Social Security Scotland Candidate Pack
Work with us Your guide to applying for jobs with Social Security Scotland
Client Advisor Candidate Pack 1 Social Security Scotland Candidate Pack
What’s included in this pack
Within this pack you will find both information and advice on applying for a job with Social Security Scotland.
This includes information:
• about Social Security Scotland • on our commitment to diversity and inclusion • about our application process • on what the Guaranteed Interview Scheme is • on competency-based interviews • on the benefits of working with us
This document can be provided in tape, Braille, easy read, large print or alternative languages by calling 0800 029 4974.
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About us
What we do:
Social Security Scotland was created in September 2018. We are an Executive Agency of the Scottish Government. We are the most significant new public service to be established in Scotland since devolution. We have been set up by the Scottish Government to deliver a number of benefits.
These benefits will be introduced in stages by the Scottish Government. Once fully operational, we will be delivering benefits for people on low incomes, disabled people, carers, young people entering the workplace and to help people heat their homes.
Our head office is in Dundee, with a second base in Glasgow. We also have a growing team of people based across the country who are establishing a pre-application face-to-face support service for our clients.
These benefits will be delivered in line with social security policy that is developed by the Scottish Government.
You can find out more about us in:
• our Interim Corporate Plan, which explains what we are here to do and how we will go about doing it • Our Charter, which sets out what people should expect from the new social security system that we will administer
Why we do it:
Our aim is to contribute to the creation of a fairer society. We will do this by providing support to each of us when we need it. And, we will do this in a way that makes sure that people feel that they are treated with dignity, fairness and respect.
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Why we need you:
We are introducing benefits in stages and we need to bring on more people to support us as we grow.
We are looking for people who share our values and who are enthusiastic about delivering a great service. To help you deliver a great service, we will provide you with the training and development you need to do your role.
We want a workforce that will be representative of the people who we will serve. Which is why we are a Carer Positive and a Disability Confident Employer. We also offer great benefits such as flexible working to help to you find the right balance between work and your home life.
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Our commitment to diversity and inclusion
We want a workforce that represents the people that we will serve. This will make us better at what we do. It will help us as an organisation better understand people’s needs and empathise with people’s circumstances.
Bringing together people with a range of backgrounds and experiences will bring a wide range of knowledge and skills. This won’t only benefit our clients – it will make it a better place to work too.
We are working hard to make our organisation inclusive. Everyone at Social Security Scotland has a part to play in role-modelling our values of dignity, fairness and respect. This means having a workplace that meets everyone’s needs, provides specialist support and makes everyone feel that they belong.
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Application process
In our job adverts, you will find a list of ‘essential criteria’. These are the kind of knowledge, skills or qualities that will be important for the job. They will be related to the job that you are applying for.
In the application form, you will be asked to provide examples of when you have used or displayed the knowledge, skills or qualities. These examples could be from any part of your life – work, education, a sports team or hobby or even a personal situation. You will not be expected to have prior experience in this type of job.
When you submit your application, we will look at these examples and consider if the situation you describe and what you did meets the criteria that we are looking for. We score each example 0, 1 or 2.
• 0 - you have not demonstrated in your example enough of the knowledge, skills or qualities we are looking for • 1 - you have demonstrated the knowledge, skills or qualities we are looking for • 2 - you have more than demonstrated the knowledge, skills or qualities we are looking for
We will total up your scores across the ‘essential criteria’ and those with the highest marks will be invited to interview.
If you score a 0 on any of the ‘essential criteria’, we are unable to invite you to interview. If you get a 0, this doesn’t mean that you don’t have the knowledge, skills or experience. It could be that you haven’t explained this clearly enough for us to assess it.
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To help you provide examples as clearly as possible, we would recommend that you use something called the STARR approach. The STARR approach allows you to structure your examples, setting out the key information we are looking for.
