Advice Specialist

RECRUITMENT

PACK

July 2016

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CONTENTS

Welcome from Aisling Davis, President 3 About Liverpool Students’ Union 4-6 What is LiverpoolSU looking for from the Advice Specialist role? 7 Job Profile 8-9 Liverpool Students’ Union Organisation Structure 10 About Liverpool 11 Resources that may help your application 12-13 Next steps in the process 14

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WELCOME FROM THE PRESIDENT

On behalf of Liverpool Students’ Union (LiverpoolSU) I would like to thank you for registering an interest in the role of Advice Specialist. LiverpoolSU is a dynamic, exciting and challenging organisation. We are the independent body representing the 20,000 diverse students studying at Liverpool John Moores University. Whilst we pride ourselves on being independent from the university, we enjoy a close and productive relationship, regularly working in partnership on projects such as our new Course Representative structure and acting as critical friends to the University and wider community. The past couple of years have been the start of an exciting period of change as we strive to develop member engagement, providing opportunities for LJMU students to Love Student Life and ensuring each and every student has a voice within the union, university and wider community. LiverpoolSU has a commitment to being an inclusive and diverse organisation. We recognise our workforce isn’t as diverse as it could be and are currently underrepresented in, among others, the following areas:

People of Black and Asian minority ethnicity

Disabled people

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender + people We would encourage applications from people who identify in these groups. We believe the recruitment of quality staff members is vital to our success. If you believe you have the skills, experience and passion to assist us in achieving our vision then we would really like to hear from you. Aisling Davis President 2016-2017 LiverpoolSU

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ABOUT LIVERPOOLSU LiverpoolSU is the Students’ Union for Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) and has over 20,000 members globally based predominantly on 3 sites – Mount Pleasant, Byrom Street and IM Marsh in Aigburth. LiverpoolSU is an independent body representing all students at LJMU. We are led by students who have been elected by their fellow students. While we have an excellent relationship with the university, it is the students who are our highest priority and all of the services provided by LiverpoolSU are for them. LiverpoolSU isn’t just a building, an advice centre or a club or society; most importantly it’s the body that represents all LJMU students. Every LJMU student is automatically a member. It is a vibrant student led organisation which values all of its people, members, volunteers and staff. It promotes a friendly, supportive and flexible working environment. What is a Students’ Union? Students' Unions exist to improve the lives of students in higher education and they do this by representing student views (being the student voice) and by operating student focused services. At LiverpoolSU they are;

Course Reps,

Community Reps,

The promotion of democracy to create active citizens,

Student activities that include sports clubs and societies where students come together over a shared interest,

Retail – 2 shops,

An advice centre. LiverpoolSU believe we are the conscience of the university in terms of their relationship with students and the city. LiverpoolSU is an unincorporated association. It is defined in law by the Education Act 1994 http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1994/30/part/II and within Liverpool John Moores Articles of Government https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/~/media/ljmu/bogovenors/articles-of-government-of-jmu.pdf?la=en All John Moores students are automatically members of the Students’ Union as they enrol onto a university programme but they can choose to opt out of membership. That gives LiverpoolSU 20,000 members who are on average at university for 30 weeks a year for 3 years. We are a registered charity and our constitution can viewed here www.liverpoolsu.com/constitution Our Members Our 20,000 members are diverse and some of the interesting stats include;

The average age of an LJMU student is 45 (with 16474 (80%) in the 18-25 age group, and 4190 ranging from 26 to 74!)

We have more female (55%) students than male

Most of our students are white with 15% belonging to another ethnic group and 87% from the UK and Islands

Currently 9% declare they have a disability at enrolment

Student engagement numbers around campus and at events have increased dramatically over the past 24 months including:

o MiniSU Engagement records: 10,500+ from September 2014 to end of April 2015 increasing to 14,000+ from September 2014 to December 2015 alone (Term 1)

o Freshers Fair Attendance: 8,000+ in September 2014 increasing to 10,000+ in September 2015 Our Strategy We are about to enter the final year of our current strategic plan which you can access through this hyperlink http://www.liverpoolsu.com/main-menu/vision-values-and-objectives/liverpoolsu-strategic-plan-2014-17 and are about to start planning the creation of our new plan to 2020 by which time we will have relocated our central operations to the new Copperas Hill Building development https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/about-us/news/copperas-hill-update

