Person Specification: Writing a Supporting Statement That Scores

Every UK job pack lists essential and desirable criteria, and often states how they will be assessed – application, interview, test or presentation. Essential criteria are pass/fail: if one is not evidenced, the application is normally rejected regardless of how strong the rest is. Work through the list and mark the evidence you have for each before writing a sentence.

• Mirror the wording – if the criterion says experience of managing a budget, use those words, then the amount and the period.
• One paragraph per criterion – situation, what you did, the outcome with a number.
• First person singular – panels score what you did, not what your team did.
• Two sides of A4 maximum unless the pack states otherwise.

A worked example: Criterion: experience of improving processes. In my role as an administrator at a NHS trust I reorganised the referral inbox into three queues, cutting average response time from five days to two within a month, and the manager adopted the system for two other teams.

Give every essential criterion a full paragraph. Desirable criteria can be shorter – a sentence each – but do not skip them: they are often used to separate candidates who tied on essentials. If you lack a desirable criterion, say what you have done that is closest rather than leaving the section empty.

The CV lists your history in reverse-chronological order and is read quickly. The supporting statement answers the criteria and is what gets scored. Do not paste statements into the CV, and do not make the panel hunt through work history for evidence they have to score.