Eligibility Information
Age: You must be 18 to apply for the role of PCSO. There is no upper age limit for the role.
You must be a British Citizen, an EC/EEA national or a Commonwealth citizen or foreign national with no restrictions on your stay in the United Kingdom.
You should not have any tattoos which could cause offence. If you have a tattoo you will be asked to provide a brief description and photographs of the tattoo. The nature, location, size, prominence and appearance of tattoos will be considered.
Ideally, you should not have any criminal convictions or cautions. If you do have one, acceptance will depend on the age and nature of the offence. It is not possible to set out a full list of convictions that will preclude a person from becoming a Police Officer. Each case will be considered on its own merits, and if the offence is deemed sufficiently serious a person will be rejected irrespective of age at time of offending. There may be circumstances where an individual does not fall within the criteria, but whose suspected involvement in crime, or criminal associations make an offer of employment inappropriate.
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 we will then progress your application to the next stage.
Please click here for further information on the national standards
Recruitment Process
This is where you will enter your personal details such as your full name, full residential address and your National Insurance number. You will be required to provide proof of these details later in the application process.
You will be required to complete the national application form for the role of PCSO.
The national sift consists of the following two exercises:
Behaviour Styles Questionnaire
This questionnaire invites you to review a number of statements and indicate which statement you completely agree with or completely disagree with on a sliding scale. In order to progress to the next stage, you must pass the behaviour styles questionnaire. At the end of this questionnaire you will be advised of the result and a feedback report.
Situational Judgement Test
If you have passed the behaviour styles questionnaire you will be asked to complete the situational judgement test. This is the final stage of the online process. You will be presented with a number of different situations that you might face as a PCSO with a choice of different actions that might be taken. You will be asked to identify which action will result in an effective or counterproductive outcome. You will be provided with a feedback report and if you are successful, you will then be invited to complete an application form.
If you are successful at National Sift, you will be invited to attend an interview. This will be a structured interview with a panel of interviewers, consisting of Police Officers and Police Staff. Your interview will be based on the essential criteria within the job description.
Biometric vetting consists of fingerprints and a DNA sample. These samples will likely be obtained when you attend for your Force Interview.
You will be required to complete a fitness test as part of the pre-employment checks. You must be able to achieve a level 5.4 at the force fitness test, which is also known as the bleep test. You will generally be required to complete this test on the same day as your Force Interview.
For further information regarding the Job-Related Fitness Test, please click here.
You will also need to complete a Drug Test as part of the pre-employment checks for the role. This will consist of a hair sample.
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. Depending upon your medical history, our Occupational Health department may have to contact your GP/ specialist for further information.
For further information on the national standards, please see here
Vetting
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
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 debts then 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.
References
We send reference requests to all your previous employers in the last 5 years. If you haven’t been employed for 5 years, we will ask for an educational reference if applicable or a character reference.
You are formally offered a job and provided with a start date.