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Our Governance The Trustee Board We have a Trustee Board who meet at least 6 times a year who are responsible for the strategic, sustainable and student focused approach of LiverpoolSU. They employ the Chief Executive to manage the staff team on their behalf. The Board are made up sabbatical (student) officers; student trustees and community trustees. 4 Student Officers Each March the members vote for students who they wish to become elected officers at LiverpoolSU. They take a year out of their studies to work full time for the organisation. They are the face of LiverpoolSU and it is the role of staff to ensure they shine. Aisling Davis – President Jamie Bennett – Vice President Academic Quality Summer Jette-Gray – Vice President Activities Daniel Crombleholme – Vice President Community Engagement 3 student trustees They are joined on the Trustee board by three students who are elected by each of the Forums – they are the forum chair for a year and a Trustee of the organisation. They also remain students. Summer Jette Gray, Megan Brooks and one vacant position 3 community trustees (subject to current constitution update approval) There are also three Community Trustees who are individuals who play a prominent role in the city of Liverpool or in the North West. Wendi Bestman; Jean McClean and Mark Hodgson There is more information on LiverpoolSU governance contained on our website University Representation, Democracy and Campaigns LiverpoolSU is here to represent all students studying at LJMU whether they are undergraduate, postgraduate, and part-time or a distance learner. To ensure that LiverpoolSU always works in the best interest of students we work hard to consult and engage student opinion in the work and services we offer. The needs of our students are extremely important to LiverpoolSU and we believe in reflecting these, so we’re committed to running wide ranging campaigns that give students the opportunity to get involved with their Union. Our campaigns provide students with information and raise awareness of services that we offer and also help with issues that they face. Course Rep Scheme Course Reps are there to ensure students are partners in their education and have a voice in the academic part of university life. Every student on every level on every course is represented by their own Course Rep so they always have an opportunity to channel their opinions, feedback and ideas as well as improving their education. This is also an opportunity for students to get involved in how the course is run and to help make positive changes for themselves and their fellow students. Student groups, clubs & societies, and BUCS There are many different sports, clubs and activities for students to get involved in which receive funding and staff support from LiverpoolSU. A wide variety of different interests are covered by our clubs but if students find that something they are interested in isn't there then LiverpoolSU will provide them with the help needed to get it started. New societies started by our students include our Fashion society, Capoeira society, Vietnamese society and Psychology society. Our teams have enjoyed considerable success this year and we look forward to helping them to build on this to even bigger victories next year. Just this year, our Women’s Netball team have won the BUCS trophy cup final, our Women’s Football, Men’s Tennis and our Golf team are all vying for promotion in their leagues over the next month, whilst our Men’s Senior Gaelic Football Team hope to win their sixth consecutive title in this year’s National Gaelic Football Championships in March.

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LiverpoolSU netball star Laura Malcolm helped England’s netball team to Gold in the world netball series and our teams are determined to win back our varsity title from the University of Liverpool and hold our title against Hope University for a staggering 14th consecutive year. Community Reps The Community Rep scheme aims to enable students to drive positive change in their community through supporting and representing them. 12 student Community Reps work with all residents and in partnership with Liverpool City Council, Merseyside Police and other organisations. They identify and respond to issues affecting the experience of students living in the community, deliver cleaner and safer streets whilst putting students at the heart of Liverpool’s community. Community Reps also organise local campaigns based on the concerns or issues of students and other residents. To find out more information about previous campaigns and upcoming campaigns, please visit www.liverpoolsu.com/communityreps Hall Reps, Welcome Reps & Rate Your Landlord With over 3700 new level 4 students moving in over September, LiverpoolSU is on hand every step of the way to ensure that students feel welcomed and settled in. We do this by employing over 30 Welcome Reps who have been there in the students’ shoes before and are on hand with helpful advice and tips over a students’ first few weeks. Throughout this time we employ Hall Reps to carry on their work throughout the academic year and to hold events so that students feel included. With a targeted package of Welcome Fest events, the support of our Welcome Reps and our Rate Your Landlord scheme we aim to help LJMU students choose their accommodation wisely, settle in to life at University and make the most of their halls experience. Further information about the Rate Your Landlord scheme can be found at www.liverpoolsu.com/rateyourlandlord. Advice Centre University life can be a roller-coaster of emotions from the moment a student’s place is confirmed and their bags are packed. Occasionally students will find themselves in need of a spot of academic advice and guidance. LiverpoolSU’s Advice Service is there to try and help. The Advice Centre offers a free, independent, confidential client-centred service. Welcome Fest Welcome Fest is exactly what it says, a week of activities and events to welcome students to LiverpoolSU and LJMU. For new students it promises to be one of the busiest weeks of their lives, possibly moving into new accommodation, enrolling on their course, meeting new people and finding their feet as a student in Liverpool. Those returning will probably still have a hectic week moving accommodation, living with new people, and getting ready for new modules. Whatever their situation, LiverpoolSU’s Welcome Fest aims to kick start our students’ years in the best possible way. Our staff We have received the Investors in People (Silver) Award for our investment in staff, hold the Investors in Volunteers standard for our work with volunteers and also hold the positive about disability symbol ensuring that we employ, keep and develop the abilities of disabled staff. We have also achieved the Workplace Wellbeing Charter, demonstrating our commitment to health and wellbeing within our workforce.

