Your application form
When you're applying for a job with Cheshire and Wirral Partnership (CWP), you will need to complete an online application form to tell us about yourself, your experience, qualifications and how you feel you meet the criteria and requirements for the job.
Your application form is an important part of the recruitment process. A well-written application helps you make a great first impression and stand out, increasing your chance of being invited to interview.
It’s important to take your time to complete the form in full and accurately. This will help us to decide whether to shortlist you and invite you to an interview with us.
To help you, you may find it useful to ask yourself why you are interested in the job. Ask yourself:
- Do I have the right experience or qualifications for this role?
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Do I share the Trust’s values?
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Why do I think I would be a good fit for this role?
Understanding what the job involves and what we are looking for will help you write a stronger application.
When we review applications, we look for clear examples showing how you meet the essential and desirable criteria in the person specification. Use the supporting information section to show this. Include examples that demonstrate your skills, knowledge, experience, and values.
Finally, always adapt your application for each role you apply for. Never send the same application form for two different jobs – show us how you meet the person specification of the post you're applying for.
'Hard' and 'soft' skills – what's the difference?
Hard skills are specific, practical skills that help you do certain jobs. They’re usually taught through training, courses, or education, and you can build on them over time.
Soft skills are about how you work with and relate to other people. They’re not tied to one particular job and are often learnt through your life and work experiences – not formal training. They can be used in a wide range of job roles.
Think about the skills you’ve gained from your personal life, volunteering, or previous jobs. Many soft skills are transferable and can help you succeed in any role.
Here are some examples of hard and soft skills.
Soft skills |
Hard skills |
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The guidance below explains each section of the application form and gives tips to help you complete it. You can also use the button at the bottom of the page to go to the next page, which has information about what happens once you’ve submitted your application.
In this section, you will be asked for your immigration status.
If you are a UK passport holder, please select:
- I am a UK/EC/EEA citizen with the right to work in the UK
If you are not a UK passport holder and you need help with understanding your visa status, you can contact the Home Office by clicking this link: www.gov.uk/contact-ukvi-inside-outside-uk
In the 'Personal Details' section, you will be asked for the following:
- Title
- Forename
- Middle name/s (leave blank if you don’t have one)
- Surname
- Address
- City / town
- County
- Country
- Postcode
- Mobile telephone
- UK National Insurance number
- Preferred employment type
In the 'Relationships' section, you will be asked the following:
- If you are related to a director, or have a relationship with a director or employee of an appointing organisation, please state the relationship.
This questions is asked to identify bias, and ensure that any interviews or decisions are made without a conflict in interest.
If you are related to a director or employee of CWP, simply use the box to give their name and job title.
CWP have recently introduced the 'Refer a Friend' scheme - if you have been told about the role you're applying to by a family member or friend (working for CWP), you could both receive a £50 Love2Shop voucher each if you are successfully appointed. You can let us know their name and role by adding it to the ‘’Relationships’’ box.
In this section, you will be asked to declare any convictions. Please be honest and transparent in this section.
There is lots of supporting information on the application for and links to access further information as part of this question. If you do not fully understand the instructions or would like to speak to someone, please contact the recruitment team: cwp.
As part of your employment checks you may be asked to make an application for a DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check. You will see on the advert whether you will a DBS check will be performed.
More information about DBS checks can be found on the Government website.
The find out what qualifications are required for the role you are applying to, please check the person specification - this can be found on the job description.
You will be asked to list your qualifications. This includes any GCSEs, A Levels, NVQs, BTECs, foundation degrees, degrees, masters degrees or postgraduate certificates you have obtained. For help, please contact the Recruitment team via email at: cwp.
Please see an example below:
| Subject / qualification | Place of study | Grade / result | Year obtained |
|---|---|---|---|
| English GCSE | High school name, city/town name | C | 2009 |
| Health and Social Care (NVQ) | College name, city/town name | Pass | 2011 |
In this section, you will be asked to list any additional training courses. This includes any work based, or additional certificated courses such as First Aid, Leadership training, Information and data handling. If you have 5+ courses to list - list the 5 most relevant to the role, you can then use the 'Supporting Information' to talk about the others if they are relevant.
Please see an example below or what information will be needed:
| Course title | Training provider | Duration | Year completed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health and safety | Place of work/study | 3 months | 2018 |
| First aid | Place of work/study | 2 weeks | 2019 |
Professional registration is not always required. Please check the Person Specification on the Job Description for if professional registration is required for the role you are applying to. If you are still unsure, please email cwp.
In this section, you will be asked to select one of the following options:
- I do not have the relevant UK professional registration
- I have a current UK professional registration relevant for this post
- I have temporary UK professional registration status relevant for this post
- UK professional registration required and applied for
- I am a student
- Not required for this post
In this section, you will be asked if you have worked for the NHS previously. It will ask for the employment start date, and end date.
If you have previously worked for the NHS, you will need to enter the month and year you started, and month and year the employment ended.
If you have continuously worked for the NHS, you do not need to enter a date for 'Employment end date', only the employment start date.
If you have never worked for the NHS, please leave this section blank.
In this section, you will list your previous periods of employment (most recent first). You will be asked for the following:
- Employer name
- Employer address
- Type of business - industry: health, retail, etc.
