Prison Officer

HMP Thameside, SE28 0FJ
Up to £38,448 per annum
Permanent. Full time positions available (average 40 per week, with various shifts).

Your starting salary will be £33,500 pa. increasing to £34,550 after 12 months and increasing again to £38,448 when you reach 3 years’ service. We are fully committed to progressing you through your PCO Portfolio or PCO Apprenticeship which would increase your salary to £38,448 as soon as either of these is successfully completed which can realistically be achieved within 12 to 18 months of joining us. We also offer:

• Opportunity to earn approximately £44,000including overtime (Whilst we cannot guarantee overtime will always be available, this is based on an average of 4 hrs per week)
• Clear career development pathways for you to transition quickly into operational management positions with salaries ranging from £42,200 to £48,200
• Flexible shift patterns available.
• Free parking on site.
• Free use of the gym.
• Free food whilst on shift
• Pension scheme.
• Health & Wellbeing Benefits.
• Reward & Recognition scheme.
• Serco discounts which include cinema, online shopping discounts, leisure centre memberships and you can apply for a Blue Light discount card.

Discover lots of information about the Prison Officer role here

Is this the right career for you?
Our Prison Officers come with all different work & life experiences, what you’ve done before doesn’t matter, what matters is that you’re committed to making a difference to the lives of others. We’re focused on transferrable skills and behaviours such as communication, teamwork, resilience, and patience to help people - the rest you’ll learn during your 10-week training course and through our experienced colleagues.

As a Prison Officer, you’ll be at the forefront of ensuring the health, safety, and wellbeing of everyone around you. It’s a job where your contribution really counts as you work to give prisoners structure within their lives, encourage positive choices, and support them on their journey to rehabilitation. Day to day you’ll be involved in:

• Supervising prisoners in all aspects of prison wing activity.
• Overseeing work and education programmes, encouraging prisoners to participate.
• Operational matters such as prisoner headcounts, prison cell searching, security, and administrative processes.
• Managing prisoners who are at risk of self-harm.

We operate 24/7, all year round meaning you’ll cover shifts on days, evenings, weekends, nights, and bank holidays. We value the importance of work-life balance, we operate on a rota basis that allows you the flexibility to enjoy meaningful time off to do the things you enjoy & love.

Preparing for your recruitment journey:
You’ll be invited you to complete an online assessment. If you pass the initial online assessment, we will invite you to attend an interview, you’ll take part in a short role play, written exercise, competency-based interview, and maths assessments. You’ll also undergo a fitness test which consists of:

• Bleep Test - 15 metre shuttle runs in time with the bleeps, lasting approximately 3 minutes and 40 seconds to reach level 5.4.
• Agility Test - Running around set course of cones under a set time scale.
• Shield Hold Test - Holding shield out in front of you at a 45-degree angle for 1 minute.
• Grip Test - 28KG (on both hands)

Once you’ve passed assessment, we’ll invite you to attend a 10-week Initial Training Course (ITC) at the Prison, which requires 100% attendance. This consists of 8 weeks classroom-based training and 2 weeks shadowing to give you a real taste of life on the job. The ITC provides high quality training, you’ll complete a Diploma in Custodial Care, First Aid and undergo Control and Restraint training.

Why Serco?

• Meaningful and vital work: Prison Officers are key to ensuring the health, safety and wellbeing of prisoners, staff, and visitors in their prisons. More importantly they play a vital role in reducing reoffending rates amongst prisoners.
• A world of opportunity: Our prisons hold a huge amount of variety and opportunity, with Officers being able to progress into Ops Management or specialist services such as Psychology, Education, Health, or the Animal unit.
• Great people: Due to the investment in safeguarding and rehabilitation, our prisons are calmer and may be very different to what you might imagine, but you’ll receive all the training and advice you need from friendly and supportive colleagues.

Please note that this position is based at HMP Thameside in London. Due to the nature of our shift patterns, we strongly encourage applicants to consider their commute time and transportation options before applying. We recommend that candidates live within a 30 mile radius of the above location to maintain punctuality, work-life balance, and job satisfaction."

What else do I need to know?
This role is not eligible for Skilled Worker visa sponsorship under current UK Home Office rules, as it does not meet the required salary or skill level criteria. Whilst we encourage applications to other roles, candidates who already have a valid right to work in the UK through other immigration routes or permissions must meet the below minimum eligibility criteria:

• Have at least two years remaining on your current visa to ensure sufficient time in the role.
• Have lived in the UK for at least one year

For general right-to-work guidance, please visit the UK Home Office website .

This role is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, and all offers of employment are subject to security clearance checks, and satisfactory employment references. You’ll be required to provide 5 years of employment and education history as part of these checks. You will be required to obtain Ministry of Justice Enhanced Level 2 Clearance & Enhanced DBS with adult and child barring vetting clearances (which required 5 years of checkable history).

About Serco
At Serco, not only is the nature of the work we do important, everyone has an important role to play, from caring for vulnerable people to managing complex public services. We are a team of 50,000 people responsible for delivering essential public services around the world in areas including defence, transport, justice, immigration, healthcare and citizen services. We are innovators, committed to redesigning and improving public services for the benefit of everyone. By joining Serco you will have unlimited access to our Global Employee Networks – SercoInspire (Gender), SercoEmbrace (Multicultural), SercoUnlimited (Disability) and In@Serco (LGBT & Networks). Serco Employee Networks, led by colleagues who are passionate about diversity, inclusion and belonging.

Apply
Please click on the apply button to complete your application. Occasionally we receive a large volume of applications for our roles and when that happens we sometimes bring the closing date forward, so please apply promptly to avoid disappointment. At Serco, we see people first and foremost for their performance and potential. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive organisation that supports the needs of all. As such we will make reasonable adjustments at interview through to employment for our candidates and strongly encourage applications from a diverse candidate pool. We are open to discussions around flexibility and flexible working. We operate a hybrid work structure in many of our business areas. We are proudly Disability Confident Leader employers and holder of the Gold Inclusive Employer Standard. Disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the job will be given the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities at an interview. For help with your application please contact j&[email protected].

At Serco we support fair access to employment for those with unspent criminal convictions through the ‘Ban the Box’ pledge (some may be exempt due to the nature of the role and the security clearance required). Please contact our recruitment team directly on j&[email protected] to discuss.