Following submission of your application form, a review will take place. This will be a quality assurance review of eligibility which will include tattoo screening. Once this review has been completed, the next step will be an interview.

Provided your application is deemed as eligible, you will be invited to attend an interview. This will be a structured interview with a panel of interviewers consisting of Special Constables, Police Officers or members of Police Staff.

The interview is expected to last up to 45 minutes. The questions in the interview are aimed at exploring your values and motivation to join as a Special Constable. These will be based on the Competency & Values Framework (CVF). For Re-Joiner candidates, biometric samples (fingerprints & DNA) will also be taken at the selection day.

The Job-Related Fitness Test (JRFT) is a critical component of the recruitment of Special Constables and Police Officers. The core rational for the test is to ensure that prospective Special Constables and Police Officers have a minimum level of fitness to be able to undertake personal safety training. The fitness test is benchmarked against the aerobic demands of Personal Safety Training (PST) and comprises of an aerobic shuttle run test (15m Multi-Stage Fitness Test – 15m MSFT at level 5:4).

Please click here for further information regarding the Fitness Test.

A comprehensive evaluation of your professional development needs against the role offered will be completed by our Learning & Development department, in order for your training requirements to be determined.

A medical assessment will be carried out by our Occupational Health Support Unit. They will check the following:

- BMI (Body Mass Index)

- Eye sight test – see Appendices

- Colour vision – see Appendices

- Lung function

- Hearing

You will be asked to complete a confidential medical history questionnaire. You are advised not to pay for your GP to sign these forms until you know you have been successful though the earlier stages. Depending upon your medical history, we may have to contact your GP/ specialist for further information.

Once you have been declared medically fit to proceed, we will be able to progress your application to the next stage.

For more information on the National Medical Standards please click here.

The vetting process is entirely confidential and the outcomes (other than pass/fail) are not shared with anyone else in the organisation (including trainers, future line managers or fellow trainees) or anyone outside of the organisation (including family).

We will carry out security checks on you and your:

- Spouse/Partner

- Father

- Step father/mother’s partner

- Mother

- Stepmother/father’s partner

- Brothers/sisters (full/half/step)

- Children/children of your partner (only those age 10 years and over)

- Any other adult living at your address

- Financial circumstances – applicants will have their financial status checked

These checks are carried out because Police Officers have access to privileged information, which may make them vulnerable to corruption.

Applicants with outstanding County Court Judgements (CCJs), Individual Voluntary Agreements (IVAs) or who have been registered bankrupt with outstanding debts, will be rejected. If you have discharged bankruptcy debt, you will need to provide a Certificate of Satisfaction with your application. At least three years will need to have passed since the date of discharge.

Applicants with cautions/convictions/reprimands, other than some motoring offences, may not be accepted.

We will send reference requests to all your previous employers in the last 5 years. If you have not been employed in the past 5 years, we will ask for an educational reference if applicable.

As part of the Vetting process, you will be required to undergo drugs testing. All drug testing processes are entirely confidential and only the presence of illegal substances will be disclosed to the Force Vetting Unit (by the third-party drug testing laboratory). Prescribed medication, including that for individuals with certain disabilities or individuals that may be transitioning, is not tested for in the process.