Prison Officer

Ministry of Justice; Luton; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 36,000; Full time

Job summary

The Ministry of Justice is recruiting prison officers in the United Kingdom for frontline roles in custody settings. This fast-paced job involves working directly with prisoners to protect the public and support rehabilitation.

You will undergo online tests, Values Based Assessment (VBA), and an Online Assessment Centre (OAC) as part of the selection process. Applicants are assessed on numeracy and English proficiency, and must meet immigration and right-to-work requirements.

Qualifications

• Communication and influencing skills to engage prisoners and colleagues.
• Ability to maintain a high standard of service and safety.
• Decision-making under pressure as part of daily duties.
• Empathy, resilience and teamwork are essential in a prison environment.

Responsibilities

• communicating and influencing
• managing a quality service
• making effective decisions
• caring

Skills

communicating and influencing

managing a quality service

making effective decisions

caring

Job description

Sponsorship is not guaranteed, and applicants are responsible for ensuring they have, and can maintain, the appropriate right to work in the UK. Skilled Worker visa sponsorship may be available for this role, subject to eligibility and in line with the UK Immigration Rules in force at the time of application. However, due to current immigration requirements and recruitment timescales, candidates who require Skilled Worker visa sponsorship are unlikely to be sponsored if applying to this campaign. Applicants are strongly encouraged to consider their right to work in the UK carefully before applying. You can read more about Skilled Worker visas and eligibility criteria at gov.uk. The Department will continue to comply with UK Immigration Rules applied in the UK and Civil Service. An extraordinary job. Done by someone like you. Prison officers protect the public and help make an impact on prisoners' lives. If you have the integrity, skills and strength of character we're looking for, this fast-paced role could be the start of a successful career. Someone like you There's no such thing as a typical prison officer. Our officers come from different walks of life, just like the offenders they work with. Whether you're a parent, a teacher, have worked in retail, the armed forces, or just feel like you're a natural people person, you'll have the empathy, self-confidence, great communication skills and resilience we want. No matter the challenge, you'll take the time to build constructive, positive and professional relationships with prisoners who could be at the lowest point in their lives. Teamwork plays a vital role in this environment, so you'll need to be fully committed to supporting your colleagues and understand the importance of acting as one team to keep the prison, and everyone who works here safe. You will be required to work various shifts and some weekends. An extraordinary job In this unique career, you'll have the opportunity to carry out many different roles in any one day. One minute you're a peacekeeper, the next you're a counsellor or a teacher. You'll work directly with prisoners in a unique environment, helping to protect the public and make a positive impact.

• communicating and influencing
• managing a quality service
• making effective decisions
• caring

Your natural strengths are assessed to find out what motivates and energises you. We will also assess your numerical, written English and spoken English abilities. Online Tests Once you have completed your initial application form, you will be invited to complete stage 1 of the online test, to see if you have the basic judgement and numerical skills expected of a prison officer. If you are successful, we will invite you to the stage 2 online test (values-based assessment). We use this assessment to understand how well you demonstrate the values needed to be an effective prison officer. If you successfully pass the Values Based Assessment (VBA), you'll be eligible to progress to the Online Assessment Centre (OAC), where we'll assess the behaviours, strengths and abilities needed to become a Prison Officer. As demand for assessment places can vary, candidates who achieve a higher pre-determined VBA score may be invited to the OAC sooner. This approach is applied consistently and fairly to all applicants within the campaign. If you meet the required VBA pass mark but are not selected for an initial invitation, you will remain under consideration and may be invited to attend an OAC as additional assessment capacity becomes available.

Although a driving licence is not a requirement for the Prison Officer role, driving duties are an essential part of the OSG role. Therefore, candidates who are unsuccessful in their Prison Officer application but offered an OSG role instead, are required to hold a valid UK driving licence.

Medical and Fitness Once we identify a vacancy for you, we will invite you to complete a medical and fitness test. This will cover an eyesight test, hearing test and basic health screening, including a blood pressure check. Please note we are not able to facilitate medical and fitness assessments outside of the UK. Applicants will be required to attend a UK based medical and fitness assessment centre to progress their application.

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.

Reasonable Adjustment Support As a Disability Confident employer, the MoJ is committed to ensuring that everyone can demonstrate their skills, talent, and abilities. Offering reasonable adjustment support to candidates when they apply for one of our jobs is just one way, we do this. Before completing online tests or attending an online assessment centre, it is essential to arrange reasonable adjustment support. Due to practical and logistical constraints, our assessors cannot accommodate requests on the day of the assessment centre. Therefore, we kindly request that you let us know in plenty of time if adjustments are required. This will help ensure the right support is in place for you when you need it.

The “Making the Civil Service a Great Place to work for veterans” initiative includes a guaranteed interview scheme to those who meet the minimum criteria to provide eligible former members of the Armed Forces with opportunities to secure rewarding jobs. Allowing veterans to continue to serve their country, and to bring highly skilled individuals with a broad range of experience into the Civil Service in an environment, which recognises and values your previous service in the Armed Forces. For further details about the initiative and eligibility requirements visit : https://www.gov.uk/government/news/making-the-civil-service-a-great-place-to-work-for-veterans

Redeployment Interview Scheme Civil Service departments are expected to explore redeployment opportunities before making an individual redundant. The MoJ are committed, as part of the Redeployment Interview Scheme, to providing opportunities to those who are ‘at risk of redundancy’. MoJ are able to offer an interview to eligible candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns. Candidate's will not be eligible for the Redeployment Interview Scheme if they are applying on promotion.

What's it really like to work as a prison officer? Our interactive online activity will give you an insight into some of the situations prison officers may experience day-to-day in their work. This is to help you decide whether the prison officer role is right for you, and your responses in the activity will not form part of your application.

• be at least 18 years old at the point you commence employment
• meet the Civil Service Nationality requirements (see nationality requirements section below)
• as this is a physically active job, you will need to pass a medical and fitness assessment as part of the application process
• meet the required eyesight standard in both eyes (both with and without corrective lenses)
• For safety reasons, everyone training to be a prison officer needs a suitable standard of hearing (without the use of hearing aids)
• Whilst tattoos are permitted, including those that are visible, they must not be deemed as offensive, discriminatory, violent or intimidating in any way. Facial tattoos are generally not acceptable, except where this is for cultural, religious, or medical reasons. To work in a high security prison (category