Purpose and objectives of LiverpoolSU To see our objectives, vision and values please visit: www.liverpoolsu.com

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WHAT IS LIVERPOOLSU LOOKING FOR FROM THE ADVICE AND SPECIALIST ROLE? How will the Advice Specialist fit in the team?

What will the Advice Specialist deliver? The focus of this role is to give advice to students on academic matters and facilitate and support the development of the advice service at LiverpoolSU to ensure that it brings about positive change for students. You will achieve priority objectives, help implement successful initiatives and help maximise the impact of LiverpoolSU on LJMU’s academic regulations with the support of the Advice and Project Specialist. Student retention will be improved and our diverse student body will feel like valued members of their learning community. Other key areas of your role will include:

helping with the planning, development and implementation of our advice service,

being available to provide our hate crime support service as needed,

being involved in a range of other Students’ Union activities; This exciting role will allow you to use your creativity and make the most of your proactive approach to work to help in the development of the advice service. The right candidate will be given the opportunity to shine! By joining the team you will enable us to;

deliver an Advice Service that provides free and impartial advice and support on academic issues to all students of LJMU.

develop the LiverpoolSU Advice Service to be used as a tool for positive change in the LJMU learning experience.

Terms & Conditions for LiverpoolSU LiverpoolSU offers for this post

a salary of £22k per annum

annualised hours based on a 35 hour week

flexible working – remote and home working will be considered subject to business demands

a 6% employer contribution to a pension scheme (NEST)

40 days annual leave per annum

This is an exciting time to be joining the Student Voice Team, as we enter a year of real change, both with the way we do things internally and the Higher Education landscape nationally. Working with the Advice and Projects Specialist, the Advice Specialist will assist in the work of the Student Voice Department to support the Academic Success of all students and to make LJMU a better University for students through the successful running of the Advice Service. The successful applicant must have at least six months recent full-time (or part time equivalent) experience of providing confidential advice or support services or recent educational study in an area relevant to the provision of legal advice or support services.

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JOB PROFILE

JOB TITLE Advice Specialist (Part – Year)

EMPLOYER Liverpool Students’ Union

REPORTS TO Advice and Projects Specialist

HOURS OF WORK Fixed term contract, 35 hours per week, until 30th November 2016

SALARY Grade 5 SCP 23 £22,062

KEY TASKS/ RESPONSIBILITIES

Provide an accurate, confidential and non-directive advice service to students; acting as a representative for cases as required.

Contribute to a range of other LiverpoolSU projects, campaigns, initiatives and activities for our diverse student membership.

Support and student volunteers within advice and other services if required.

Ensure officers are well briefed and prepared when talking to University or other organisations about student welfare issues.

Ensure the advice service is well integrated with and informs LiverpoolSU’s wider student voice and campaign work. Including through providing verbal and written briefings for students, elected representatives and staff.

Maintain and develop advice factsheets and other printed and online materials to enable students to access advice through a range of channels. This to include presenting videos as required.

