Although this is a mandatory section of the application form, this information will not be considered during the selection process. It is our policy to treat every application fairly and equitably and in accordance with employment legislation. The information you provide in this section will allow us to monitor the applications that we receive to ensure that we fulfill our obligation.

The first four sections of this page should be automatically generated by the website. (Post Applied for, Ref No, Department and Location). Check that they match with the vacancy for which you are applying.

If you are not submitting an online application, it is important that these sections are completed accurately so that we know for which job you are applying.

Please ensure you leave contact details so we can get in touch. Normally you will hear from us about an interview by letter, however, where timescales are quite tight, we may contact you by telephone. If we do contact you at work, then we will ensure we are as discreet as possible when we do so.

Remember to use the correct date format, dd/mm/yyyy. Any other format will result in an error message. We understand that memories do fade and you may not always know the exact date. In this case, you may want to select a date as close as possible, or choose the first or last day of the month.

The final two sections ("Reason for Leaving" and "Describe your duties and responsibilities") are free-text boxes and will expand to allow you to fill in up to 1000 characters.

If you are:

• Leaving school, college or university
• Are returning from a career break

And your most recent or current employment is not entirely relevant to your application or it has been some time since you were in employment, additional guidance in completing your application form can be found later in the document.

Please list any jobs in reverse order ie the most recent first. Although not all jobs you have done may seem relevant to your application, it is still important for you to give as much information as you can:

• You may have developed transferable skills which you can highlight later in your application.
• Additionally, posts within the Company may be subject to a Criminal Records Bureau check and it is important to demonstrate that there are no unexplained gaps in your career.

Please also refer to the guidance notes for Section 5 (Breaks in Employment History).

The application form will keep generating new fields as long as you need them.

As stated in the guidance notes for Section 4, it is important to clarify the reasons for any breaks in employment. You may have developed skills or experiences during those employment breaks which the Company can benefit from. You will get the opportunity to tell us more about these skills in Section 9 - Supporting Information. Additional guidance for school leavers or graduates, or returnees from career breaks is also available.

The application form will continue to generate new fields when you fill in the last one.

Please ensure that you include the grade of any qualifications you hold, where appropriate. You may also be asked to bring evidence of qualifications you possess to the interview, or when you start employment with the Company.

Please complete this section even if it is only to indicate that you attended school and have no formal qualifications. Not every post requires formal qualifications and any requirements should be detailed on the Person Specification (available within the Job Description).

This section may not be relevant to all applicants. Some posts within the Group require professional membership.

Please check the Person Specification if you are unsure if a professional membership is required.

This may include external or internal training courses you have attended, or self funded, both in relation to work and in other areas of your life. Again you may be asked to provide evidence of attending the course e.g. IT certificates.

This is the most important part of the whole application form and the opportunity where you demonstrate to us that you meet our essential, and perhaps also our desirable criteria for the post. You will find these in the Person Specification.

We have taken a great deal of time to think about the skills we need for the job, and if you cannot show us that you meet those, you won't be shortlisted for the job. This applies to all desirable candidates who will be treated in exactly the same manner.

Make sure that you provide concrete evidence that you meet the criteria, don't just tell us you can do it, give examples:

• What the situation was
• The actions you took
• What the results were

It may help you to write a list of everything you have done in your career or life and think about whether they meet the criteria we are looking for - you will demonstrate a wide variety of skills just getting through daily life!

Try not to include any irrelevant information - stay focused on the criteria we are looking for.

Remember that not all jobs require specific qualifications or experience - it is the personal qualities, skills and attitude that are important in many cases eg team working, initiative and flexibility. Be positive and sell yourself!

Please ensure that you ask permission from the referee that they are willing to supply a reference on your behalf.

Any application for a post which works with children or vulnerable adults is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and will be required to complete a Criminal Records Disclosure identifying all convictions whether spent or otherwise. It is important that you read through the additional information provided in the Vacancy Information Pack about this and tell us about any convictions or cautions you have in your application.

All appointments at Gardline will be made in accordance with the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act. Having a conviction may not necessarily bar you from employment with the Group. Details of the Group's Policy on the Employment of People with Criminal Convictions can be found on the Recruitment Website.

Where you have a disability under the Disability Discrimination Act (click here for further information link to Definition of Disability) and you demonstrate in your Supporting Information that you meet the essential criteria for the post, under the Positive About Disability scheme you will be offered a guaranteed interview for the post.

