Highways Agency

Recruitment policy

Introduction

1 The Civil Service Order in Council 1995, authorises the Civil Service Commissioners to require departments and agencies to publish summary information about their recruitment policy and annual statistics showing the number of appointments made and the use of permitted exceptions.  

Principles for Recruitment

2 The Agency is bound by the principles for recruitment set out in the Civil Service Commissioners' Recruitment Code, 4th Edition, April 1999.

a Individuals will be selected on merit on the basis of fair and open competition.

b Prospective applicants will be given equal and reasonable access to adequate information about the job and its requirements, and about the selection process.

c Applicants will be considered equally on merit at each stage of the selection process. That process will be based on criteria relevant to the job and applied consistently to all candidates. Selection methods will be reliable, objective and guard against bias.

3 In compliance with Civil Service policy, equal opportunity will apply throughout the recruitment process. Applications will therefore be encouraged regardless of age, gender, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins, disability, religion, sexual orientation, marital status or working patterns.  

Exceptions to the Recruitment Principles

4 The Highways Agency will only permit those categories of exceptions allowed by the Civil Service Order in Council 1995 ie:

a short term appointments

b secondments

c re-appointment or re-instatement of former civil servants

d transfers into the Civil Service

e surplus acceptable candidates for shortage posts; and

f disabled candidates.

5 Any cases (at whatever level) within these categories, but which do not fall within the provisions of the Code, will be referred to the Civil Service Commissioners to consider. In relation to the Senior Civil Service, the approval of the Civil Service Commissioners will be sought before appointments are made using the exceptions, apart from appointments of less than 12 months.

6 As permitted by the Order in Council, the Highways Agency may offer encouragement or assistance in the process of selection to disabled applicants which may not be available to other candidates (category 4(f) above). In this context a disabled person is someone who declares that they have a physical or mental impairment which is expected to last for at least 12 months and which has an adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day to day activities. Any disabled applicant who meets the minimum criteria specified for a post will be guaranteed an interview for that post.  

Audit

7 There will be two levels of audit for the Highways Agency's recruitment policy and procedures:

a by independent consultants appointed by the Office of the Civil Service Commissioners to verify the adequacy and compliance of our systems in fully meeting the requirements of the Code; and

b by HA internal auditors to reassure the Chief Executive about the adequacy and use of management controls to ensure that delegated recruitment complies with the requirements of the Code.

Click to view PERFORMANCE AGAINST MILESTONE TARGETS 1999/2000