Contribute to the development of new initiatives to enhance the accessibility, responsiveness and quality of advice services provided.

Work from a range of locations across the University estate as required.

Develop and maintain effective and confidential casework records and monitoring statistics using paper and Advice Pro software.

Maintain an up-to-date knowledge of higher education advice matters and best practices.

Collect, collate and analyse client data to carry out research on the student experience.

Support collaboration with other Students’ Unions and other key partners to positively impact students.

Liaise and work with a range of University staff and services to ensure student needs are met.

Attend meetings and training events as necessary to enhance the role and the impact of the advice service to students.

Undertake training and develop specialist knowledge in any appropriate areas of advice or related support activity as required, should the service develop to provide services in new areas.

Work in a safe manner, seeking to minimise hazards to ensure the safety of other staff and students, and report all safety hazards immediately. Ensure that all health and safety, fire and building regulations and procedures are complied with.

Comply with and promote the environmental and sustainability procedures within the Union.

Have a flexible approach to duties and work and, in particular, adopt a team work style with all colleagues and activities. This may involve undertaking duties in support of the activities and services of other departments.

Other duties as required which commensurate with responsibilities of the post.

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LiverpoolSU is committed to promoting equal opportunities and valuing diversity and to processes and procedures that are fair, objective, transparent and free from discrimination.

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Essential Criteria

At least six months recent full-time (or part time equivalent) experience of providing

confidential advice or support services or Recent educational study in an area relevant to the provision of legal advice or support services.

Experience of interpreting and communicating complex information to meet the needs of different audiences.

Experience of providing talks, presentations or training to groups.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Ability to use the main standard Office IT packages and sufficient typing ability to effectively produce electronic case records.

Demonstrating a track record of taking the initiative and being open to new challenges.

Adaptable and flexible to meet the needs of the business.

Understanding of the advice process.

Understanding of and commitment to equality and diversity.

Understanding of the role of students’ unions, the range of services provided to members and the role of elected representatives.

Awareness of the support needs and wider interests of Liverpool John Moores University students.

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LIVERPOOL STUDENTS’ UNION ORGANISATION STRUCTURE

Trustee Board

Chief Executive

Director of Member Support &

Development

Retail & Events Manager

Finance Assistant

Retail Supervisors x3

Student Staff

Community Co-ordinator

Student Staff

Student Development & Activities Manager

Student Group Co-ordinator

Societies & Development Co-ordinator

Student Group Co-ordinator (Placement)

Director of Marketing

Business Development

Manager

Reception & Admin Supervisor

Student Staff

Marketing Manager

Marketing Co-ordinator

Digital & Design Co-ordinator

Student Staff

Campaigns & Engagement Co-ordinator

Student Engagement

Assistant

Student Staff

Liberation Project Co-ordinator

Student Voice Manager

Policy Development Co-ordinator

Academic Representation

Co-ordinator

Student Staff

Advice & Project Specialist

Advice Specialist (Placement)

Student Voice Co-ordinator (Placement)

Retention Project Co-ordinator

Executive Assistant

Marketing Co-ordinator

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ABOUT LIVERPOOL

Liverpool…. The very name conjures up images of a glorious maritime history, world-beating musical heritage, two of the Premiership’s biggest football teams and not one, but two majestically different Cathedrals. This Northwest city and the surrounding City Region is certainly all those things, but it is also so much more. It is now bulging with fabulous new shops, has buzzing new restaurants, hip hotels and trendy wine bars, as well as a world class cultural offering with more museums and galleries anywhere outside of London. Not forgetting its inhabitants, of course, who are famously friendly and will welcome you with pride. Visit www.visitliverpool.com to find out what a great city Liverpool is in which to work, rest and play. There is also an introduction to the city on the LJMU website www.ljmu.ac.uk/courses/114156.htm Parking – Liverpool SU staff are able to purchase a monthly or annual parking permit to access Mount Pleasant Car http://www.ljmu.ac.uk/PRS/security/59091.htm Travel from Manchester Piccadilly in 48 minutes to Lime Street and LiverpoolSU is 10 minutes’ walk away.

