Practical arrangements
Candidates with disabilities
If any candidate has disclosed a disability before the interview then panel should ensure that it is familiar with the guidance on interviewing disabled candidates.
Timing
Ensure that ample time is allocated for each interview and that all candidates are allowed the same time. Allow at least ten minutes' gap between interviews - five minutes to summarise the conclusions from the previous interview, five minutes to review the papers for the next candidate.
Note: when setting up the interview schedule in CoreHR, the start/end of day times, gaps between interviews, length of interviews, and lunch breaks etc., can all be specified. Sufficient time should be taken after the interview, possibly leaving twenty-four hours for reflection, to allow proper discussion and a final decision to be reached.
Rooms
Ensure that the room(s) to be used is/are appropriately arranged so that, for example, the room is properly lit and no-one is looking into the sun. In arranging the room, remember that many candidates can read interviewers' notes if they are left visible, even though the papers may be 'upside down' to the candidate.
If a disabled candidate is to be interviewed, ensure the room can comfortably accommodate any required adjustments: the disability office can advise on suitable arrangements.
Interviewers sitting behind a desk or table create a formal, or distancing effect: a more relaxed atmosphere can be achieved by using comfortable chairs, placed at angles to each other.
There should be no interruptions either from the telephone or by people entering the room unexpectedly.
Reception
Ensure that candidates are sent clear directions explaining how to find the venue for the interview, and that proper arrangements are made to welcome the candidates and to show them where to wait. The interview invitation letter template in CoreHR will prompt you to specify location and welcoming instructions, and can be adapted as required. Maps may also be attached to the invitation.
Note-taking
A Sample interview record 
(43kb) should be used by panel members. The dialogue in an interview cannot always easily be compartmentalised, and notes of a particular discussion may be taken by those other than the questioner. Interview forms should be collected by a member of the panel (normally by the chair of the panel) at the end of the interviews and kept for six months after an appointment has been made.
Decisions taken at the end of the interview process should be recorded systematically by means of a summary version of the interview notes in which the decisions are explicitly related to the selection criteria.
It is not necessary, or indeed desirable, for the notes of individual panel members to be re-typed after interviews. What is important is that all the notes be retained by one member of the panel and passed on to the departmental administrator, or equivalent, for safe keeping.
All notes from shortlisting and interviews are potentially disclosable to candidates on request and therefore should relate strictly to the selection criteria and avoid inappropriate language, or shorthand. If a recruitment decision is challenged and the case goes to an employment tribunal, the complainant may request and the tribunal order the 'discovery' of all the notes taken during interviews. They must therefore be retained in their entirety.
Meals and tours
The offer of lunch or another meal to shortlisted candidates can give them an opportunity to discuss matters which do not arise at interview, such as living in Oxford. However, it is not advisable to treat any discussion over a meal as part of the selection process and it is important to make this clear to candidates.
Those involved at this stage should have sufficient knowledge of the post in question but should not be involved in selection. Consideration should be given to any cultural and/or dietary requirements.
If candidates are offered a tour of the department any information or assessment made during the tour should not form part of the selection, unless it has been made clear to candidates in advance that their response during the tour will be assessed as part of the decision-making process. Candidates should be made aware of this in advance. In such cases those conducting the tour should be involved equally with all candidates and should report to the panel against specific selection criteria.