- Reporting to (job title) - your managers job title
- Telephone - your manager's phone number
- Your job title
- Start date
- End date
- Grade - this is not always required)
- Salary - or hourly wage (again this is not always required)
- Period of notice
- Reason for leaving (if applicable)
- Brief description of your duties and responsibilities - what were your main duties and what did you do as part of your role? What responsibilities did you have?
In this section, you will be asked to list any gaps in employment. This is for any period where you have been out of employment, education, and/or training. This can include for any personal circumstances, travelling, raising children, caring for someone, etc.
Please see an example below :
- Raising child (4 months) Jan 2018 - May 2018
- Studies (2 years) Sept 2020 - Sept 2022
- Long-term sickness (3 months) Feb 2023 - May 2023
If you have no gaps in employment, you can leave this section blank.
This is an important part of your application. The 'supporting information' section is your opportunity to sell yourself – think of this as your covering letter - so make sure you use it to your advantage. You can include any information here which has not been covered elsewhere on your application form. However, please remember to keep the information relevant for the job you are applying for. In fact, providing a small amount of information which clearly relates to the requirements of the person specification is much better than providing lots of information which is not particularly relevant to the role.
We recommend that you spend some extra time to draft what you would like to say in this section. You can use our Application Guide for extra support.
To write a strong application, you should use the person specification which can be found on the job description. Address each of the points and think about how you meet the essential and desirable criteria. Think about your good qualities, skills and experience.
You have 1,500 words to use for your supporting information, but do not feel that you need to use all 1,500 - just use as many as you need.
Tip: Use a digital typing program that can then be copied and pasted into your application form, or write by hand a draft of your supporting information which can then be typed in to your application form.
| Section | Talk about |
|---|---|
| Opening | Think about why you are applying for this role. What makes you suitable? |
| Qualifications | Talk about what qualifications you have. Check if the person specification asks for GCSEs, A-levels, diplomas, NVQ, degree, etc. Explain how you meet the criteria in this section. Address each bullet point in the person specification found on the job description. |
| Knowledge and expertise | In this section, you can talk about your work skills and work knowledge - including your communication and your organisation skills, as well as your ability to work alone and your experience at fulfilling the duties or responsibilities relating to the role you're applying for. This is an opportunity to demonstrate your abilities. |
| Experience | What experience do you have that you could use in this role? Have you worked in a similar role before? If not, do you have any transferable skills? |
| Analytical and judgemental skills | Read through each of the points in this section and write about how you meet them. |
| Personal skills | Write about the persona skills you bring to the role. Think about your good qualities, eg are you able to work as part of a team and collaborate with others. |
In this section, you will be asked the following questions:
- Please declare if you have any secondary employment, private work or company directorships.
Here you can tell us if you have any additional jobs or contracts of employment.
- Are you a member of the Armed Forces community?
If you are a member of the Armed Forces Community, you are entitled to a guaranteed interview if you meet the essential criteria. Here you can select 'Yes', 'No', or 'Do not wish to disclose'.
Members of the Armed Forces include:
- Veteran
- Reservist
- Cadet Force Adult Volunteer
- Partner or spouse of someone actively in the forces
In this section, you will be asked for references covering 3 years of study or employment. If you do not have study or employment references, you can select to use a character/personal reference (someone who has known you for 3+ years). You will be asked for:
- Referee's title
- Referee's first name(s)
- Referee's surname
- Referee's organisation name
- Referee’s Job title (e.g. Store Manager, Team Leader, etc.)
- How do they know you? (Character, Employer, Tutor etc.)
- Referees telephone no. (If you have it)
- Referees mobile no. (If you have it)
- Email address (This cannot be a personal email address, for example, @gmail.com)
- Can the referee be approached prior to the interview? (CWP do not typically request a reference before your interview)
- Period this reference covers from:
- Period this reference covers to:
- What name will the referee know you by if different from your current name?
- Why has your name changed?
This information will not be visible to the person who will be reviewing your application.
In this section, you will be asked for the following information - you can select from the drop down lists.
- Please state your date of birth
- Please indicate your gender
- Please indicate the option which best describes your marital status:
- Please indicate your ethnic origin
- Which of the following options best describes how you think of yourself? (sexual orientation)
- Please indicate your religion or belief
We ask for this information to ensure that we as a Trust as being fair and equitable. If you need any help with completing this section, please contact the Recruitment Team: cwp.
On the application form, you will see the following question and statement:
- According to the definition of disability do you consider yourself to have a disability?
If you have a disability, do you wish to be considered under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme if you meet the essential criteria as specified in the personal specification.
The Equality Act 2010 protects disabled people - including those with long term health needs, learning disabilities and 'hidden' disabilities, and neurodivergence. Please let us know if you have needs and would like us to make reasonable adjustments to ensure the recruitment process is fair and equitable. You can select more than one option.
If you are neurodivergent - please select ‘Yes’, and then 'Other' in the second drop down box.
Reasonable adjustments will be made available should you be invited to interview.
You will be asked where you heard about the vacancy you are applying to. For example:
- Social media
- Cheshire and Wirral Partnership website
- Referral
This is to help us understand where people are able to find our vacancies and the visibility of careers available with CWP.