Recruitment (part 1): dos and don’ts

In the first of two parts, the team at Law-Call – a 24-hour legal helpline available to Alliance members – share recruitment tips, dos and don’ts

Finding and keeping staff is increasingly becoming an issue for many early years settings. Getting it wrong can be costly, both in terms of finances and time. Staff leaving – whether they resign or are terminated – can be demoralising for other staff, who may also see an increase in their workload until a replacement is found.

There’s been a well-publicised shortage of early years educators in recent years, especially, so how can settings make sure they are getting the right person in post?

The recruitment process begins before any advert is placed, and it is essential that the time is taken to fully understand what it is that the setting really needs. Consider whether the role has changed or developed in any way since a previous job description was written. Any feedback given by the previous post holder can also be useful for this. Look at what the needs of the setting areis there a particular skill set that is required for the role or missing in the setting. Before drawing up an advert, it is vital that the time is taken to fully understand what the needs of the setting at this time are.

Any advert being published should be clearly worded and contain relevant information about any specific requirements for the role. Ensure that any additional information about the setting, or any benefits that may be offered are provided. For example, if there is a discount on fees for children of employees, this may be crucial information for some applicants that otherwise may have felt unable to apply. Ensure that the hours of work required are outlined in the advert, or is there is flexibility, provide information on what this may look like.

A good job advert will include:

• the job title, and summary of the main duties and responsibilities.
• information on pay, and any relevant benefits.
  
• information on working hours, and whether the post is term time only or full year.
  
• any specific requirements or qualifications an applicant should have – when considering any specifications of the applicant, settings need to ensure that there is no discrimination risk, or that any requirement can be objectively justified, if needed.
  
• references that will be required and DBS check.
  

When considering your shortlisting criteria, it can be helpful for more than one person to be included in the decision-making process. Any shortlisting criteria should link directly to the job description or job requirements. When inviting to an interview, candidates should be asked if there are any reasonable adjustments required to enable them to take part in the interview.

Where possible, a minimum of two people should also conduct interviews. This can help avoid issues of bias or personality clashes when deciding on a potential offer. Pre-prepared interview questions should be relevant to the role being applied for and focused on key issues for the setting.

As part of the interview process, it can be tempting to ask a candidate to ‘work’ for a short time to view their interactions with children and other staff. However, any actual work that’s completed would meet criteria for the national minimum wage regulations and require payment, and is best avoided.

Instead, settings could consider a walkthrough of the setting (if this wouldn’t prove too disruptive to other staff or children) either at the beginning or end of the interview to see interactions that take place without the candidate providing any work of value.

Members of an interview panel should also be able to provide information, if requested, about any flexibility in the role, and consider any and all reasonable adjustments requested as part of the process. Where reasonable adjustments are requested, these would need to be accommodated, unless there’s an objective justification for being unable to support the request.

Once the right candidate is found, an offer can be made. This needs to be clear in terms of the role and working hours. When making an offer, it’s essential that it’s made subject to satisfactory references being received and a DBS check. There can sometimes be a delay with the receipt of either references or DBS checks, but it’s strongly recommended that employment is not allowed to begin until these are received. Any notice period at a current employer should also be considered when negotiating a start date.

Sometimes, referrals can be made by other staff, which can be a great idea – after all, they know the role and the setting inside out. However, thought needs to be given to any negative outcomes. If the new employee doesn’t work out for any reason but is a friend or relative of an existing staff member, there’s a potential for the setting to lose two employees or more.

For charitable organisations, there’s another, potentially vitally important consideration for a recruitment process: legally, all charities are required to recruit the best candidate for the role. Appointments made internally, or internal promotions, have to be able to be justified, which can be very difficult.

Part two on recruitment tips for early years settings will be in available April’s Under 5 magazine.

As an Alliance member, you have access to Law-Call's 24-hour legal advice telephone service, which can help you navigate through the process. Contact details can be found in the Alliance member benefit overview section of EYA Central: bit.ly/U5Law-Call.