If you can help us to identify any adjustments which we can implement to help you either at interview or to perform the job, then please let us know. For example, you may need help in:

• Completing a typing test
• A BSL interpreter
• Additional time for the interview or skills tests
• Ensure the location is accessible

By identifying issues at an early stage, this can help us with planning and make the interview process run much more smoothly and hopefully helping you present yourself at your best.

Additional guidance has been developed for applicants from overseas (see Home Page for details). You may be unsure if you need a work permit or worker registration form, or currently hold a work permit and be unclear whether it can be transferred from one employer to another. You may also have never applied to work in the UK and just want to find out more.

Remember before you submit your application, to check through your application to ensure that it is accurate and print off a copy for your records before you submit the form. You will probably need this for the interview.

It may be helpful to get someone else to check what you have written to look for any spelling or grammatical errors.

You may want to come back to the application form in a couple of days where time permits to reflect on what you have said - you cannot go back and change your application once you have clicked on the "submit application" button. Good luck!

Part Time or Temporary Jobs

It is likely that your current or most recent post is not immediately relevant to the job that you are applying for. It may be that you have been employed in

• a different industry
• or in a summer job
• or you feel that the post was not very challenging.

Many of these jobs will still help you to demonstrate transferable skills and qualities (skills which you gain in one area which can be applied in another completely different area) which will be important.

For example, you may have been the captain of the football team where you may have demonstrated:

• Leadership
• Teamwork
• Motivating skill
• Interpersonal skill

If you worked in a bar or a shop you may be able to demonstrate:

• Interpersonal skills
• Problem solving
• Planning
• Time management
• Numeracy
• Working under pressure

Gap Year/Travelling

You may also have taken a gap year, or done some travelling abroad during the summer holidays. This will help you demonstrate:

• Communication skills
• Awareness of diversity issues
• Planning and organising
• Working on your own initiative

If you have taken a gap year, remember to put this in the Career Breaks section too.

Work Experience

You may have completed a period of Work Experience during your time at school or college which may or may not directly relate to the post you are applying for. Again, there will be transferable skills you can tell us about e.g.:

• Experience of working in an organisation
• Team working skills
• Communication skills

Additionally, you may not have a specific qualification in IT, but have used computer packages to produce written assignments at school, university or college.

Make sure that you provide examples of how you used any of the above skills, not just state that you did.

References

You will probably ask a teacher or tutor to provide a reference. If you have held a part-time or summer job, it will also be beneficial to provide details for a reference. Although they may not be able to comment about your ability to do the job, they will be able to tell us about the transferable skills you have developed, or that you were honest, reliable, hard working and learned new skills quickly.

Returning from a Career Break

Many people take a career break during their lives for a variety of reasons:

• Sabbaticals
• Childcare
• Travelling
• Caring for a relative

Following an extended break from work, it is easy to underplay your skills or lack confidence.

There will probably be a number of skills that you can demonstrate in everyday life. We regularly think in terms of projects at work, but not as much in relation to things we have done at home such as

• Moving house
• Caring for a family member
• Travelling abroad

You may have developed your

• Communication or negotiating skills
• Planning and organising
• Time management

Balancing a family budget requires you to be flexible and make regular decisions.

You may have undertaken voluntary work during the break which has exposed you to a new area of work, or allowed you to meet people from a variety of different backgrounds. You may have helped out local group such as Mothers and Toddlers.

You may have had the opportunity to attend evening classes and learn new skills or get a qualification, or this may be something you think about to bring some of your work related skills back up to date e.g.: IT training. You may have just taken the opportunity to surf the internet to shop and gained confidence and understanding.

References

Depending on your circumstances you may find it difficult to identify suitable referees. Where possible, you should avoid using a personal reference. Think about what you have been doing during the break and think about the contact you have had with people as a result.

• If you have been at evening classes, you may want to ask a Tutor to supply a reference.
• If you have undertaken some voluntary work or supported local groups, then you may want to ask the person supervising or in charge.
• If you have been caring for a relative, then you may want to ask the GP or nursing support e.g.: District or Macmillan Nurse if they would be willing to provide a reference.

Although they may not be able to comment about your ability to do the job, they will be able to tell us about the transferable skills you have developed, or that you were honest, reliable, hard working and learned new skills quickly.

If you are in doubt, it may help to talk things through with the Recruitment team to help you identify a suitable reference.