Dear members, We are pleased to announce that we are now re-opening the Declaration of Interest form for any members interested in applying for a position on the Advisor or Moderation teams. By completing this form you will be able to select a staff position (Advisor, Chat Mod or Forum Mod) that you're interested in applying for and submit your declaration to be considered for this position. The declaration comprises of around 20 questions that will help staff develop a basic understanding of the skills and qualities that you have, and the information provided combined with your membership history will allow staff to shortlist the nominees that they would like to complete a detailed staff application form for final consideration. If shortlisted you will be invited to complete an official staff application form for the position specified, and a completion of this form will act as an official application for yourself. If you are successful at this phase you will then undergo a few safeguarding checks, and following no issues there you will ultimately be successful and be invited to the staff team. All positions are strictly voluntary, but these roles do also count as work experience on a CV etc, and the organisation is willing to provide references for staff members when they're applying for jobs in which their support role on here is deemed to be relevant experience. The reason for this detailed process is due to EC now being recognised as a non-profit organisation, and also as a support community that frequently deals with members who are vulnerable and often underage. As a result, our formalised application process helps ensure that we are able to recruit nominees who contribute to the stringent safeguarding of the community, as well as continually develop a staff team that is diverse and representative of the wider EC community. It is vital that candidates are able to work within a multi-disciplinary organisation alongside peer workers, medical health practitioners, social workers, counsellors, attorneys etc so please be mindful of the commitment you would potentially be making when submitting your declaration of interest to the organisation. Please do not be upset if you complete a declaration of interest form and are unsuccessful in being shortlisted. This is by no means a reflection on the qualities and skills that you have, nor should it be taken as a judgement based on your character or membership. We are aiming to develop a staff team that is as diverse and representative as possible, so not being shortlisted does not mean that we don't think the quality of advice that you give is not on par with what we want on staff. It really is just a case of fitting people in where they are needed. In order to be considered for a staff position you must have been a member of EC for a minimum of 4 months (as of when you submit the declaration) and have 300+ posts. The form can be accessed here: http://emptyclosets.com/forum/misc.php?do=form&fid=2 The Declaration of Interest form will be open until Friday 24th January 2014. Please let me know if you have any questions regarding the process. Martin.
