Working Together AO Example Statement (250 Words)
At AO, assessors want to see that you work well with the people around you: you listen, you help colleagues, you share information and you deal with disagreements politely. Your example can be small and everyday. What matters is showing your own part in a shared effort and a clear, positive result.
Example statement
SI volunteer as an admin assistant at a community sports centre used by twelve clubs. The shared hall equipment kept getting double-booked, and two clubs nearly came to blows over a missing projector.
TThe centre manager asked me to create one booking system that every club would actually use.
AI began by visiting the organisers of the three biggest clubs separately, because I knew they did not get on, and asked each what a fair system would look like. I noticed they all trusted the paper diary at reception more than anything online, so I designed a simple weekly grid based on that diary rather than forcing a new app on them. I drafted booking rules from what each organiser had told me, including a 24-hour confirmation rule and a shared damage log, and I checked every rule with all twelve clubs before printing. When two clubs both claimed Friday nights, I brought their organisers together at the centre, laid out six weeks of actual usage on the table and helped them agree an alternating pattern themselves. I typed up the final grid, laminated copies for each kit cupboard and ran a ten-minute briefing at the next club forum. I also set up a group chat so swaps no longer depended on me.
RDouble-bookings fell from around 6 a month to zero in the first term, and all 12 clubs signed the rules. The manager has asked me to build the same system for the centre's meeting rooms.
Use this as a model, not a script. This is an original example written for this site. Adapt the structure to your own experience — copying it word for word risks plagiarism and will not reflect your evidence.
Why this scores well
- Goes beyond following a process: the system was designed around what all twelve clubs actually trusted, not what was easiest.
- Conflict is handled face to face — bringing the two rival clubs together to agree Friday slots shows collaboration, not avoidance.
- Every club checked every rule before sign-off, and the result is quantified: double-bookings fell from six a month to zero.
What AO level requires
| Grade | What assessors expect |
|---|---|
| AO ← this page | At AO level, Working Together means being a helpful, reliable member of the team: treating colleagues with respect, sharing information and pitching in to get shared work done. |
| EO | At EO level, Working Together means building constructive relationships beyond your immediate desk: coordinating with other teams, sharing information proactively and sorting out friction before it escalates. |
| HEO | At HEO level, Working Together means taking the lead in making collaboration happen: organising people across teams, valuing different perspectives and resolving disagreements so shared goals are met. |
Common mistakes at this level
- Skipping over a disagreement instead of showing how you handled it respectfully
- Listing duties such as 'I helped colleagues' with no specific actions or outcome
- Ending with no result: no number, no feedback and nothing that changed
Frequently asked questions
Most departments ask for 250 words per behaviour, but always check the job advert. Some ask for 500 or 750, and Civil Service Jobs sometimes sets a character limit instead. Whatever the limit, keep the STAR shape: brief Situation, one Task sentence, most words on Action, clear Result.
Ordinary is fine. AO is about being a reliable, considerate colleague, and everyday examples show that best. Covering a shift becomes strong evidence when you show how you coordinated with others, communicated clearly and kept things running. Include the result: fewer errors, a smoother handover, good feedback.
You do not need to. Assessors map your evidence to Working Together indicators themselves. Spend your words on what you did — listening, sharing, helping, resolving — rather than writing 'this shows I work well with others'. Naming the behaviour adds no marks; demonstrating it does.
Next step
Get the free AO statement template pack — the same STAR structure used in this example.
Download the template pack