Our recruitment process

All our available vacancies can be found on our job board. If we don’t have one that is quite right for you at the moment, you can register a profile and set up job alerts to be notified when we post a job that matches your criteria.

Once you have found a role, you will need to create an account on our job board to be able to apply.

When you register on our job board, you will be asked to provide a copy of your CV. This will help speed up your application process as the system will pre-populate some of your information into your application form from your CV. It’s important to double check the information has populated correctly when you fill out the rest of the form.

It's always a good idea to make sure the information you provide is tailored to the role to highlight your relevant skills.

You'll also need to make sure that your work history is complete and you have explanations for any gaps in your employment. This is in accordance with our safer recruitment practices.

Read our tips for completing an application form for more help.

Once you submit your application, you will receive an acknowledgement from us to your email address. Remember to check your junk file as sometimes our emails can go in there.

If you need any support in completing your application or have any difficulties in submitting it, please contact the TA team who will be able to offer you support:

Email: recruitment@guidedogs.org.uk
Phone: 0118 3554 0345

If your application has been shortlisted, you will be invited by email to the next stage. We understand that interviews and assessments can be a bit scary for some people, so we will make sure you have all the information you need to be at your best throughout the process. Each role will have a slightly different assessment process; some only have an interview whereas others may use assessments or assessment centres too.

You will receive more detail as part of your invitation, as well as either an allocated time and date or the option to choose a time and date that suits your preference. 

Our interviews may feel a bit different to others you might have experienced. As well as looking for the skills and competencies needed for the role, we're also checking how your behaviours align to our Guide Dogs behaviours, and what your motivations are for joining us.

As part of your invitation, you'll be asked to complete a criminal declaration form. This is reviewed before your interview and if anything is disclosed, we will check it with the Safeguarding Team and, if required, discuss it with you. 

If you require any recruitment adjustments to attend your interview, contact our TA team and they will be happy to help.

Email: recruitment@guidedogs.org.uk

Phone: 0118 3554 0345

As part of our commitment to safer recruitment we need to obtain professional references covering the past five years of your employment history. If you have any gaps in your employment during this time, we will discuss these with you, and alternative checks or referee details may be required to ensure they are covered. Some roles will require you to have a disclosure check, so this will need to be obtained before you can start working with us.

Once we receive all your pre-employment checks, and they are satisfactory, we will issue you with a contract. You will be able to view this on the candidate portal where you can digitally sign the contract.

As part of our commitment to safer recruitment we need to obtain professional references covering the past five years of your employment history. If you have any gaps in your employment during this time, we will discuss these with you, and alternative checks or referee details may be required to ensure they are covered.

Some roles will require you to have a disclosure check, so this will need to be obtained before you can start working with us.

• Please remember to fully read the advert and any supporting documents to make sure you’re clear on what the role involves and the type of candidate we’re looking for. 
• Within the job description, review the person specification section and identify all the criteria required - both essential and desirable (as a guide, each element could be viewed as an individual criterion). 
• Review your work history, skills and experience and identify how they match the essential and desirable (if applicable) criteria.
• Prepare to be questioned on any examples you give in your application in your interview.

• For each skill and/or experience you have identified, provide a clear, specific example that demonstrates your suitability for the role. To make sure your examples demonstrate the criteria, the following format can help you be specific:
  
  S – What was the situation?
  T – What was the task you had to do?
  A – What action did you take?
  R – What was the result?
• The STAR format is also a good approach to take when answering interview questions to ensure you provide a well-structured and comprehensive response.

It may sound simple, but our top tip would be to re-read your application, the advert and supporting documents before submitting the application. It’s a useful opportunity to make sure you have:

• Included everything you think is relevant.
• Checked that your spelling and grammar are correct.
• Addressed all the essential, and if relevant, the desirable criteria from the person specification with clear and specific examples that showcase your skills and knowledge. 
• Remembered to save a copy of your completed form – this will be useful for you to refer to when preparing for your interview.

We’re interested in what you did, more than anything other people did, so make sure you say ‘I’, and not ‘we’.

If you’re using examples where lots of people have been involved in making something happen, don’t be tempted to say “We decided that... We did this...”. We want to know how you work and what your skills are so you can only be given points for things that you personally did – “I talked to my colleagues and I agreed that I'd do this...” Always talk about 'I'.

Assumptions cannot be made about your contribution so if you don’t specify exactly what you did, the recruiting manager will not know.

While it’s good to be aware of all your skills and experience, only provide those relevant to the person specification as this demonstrates your understanding of the role and means you don't waste time writing detail which will not be useful in shortlisting.

It’s a good idea to keep a note of your additional skills and experience as they may be useful if you're invited for interview.