevant dates. If you can't remember the exact start  or end dates, put the date as the 1st of the relevant month.

If you don’t have any previous employment history, put:

  • ‘No employment’ in the company name field
  • enter today’s date in the employment start date field

If you can’t remember your exact salary from previous roles, enter an approximate figure. If you enter any currency symbols, the system will convert them to the correct abbreviation.

Tip for changing the order of your employment history.

When you edit a record, it will appear at the top of the list when you save it. You can use this to change the order of your employment history, if you need to. [use grey highlight for the tip]

Qualifications page

In this section, you should provide details of any qualifications you hold that are relevant to your application. You’ll need to select the relevant qualification level from the list in the 'qualification level' field as well as the subject and grade.

If you cannot remember the exact date you received the qualification, enter the 1st of the month, and make sure the year is correct.

You only need to fill in the ‘Study expected end date’ field if you are currently studying for a qualification.

If you don’t have any qualifications, you can leave this section blank.

Professional membership page

If you are a member of a professional body, include the details in this section.

If you are a member of a professional body that is not listed, you can use ‘Other’, to add the details.

Supporting statements page

The information that you provide in these two sections is essential for us to assess your application.

You need to use these spaces to tell us:

  • about your skills, knowledge and experience
  • how you meet the requirements for this position, as stated in the Job Profile

You only have space for 500 words in each section.

The examples you give don’t all have to be work-based. We’re interested in any relevant situations and examples that show your suitability for the role.

Warning

The supporting statement page will time-out after 30 minutes and you will lose any unsaved work. Remember to save your work regularly by selecting the 'save and summary' button at the bottom of the screen. [use grey highlight for the warning]

Tip for adding your supporting statement

It’s a good idea to type your supporting statement in another application first, such as Microsoft Word. You can then copy and paste the text into the box on the form. However, you will lose any formatting when you paste. [use grey highlight for the tip]

Attach your CV

For some jobs, you will have the opportunity to attach your CV. We will make this clear in the application process for each job.

There are limits to the documents you can attach:

  • we will only accept  three attachments
  • the maximum file size is 2MB per attachment.

You must make sure the file name of each attachment clearly includes your name, such JSmithCV.doc

You need to attach each document separately:

  1. Attach the first document and select 'save and summary'
  2. This returns you to the summary page
  3. Navigate back to the page and select 'browse' again to attach your second document
  4. Repeat these steps if you want to attach a third document

You can look at the summary page to check you have uploaded your documents.

References page

To apply for a job, you must provide details of referees to cover the previous five years of employment where applicable.

One of your referees must be your current employer. If you are not currently employed, you must give us details of you most recent employer.

If you’ve only had one employer, you must provide details of at least one other referee who:

  • has known you in a professional capacity
  • can comment on your suitability for employment

This could be another manager within the same organisation for example.

If you have not had any previous employers then you will need to provide references from:

  • school
  • college or university
  • volunteering organisations

You will also need to provide a personal reference who cannot be a family member.

We will only contact referees if you have accepted an offer of employment.

 If you've made a recent application, the online system will use the referees' details you've already supplied. The details will be under the blank fields.  You must check these details to make sure they are correct. You can update them by selecting 'edit'.

Once you’ve finished, click on 'save and summary'.

Other information page

You must answer all of the questions and complete all of the sections on this page.

Equality and diversity monitoring

We appoint people based on merit regardless of:

  • ethnic origin
  • sex
  • disability
  • sexual orientation
  • race
  • colour
  • marital status
  • caring or parental responsibilities
  • age
  • beliefs on matters such as religion or politics

You can answer each question on this page by selecting the appropriate option in each drop-down list.

If you tell us that you have a disability and require reasonable adjustments, we will work with you:

  • to make these adjustments to the recruitment process
  • to make these adjustments to your workplace where applicable

We will treat any information you provide on the equality and diversity page in strictest confidence.

Declaration page

To submit your application, you must tick the box agreeing to the terms of the declaration on this page.

Select 'save and summary' to save the details you’ve entered and return to the summary page.

Submitting your application

Before you submit your application you must:

  • check all the details you have given are correct
  • make sure all the icons on the summary page are green. this shows that you’ve filled in all the mandatory fields
  • check the closing date. We will not consider applications received after the closing date

Once you're happy with your application, you can then select the 'submit application' button.

When you have submitted the form, you won’t be able to make any further changes.

If you are unhappy with your submitted application for any reason, you should contact our Human Resources team. They can delete your submitted application.

If you ask them to delete your application, you’ll need to start again. You must submit your new application before the closing date.

If you want to see the application you’ve submitted, click on 'my applications' on the menu at the top of the page You will can then request a PDF of your application form. The system will email the PDF to your registered email address. 

We will send you an acknowledgment email when we receive your application.

If you do not receive our acknowledgment email, check your junk or spam email folders.

If you still have not received an acknowledgement, it may mean that you have not successfully submitted your application.

You can contact our Human Resources team if you have submitted your application and not received an acknowledgment.

Human Resources

Address: Causeway House
Bocking End
Braintree
Essex
CM7 9HB

Telephone: 01376 552525

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