The initial offer of employment should be made verbally, either by the recruiting manager or the Head of Department.

Whoever makes the offer should:

• ensure the offer of employment is made on a conditional basis - it is subject to a formal contract being issued and the required pre-employment checks being completed
• try and agree a start date with the candidate, or at least begin a discussion about it. The start date must be a normal University working day.
• make sure that the information provided to the candidate is correct and in line with the relevant policy, it could be claimed that any promises made are contractual

What salary should you offer?

Normally, the salary offered should be the bottom point of the advertised scale. If you feel the candidate is bringing extensive relevant experience to the role or there is other justification to offer incremental progression you should speak with HR first.

Internal candidates appointed at the same grade will retain the same spine point and increment date. Internal candidates appointed to a higher grade should start on the new grade minimum (providing this is higher than their current salary). Their increment date will be the anniversary of their start date in the new role.

More information is in our guidance on starting salaries. If you are still unsure about what salary to offer, speak to your HR Adviser.

Notifying HR and candidates

An offer of appointment form should be sent to HR who will send out a written offer of employment.

Offer of appointment form

Remember that both the verbal and written offers are conditional. Any conditions attached to the offer should be made clear to the candidate at both stages. The standard conditions are described in more detail in the next section.

It is the job owner's task to record the outcome in eRecruiter to ensure all candidates are informed of their status.