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RESOURCES THAT MAY HELP YOUR APPLICATION

Useful Web Addresses www.LiverpoolSU.com www.ljmu.ac.uk www.nusconnect.com www.tsep.org.uk www.qaa.ac.uk Guidance Notes to Aid Your Application Dates and Deadlines You often only get one chance when applying for a job, so you have to make a good impact from the beginning. Your application must be with LiverpoolSU by 10am on Monday 15th August 2016. Person Specification The person specification (PS) is as important as your CV. It is the document that will show that you have seriously considered the role and it will also give a good indication of whether you are suitable. The PS is part of the job description and it is asking you to provide information against each point. Individually respond to each item of the person specification. Always give a clear example of success with a quantifiable outcome for each item. One good and relevant example per item is enough. Don't get fixated by length, it's better to give too much detail than not enough; conversely, you'll win points for being appropriately concise. Generally each bullet point should take about 1/3 to 1/2 of a page. You can use bullet points to shorten your response, but watch out for professional abbreviations that are not in common use. Make no assumptions. Your task is to convince LiverpoolSU that you have the experience required, so you will need to provide a response to the person specification that answers each of the bullet points. You can do this by:

Providing your information one bullet point at a time

Including actions and achievements with figures if possible. If you were part of a team that increased sales by 30%, how was it done, and what was your role?

Again, be concise, but include as much information as possible. Don’t say “I managed 50 people”. You might not have been very good, but a reviewer can't tell from that piece of information. Better would be to write “While managing 50 people I increased sales by 30% in six months by introducing profit based quarterly bonuses”. Now we know what you did, and what the evidence of success was.

Finally, think about the structure of the document. A lot of text in large paragraphs with rambling sentences and key words within sentences in bold will provide the impression that the thinking is unstructured. Have a look at how clear reports are and go on from there.

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How to get it wrong There are a number of ways that you can score negative points before your first meeting. Here are some examples of documents that didn't shine:

Documents that are written in capital letters.

Documents that cannot be printed (check before you send it)

Documents that do not have the applicant's name and page number on each page.

Documents that haven't been spell-checked.

We are mostly looking for evidence of success. If you don't tell us that a particular programme, procedural or cultural change was a success and how they helped the organisation, then we will have to take a guess, and we might guess incorrectly.

Try not to use the words "Responsible for" so much. It's good to know what your responsibilities are, but only up to a point, after that we want to know how your actions helped the company.

If you have figures, or a before and after, put them in.

Try not to leave gaps, if you get an interview, you will almost certainly be asked about them.

This isn't the place for being self-deprecating or engaging in humour. "Well I was quite good at this role" will not gain you points, but then neither will "I want to take over the world"!

Falling foul of the points above might not stop you from getting an interview, but they are likely to colour the interviewer's perception of you.

Good luck with your application and thank you for taking an interest in LiverpoolSU.

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NEXT STEPS IN THE PROCESS

If you think you are the right person for the position of Advice Specialist at LiverpoolSU please complete an application form that evidences how you meet the job description and person spec. You should ensure that your application addresses each of the points in the above Job Profile; explaining why you meet each of the requirements. Applicants who are shortlisted will be those who do this most successfully. Please note that we require an application form to be completed and we will not consider CVs that are sent to us. We short list anonymously to ensure no unconscious bias. Applicants should complete an application form and email these to Kate Redmond. Executive Assistant: K.Redmond@ljmu.ac.uk. Snail mail: Kate Redmond, Liverpool Students’ Union, John Foster Building, Mount Pleasant, Liverpool L3 5UZ The equal opportunities monitoring form is for equal opportunities monitoring only. Information will not be passed onto any members of the recruitment panel. Applications will not be considered unless a monitoring form is attached. Important dates: Applications open: Friday, 29th July 2016 Applications close: Monday, 15th August 2016 at 10am Shortlisting held: Tuesday, 16th August 2016 Interviews held: Friday, 19th August 2016 (if you are unable to attend on this date please ensure you

include this in your application) Start date: Ideally Monday, 29th August 2016 (we can be flexible around this start date) Who to contact for more details Please feel free to contact Becci McEvoy, Student Voice Manager on 0151 231 4942 or via email R.McEvoy@ljmu.ac.uk or visit our website for more information: www.liverpoolsu.com We are really excited about this role – we hope, after reading this, you are too. We look forward to receiving your application!