Guidance for applicants
Thank you for your interest in working with SBHA. Before you submit your application, please read the following guidance note which has been written to help you make sure you include all the necessary detail in your application form, CV and Supporting Statement.
General Information
For applicants with a disability, details of all posts will be made available on request, in Braille, in large print or on tape, and applications may be submitted on disk or in an alternative format. Please contact the Human Resources Department for more details.
Tel: 01750 724444
Email: people@sbha.org.uk
SBHA
South Bridge House, Whinfield Road Selkirk
TD7 5DT.
Applications must be submitted by the closing time and date. Late applications will not be considered.
Your application consists of the information you submit on the form on our career site, your CV, and your Supporting Statement. All three will be used as the basis for shortlisting you for a job. Particular attention is given to the Essential and Desirable Criteria as set out in the Job Description and/or Person Specification, so it's important that you use your Supporting Statement to highlight how you meet the criteria, by giving examples of how your experience and skills match the requirements of the post - there is more guidance on this further down this page. The information you provide will be treated as confidential and stored in accordance with the UK Data Protection Act 2018.
Asylum & Immigration Act 1996
The Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 makes it an offence to employ anyone who is not entitled to live or work in the UK. All applicants selected for interview will be required to provide evidence that they are entitled to live and work in the UK. Appropriate documentation may include the original of your current passport, birth or marriage certificate or P60/45.
Right to Work
Scottish Borders Housing Association is not a licensed sponsor under the appropriate UK Government regulations and as such, does not invite applications from, nor engage in sponsoring, overseas applicants who do not already have the right to live and /or work in the UK. The Association will not engage in any enquiries or enter into negotiations from individuals or Agents in this regard.
Qualifications and Training
When preparing your CV, please refer to the Job Description and Person Specification for the role you are applying for and provide details of any qualifications, apprenticeships, training or courses etc., which are relevant to the job. You will be required to provide evidence of your original qualifications certificates at the interview stage.
When providing details of school or further education qualifications, please remember to specify the level of qualification undertaken (i.e. SCQF level 6. O Level, National 5, Higher grade) and the grade achieved.
Employment History
Please ensure that the CV you upload provides details of your employment history to date, starting with your current or most recent post and accounting for any periods of time since leaving school not spent in employment, e.g. Full time education or other circumstances. For posts held within the last three years, please also confirm final salary/wage details.
If you need further guidance on creating a CV, there are lots of useful resources online, e.g.: CV advice | National Careers Service
Supporting Statement
This section is very important as the information you provide will be the basis for deciding who will be invited to interview. Before completing this section, have a close look at the Job Description and think carefully about why you are suitable for this post, relating your skills, knowledge and experience to the duties of the post as fully as possible. Then, take the Person Specification and go through each criteria point by point, writing a clear example of how you meet each requirement.
The example you give may be from your current job or from an activity you have done in the past. Remember that relevant experience is not always obtained in a formal work setting, so (particularly if you have never been in paid employment or have not worked for a long time) consider any voluntary work, courses, student placement, leisure activities or other activities taken.
When writing your supporting statement, try to list your examples in the order they appear in the Person Specification, as this will help when we are shortlisting. Do ensure you mention all relevant experience as we cannot assume anything from a job title you may have had in the past.
Equal Opportunities
In order to assist SBHA in monitoring the effectiveness of its Equal Opportunities Policy, please complete the Equal Opportunities Monitoring survey which will be sent to you following submission of your application. The information is kept separate to your application form and is only viewed by the Human Resources department at SBHA.
SBHA is a Disability Confident employer. If you are disabled and meet the Essential criteria for the post you will be guaranteed an interview. In this case the panel conducting the shortlisting will be advised accordingly. Alternatively, you may choose not to accept this option and enter the shortlisting process without the panel being aware of your disability. Selection for interview will then be in open competition with all other applicants.
Canvassing/Relationships
We ask if you are related to a Board Member or SBHA employee either directly or indirectly. If you are, we need to know in order to make sure that your relations are not involved in the recruitment process. Being related to a Board Member or SBHA employee does not affect your application in any way, but you must declare it on your application form.
References
All external applicants are requested whenever possible to provide names of two employment referees. Internal applicants only require the name of one referee. Please provide the names of people who may be approached to provide a reference who hold / have held a more senior position to you and one to which you reported directly.
Referees will be asked to confirm some of the information you provide in your application and to give their opinion on your suitability for the post. Your referees must not be friends or family members.
One of your referees must be your present or most recent employer, unless you have not worked in paid employment, when you may provide the name and address of anyone who knows you well. If you are a School or College leaver you should provide the name of a teacher/tutor/Guidance Teacher.
Your second referee may be either someone else from your present employer or someone from a previous employer.
A character reference will only be accepted where it is not reasonably practicable to provide an employment reference.
References are normally sought for successful candidates following interview.
Availability
Please give an indication of when you would be able to start work with us if offered the job and details of your notice period if you are currently employed.
Disclosure Check
For many roles at SBHA the successful candidate will be required to obtain clearance from Disclosure Scotland. There is no need to provide this before you are offered a job with us.
A criminal record will not necessarily debar an applicant from working with SBHA. Decisions regarding suitability for a position which is subject to vetting will be dependent on the nature of the position, together with the circumstances and background of the offence/s.
If you are invited to interview, the interview panel will be given details of any relevant information.