S - Situation (What situation or challenge did you find yourself in?) T - Task (What did you specifically have to achieve?) A - Action (What actions did you take to achieve your task? How did you do this and why?) R - Result (What was the outcome and conclusion of your actions?) R - Reflection (What did you learn from this situation?)
With each ‘essential criteria’ example, there is a word count limit of 300 words. Take advantage of the full word count to demonstrate your evidence. However, avoid exceeding 300 words as this may impact you score.
Numerical and Verbal reasoning quiz
There are two quizzes, a numerical quiz and a verbal reasoning quiz. Each quiz contains 30 questions. You have 15 minutes for each quiz. The quizzes can be taken online at a time that suits you.
Our Numerical quiz is a maths quiz, and is written in the context of everyday activities, it tells us about your ability to work with numbers.
The Verbal Reasoning quiz tells us about your ability to understand and logically work through ideas and problems expressed in words.
A practice quiz will be made available to help you prepare.
If you have any additional needs, extra time can be arranged for the quizzes. Please contact us to discuss the options available.
Provided you answer 50% or more of the questions correctly, you will pass the quiz.
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Guaranteed Interview Scheme
We are committed to the employment and career development of disabled people.
The Guaranteed Interview Scheme is available to disabled applicants. This scheme means that if you are able to demonstrate in your application form that you meet the essential criteria for the role, we will invite you to interview.
This means that you will need to score at least 1 with each of your ‘essential criteria’ examples. As long as you score at least 1 for all of these, even if there are other candidates with higher scores, we will invite you to interview.
The interviews themselves will then all be marked equally.
If you wish to apply under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please state this in the relevant section of the application form.
We will ask you to let us know if you need any adjustments for any part of the recruitment stage. We are committed to making reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process and, if you join us, to where and how you work.
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Competency-based interview
If you are invited to interview, this will be what is called a competency-based interview. This is similar to the approach to your application form where you will need to give actual examples of a time where you have used or demonstrated certain knowledge, skills or qualities.
Social Security Scotland uses something called ‘Skills for Success’ to measure your performance at interview. This details at each job level the kind of knowledge, skills or qualities we would expect.
You should look at the ‘Skills for Success’ requirements for the job you are applying for before you come to interview and think about times when you have demonstrated these skills and behaviours in the past. You can give examples from work, education or a sports club right through to your personal life.
You can take notes of examples and bring these with you to interview to refer to as a reminder. You can do this as bullets or anything that will help to aide your memory. However, you shouldn’t read out scripted answers.
The questions are likely to begin with a phrase like “Tell me about a time when you…” or “Give me an example of when…”. The interview panel need to know in each case what you did, why you chose to act the way you did and what the outcome was. Listen to the interviewer’s questions, and choose an example which best shows your ability.
You don’t need to rush your answer – you can take your time and think about what the best example would be. You can ask the interview panel to clarify the question.
When answering, it can be helpful to follow the STARR approach that we recommend for filling in your application form.
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Benefits of working with us
Paid annual leave 25 days annual leave on joining, increasing to 30 days after four full years’ service, plus 11.5 public and privilege days leave.
Flexible working hours The work we do is incredibly important – but that doesn’t mean your job should take over your life. We can offer the possibility of full time, part time, term time, and job shares. We also offer and encourage flexible working. We work hard to ensure that you maintain a healthy work/life balance.
Pay Your salary will be paid monthly in arrears normally on the last working day of the month. You will typically join on the base salary of your relevant grade and you will have the opportunity to progress up your pay scale over time.
Pension Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with employer contributions of at least 20% of your salary.
Financial incentives You can access a range of retail, travel and lifestyle discounts.
Personalised support You will have access to an Employee Assistance Programme which provides confidential, independent and unbiased information and guidance 24/7.
Volunteering Special Leave Up to three days paid special leave a year for volunteering.
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Contact us
socialsecurity.gov.scot
@SocSecScot
Social Security Scotland
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