Trainee Social Worker Salary: £22,692 - £24,573 Closing Date: 29/06/2009 Reference: CC/104

Freedom of Information Act request - 2009/2661 - Trainee Social Worker
position

Thank you for your request for information received on 03/08/2009.

This will be processed in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act
2000.

Regards

Corporate Information Management Team
[Wandsworth Borough Council request email]

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Please visit the Council's website at: [1]www.wandsworth.gov.uk

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Freedom of Information Request Reference 2009/2661 - Trainee Social Worker
position

Dear Ms. Quinn,

I refer to your request for information relating to the Trainee Social
Worker position (reference: CC/104) received on 3^rd August 2009.

 

Please see the information in response to your questions provided below:

1) How many people applied? 

There were 220 applicants for the post.

2) How many people got short listed for interview?

            20

 

3) A copy of the actual questions used in the interview(s) for this post,
including a copy of the document/form or documents/forms used to record
the interviewees responses, in addition to scoring or evaluating any
interviewee's responses.

Please see the attached copy of the Interview Assessment Sheet, used to
record and score interviewee responses to the questions, the interview
questions have been removed from this copy of the proforma as this
information is exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information
Act  (FOIA).  Your request asks for questions that may be asked during
the interview process and the Council considers that its commercial
interests would be prejudiced by this disclosure. Similarly, Question 6 of
your request asks for disclosure of the written exercise that the
interview candidates must complete prior to the interview and on this
issue the Council also considers that its commercial interests would be
prejudiced by disclosure.  In accordance with Section 43 of FOIA we are
withholding the above information. The reasons are outlined below:

The commercial interests of the Council - which include operating
efficiently and providing value for money for taxpayers - are closely
linked to the skills and abilities of its employees. The recruitment of
staff can therefore be seen as impacting upon the commercial interests of
the Council. The Council often recruits staff in a highly competitive
environment. Various methods are used to establish one candidate's
suitability for a job over another; one of the most common is an
interview.

Disclosure of the information requested (the interview questions and the
pre-interview written exercise) to one candidate prior to interview would
clearly give that person an unfair advantage over the other candidates.
Disclosure to all candidates (i.e. placing the questions into the public
domain) would level the playing field; however, this would undermine one
of the fundamental aims of the interview process: to see whether
candidates can think on their feet and respond to situations
appropriately.

Increasing the number and variety of potential interview questions might
allow the Council to address the issue. However, this would in effect test
a candidate's ability to learn and retain the potential questions, not
their ability to think for themselves about the role and the issues that
might arise in the role. The interview questions asked are mostly based on
the main areas of the job description or the person specification, both of
which are provided to candidates, a copy of the person specification is
attached for reference.

We consider that the public interest would favour withholding the
information, as the public would expect the council to be able to
interview candidates fairly and appoint people who are most suitable for
the role. Assessing whether candidates can think on their feet and respond
to situations appropriately forms part of that process and would be
undermined by the disclosure of the information requested.

 4) A copy of any document/form or documents/forms used to shortlist
candidates for this post.

Please refer to the Skills Document and Shortlist Document.

5) Was anyone recruited for the post, and, was the successful candidate
already an employee or agency worker, or an external one?

There are four preferred candidates for the post; the Council is currently
in the process of carrying out the required recruitment checks and
obtaining references. One of these four candidates is an existing employee
of the Council.

6) A copy of any actual Case study or computer or paper based
exercise/task asked in the interview(s) or recruitment for this specific
post, in addition to any document/form or documents/forms used for scoring
or evaluating any interviewee's exercise/task.

The shortlisted candidates completed a written exercise prior to their
interview; the reasons that we feel this information is exempt from
disclosure are included in the answer to Question 3, above.

7) What was the Job Title or Designation of all those who conducted or
participated in the interview(s) for this particular post.

The interview panel consisted of the following four people:

· Manager -  Family Assessment Service

· Team Manager  - Referral & Assessment Service

· Learning & Workforce Development Manager

· Young Person from the Young People's Recruitment Panel

I hope this information meets your needs. If you do not understand the
information provided or wish to discuss anything further, please feel free
to contact me and I, or another member of the team will be able to assist
you.

Please note, all material provided by Wandsworth Council in response to
your request for information is for your personal, non-commercial use.
Wandsworth Council reserves all rights in the copyright of the information
provided. Any unauthorised copying or adaptation of the information
without express written confirmation from Wandsworth Council may
constitute an infringement of copyright. Any intention to re-use this
information commercially may require consent. Please forward any requests
for re-use of information to the FOI officer.

If you are dissatisfied with the decisions made or information provided in
relation to your request you may make representations to the Chief
Executive.  Correspondence should be addressed to:

Room 162

Wandsworth Town Hall

Wandsworth High Street

London

SW18 2PU

 

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision.  The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner's Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

 

If you have any further queries please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours sincerely

James De Cort

Information Management Officer

[Wandsworth Borough Council request email]

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