About

The
Job.

Department of Accommodation and Commercial Services,

Residential Services
Professional Services

Residential Mentor

Overview
The Resident Support team is part of Residential Services. The team is responsible for the
welfare and discipline of students in residences, working closely with other sections to ensure
consistent, appropriate and timely responses to student issues.

You will provide support to residents in a designated area and residents in the community
when on call. You will also assist the Senior Residential Mentor in providing an exceptional
welfare service and uphold the University’s disciplinary policy in respect of students.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Main Duties and Responsibilities

 Meet and greet new students on arrival to University accommodation, e.g. during intro
weekend and when subsequent vacancies are filled.
 Participate in the welcome programme for new students. Ensure residents are aware
of all induction talks and help to promote attendance.
 Respond to routine enquiries regarding the services and facilities available within the
residences and elsewhere in the University, acting at all times in a professional and
courteous manner while representing the Department.
 Promote a sense of community amongst residents, through regular meetings within
individual areas and by flat visits. Actively encourage interaction between residents
occupying the same flat/corridor and with other residents on site. Ensure that
residents are aware of relevant activities taking place in the residences, the Students’
Union or on Campus.
 Provide support to residents experiencing difficulties and direct as appropriate to the
Senior Residential Mentor or sign-post to other services within the University.
Operate an open surgery for residents in the designated area at a published time each
week, if appropriate.
 Visit flats on a systematic basis to obtain feedback on service facilities provided and to
ensure the general well-being of the residents. Report findings to the Senior
Residential Mentor.
 Communicate information on safety, welfare and education campaigns by visits to
flats/corridors and by displaying information on notice boards. Ensure notice boards
are kept up to date and that they display appropriate information.
  Report as appropriate any safety, security, health, welfare or maintenance concerns
whilst on duty or occupying the premises.
 Provide an initial response to complaints of noise or other anti-social behaviour within
the designated residences and refer matters as appropriate to the Senior Residential
Mentor.
 Assist as required with tours of accommodation for prospective new students and
their parents.
 Record formal contacts with residents and take notes of actions taken. Pass
correspondence to the Senior Residential Mentor for filing and record keeping
purposes, ensuring that the Data Protection Act is adhered to.
 Provide a visible presence during the final week of the residence contract to help
ensure that the departure from the residences is smooth and trouble free.
 Provide front-line support for approximately 100 residents within a designated area
and approximately 900 residents in the community when on active duty.
 Meet/communicate with members of the Resident Support Team to assist the
delivery of the resident support service through weekly meetings.
 Plan communications with residents throughout the year on various safety, welfare
and educational campaigns and in receiving feedback on services provided.
 Prioritise own workload and manage work times in conjunction with the Senior
Residential Mentor. (Part of the work load is reactive, particularly for events that
happen outside active duty hours and in emergencies.)
 Any other duties, commensurate with the grade of the post.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Applicants should demonstrate evidence of the following criteria in their applications. We will use
a range of selection methods to measure candidates’ abilities in these areas including reviewing
your on-line application, seeking references, inviting short-listed candidates to interview and other
forms of assessment action relevant to the post.

Criteria Essential Desirable

Qualifications and experience

1. Knowledge and experience of the University’s academic and X
administrative environment.
2. IT skills particularly e-mail and Microsoft Word. X
3. Knowledge of residence contracts, Data Protection Act, health X
and safety procedures, meningitis protocol, incident report
logging and management and updating of daily reports.
4. An understanding of equal opportunities within the University X
and the residences.
5. Appointed persons First Aid. X
Communication skills
6. Excellent communication skills via verbal, non-verbal and written X
correspondence.
7. Good listening skills. X
8. Good interpersonal skills in confrontational situations and when X
dealing with difficult situations.
Team working
9. Team working skills. X

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 Personal effectiveness
10. Flexible approach to work. X
11. Enthusiasm. X
12. A genuine commitment to providing excellent customer service. X

Further Information

This post is fixed-term with a start date of 24 January 2011 and an end date of 10 June 2011.

This post is part-time working on average 9 hours per week during term-time.

Terms and conditions of employment: Will be those for Grade 2 staff.

Salary: £13,856 - £14,550 per annum (pro-rata).

Actual salary: £1,099 - £1,154 per annum for 17 weeks.

More details on salaries, terms and conditions and our wide range of benefits for staff are
available at http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/jobs/salaries.html

Closing date: 6 January 2011.

Criminal records check:

Please note that as this post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, a satisfactory
Criminal Records Bureau Disclosure will be required for the appointee. If you have a spent
criminal record and are invited to interview for this post, you are required to provide details of
your convictions in confidence, with the job reference number/ title of post/recruiting
department, in advance of the interview to the Assistant Director Business Support, Department of
Human Resources, University of Sheffield, Western Bank, Sheffield, S10 2TN (mark the envelope
PERSONAL). This information will be treated as strictly confidential and will only be considered if
you are invited to interview for the post.

If you have been barred from working with children or vulnerable adults by the Independent
Safeguarding Authority it is a criminal offence to apply for a post involving regulated activity with
children or vulnerable adults. Regulated activity involves contact of a specified nature. If you are
unsure if you may apply for this post for this reason then please contact Alastair Thirsk, Senior HR
Adviser in the Department of Human Resources for further information.

Informal enquiries:
For all on-line application system queries and support contact: e-Recruitment@shefield.ac.uk.
For informal enquiries about this job and department:
Contact Dominic Holland on d.holland@sheffield.ac.uk or 0114 222 8953.

Selection Action – next steps

Following the closing date, you will be informed by email whether or not you have been shortlisted
to be invited to participate in the next stage of the selection process. Please note that due to the
large number of applications that we receive, it may take up to two working weeks following the
closing date before the recruiting department will be able to contact you.

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The University of Sheffield is committed to achieving excellence through inclusion

The University of Sheffield is proud to be a Two Ticks employer

http://www.shef.ac.uk/hr/equality/support/twoticks/

Professional Services have achieved the Investors in People Standard