Recruitment Document Templates
When taking on new staff, it is important to consider all the legal and practical implications before and during the recruitment selection process to ensure candidates are treated fairly and the employer is best positioned to recruit suitable employees. Preparation is crucial to effective recruitment campaigns. Key documents will assist that preparation, helping to promote diversity, avoid discrimination, and comply with current regulations and best practice.
Up-to-date and legally compliant
These templates have been drafted and kept up-to-date by experienced solicitors and Employment Professionals. They are regularly downloaded by employers, HR personnel and consultants and have been applied by/downloaded by most types of businesses.
What are the key Recruitment Document Templates?
Recruitment Policy:
The Recruitment Policy Templates includes not only a Recruitment Policy but also additional policies that specifically cover recruiting staff from abroad and ex-offenders. The recruitment policy provides a structured and consistent approach to hiring, outlining procedures, standards and criteria and ensuring candidates are treated fairly. Defined policies promote transparency, efficiency and consistency in quality of hire. It aligns with the Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy.
An Employee Referral Scheme policy is also available.
Job Description Forms:
These help to clarify the key duties and responsibilities of the prospective role, defining the background and skills of the type of person who could most effectively perform the role. A generic job description form and a few examples of completed forms are available at Job Description Form Templates may assist in this task. Always give candidates the job description form in advance and gear interview questions to specifications detailed in the form to ascertain if the candidate has the competencies to do the role.
Job Application Forms:
These forms assist the recruitment process by segmenting and defining the candidates' applications into the priorities identified and detailed in the job descriptions/specifications. The selection of Job Application Form Templates will ease the pre-interview assessment of each candidate, particularly in anticipation of receiving numerous applicants/candidate replies. Resumes and CV's are generally provided in multiple formats and presentations, and do not necessarily match the job specification.
Managing Interviews Documentation:
The Interview Guidance Notes and Interview Letters help to manage the interviewing process, It includes Guidance Notes to help with the preparation, structure, conduct and content of an interview, referring to the primary responsibilities provided within the job specification and competencies required for the role. The Interview Assessment Form should be used to assess those competencies. Letters are also provided to aid pre- and post-interview communication with candidates.
How subscription to Employment will facilitate the Recruitment Process?
Recruiting and managing staff can be both costly and time consuming so access to hundreds of professionally drafted templates within Employment will prove to be an affordable and valuable resource to any employer when hiring staff. Saving time and cost, these benefits extend through the whole period of the employment relationship providing unlimited downloads from a wide selection of up-to-date documents including Employment Offer Letters and Contracts of Employment, plus a broad range of other policies, letters, forms and more.
Recruitment Document Templates is part of Employment. Just £38.50 + VAT provides unlimited downloads from Employment for 1 year.
Frequently Asked Questions
What documents do I need to put together before advertising a job vacancy? +
Before advertising, you should prepare three core documents: a job description setting out the duties and responsibilities of the role, a person specification defining the skills and experience required and a structured application form to gather candidate information consistently. A written recruitment policy that covers equal opportunities, shortlisting criteria and the selection process is also strongly recommended. Simply-Docs provides templates for all of these in this group, drafted by solicitors to reflect current employment law and best practice.
How do I keep my recruitment process legally compliant with the Equality Act 2010? +
Under the Equality Act 2010, you must not discriminate against job applicants at any stage of recruitment, from the wording of the job advert through to the final selection decision, across all nine protected characteristics, including age, disability, race, sex and religion. Base shortlisting and interview decisions on objective, role-related criteria set out in a job description and person specification, use a consistent application form for all candidates and keep written records. A recruitment policy aligned with an equal opportunities policy demonstrates a structured, consistent approach. Simply-Docs provides a Recruitment Policy Template and an Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy.
Why should I use a job application form rather than just accepting CVs from candidates? +
CVs come in many formats and rarely map to the specific requirements of the role, making fair comparison difficult. A structured application form requires every candidate to provide the same information against the same criteria, making pre-interview assessment consistent and more defensible if a shortlisting decision is later challenged. It also helps you control which questions are asked, reducing the risk of inadvertently collecting information that could give rise to a discrimination claim. Simply-Docs offers a selection of Job Application Form Templates designed for this purpose.
Can I ask a job applicant about their criminal record on an application form? +
It depends on the role. Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, candidates need not disclose spent convictions for most jobs, and an employer cannot refuse to hire on the basis of a spent conviction where no exception applies, so your form should ask only about unspent convictions. However, roles involving work with children or vulnerable adults are exempt under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, and candidates may be required to disclose spent convictions. The Simply-Docs Recruitment Policy Templates include a specific policy on recruiting ex-offenders to help handle this correctly.
What data protection obligations apply when I collect personal information from job applicants? +
Collecting personal data from applicants (CVs, application forms and interview notes) is processing under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. You must have a lawful basis, inform candidates how their data will be used, keep it secure, restrict access and not retain it longer than necessary. Keep equality monitoring information separate from the selection process. The ICO has published specific guidance on data protection in recruitment. A well-drafted application form and a recruitment policy with a data-handling section help you meet these obligations consistently.
What should I prepare before conducting job interviews to reduce the risk of an unfair process? +
Structure interviews around the job description and person specification so every candidate is assessed against the same criteria, prepare questions in advance and use an interview assessment form to score candidates consistently, demonstrating objective decisions. Note that section 60 of the Equality Act 2010 generally prohibits health or disability questions before a conditional offer is made. Simply-Docs provides Interview Guidance Notes and Interview Letter Templates covering preparation, conduct, the assessment form and pre- and post-interview letters to candidates.
