14147-Prison Officer – Advance into Justice
| Posting date: | 28 January 2026 |
|---|---|
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 25 February 2026 |
| Location: | National |
| Remote working: | On-site only |
| Company: | Ministry of Justice |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 14147 |
Summary
Advance into Justice Prison Officer – at various male prison locations
Starting salary: £35,875 (for a 39 hour week inc 20% unsocial)
Vacancy type: Merit
Advance into Justice is a recruitment scheme targeted at supporting those who have served in the Armed Forces and their families into employment within operational roles within HMPPS.
Advance into Justice is open to Service Leavers, Armed Forces Veterans, their Spouses and Legal Partners.
Eligible applicants who pass our assessment processes will be offered a 2 year fixed-term appointment with the option after 12 months, to convert to permanency, subject to approval, under Exception 10 of the Civil Service recruitment principles.
All provisional offers will be held for a period of 12 months from the point of offer, to allow service leavers to plan for their exit from the Armed Forces and transition directly into a career with HMPPS.
Candidates are requested to select 3 establishment preferences
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.
During the recruitment process you will be assessed on the behaviours, strengths and abilities you need to become an effective prison officer. These include:
communicating and influencing
managing a quality service
making effective decisions
caring
To become a prison officer, you will need to:
be at least 18 years old at the commencement of employment
meet the Civil Service Nationality requirements
pass a medical and fitness assessment
meet the required eyesight standard in both eyes
for safety reasons, meet a suitable standard of hearing.
CTC vetting will be undertaken for the high security prisons – ie Belmarsh, Frankland, Full Sutton, Long Lartin, Manchester, Wakefield, Whitemoor and Woodhill.
How to apply
The online application begins with important details such as your National Insurance number and right to work in the UK.
You will then be invited to complete the online test, to see if you have the basic judgement and numerical skills expected of a prison officer.
If you pass the online test, we will invite you to an online assessment centre (OAC).
Pay
The initial training is 37 hours a week. After training, you can choose to work 37, 39 or 41 hours a week. Your annual salary will reflect your weekly hours.
Please refer to main advert for pay scales for individual prisons.
Benefits
25 days’ annual holiday (rising to 30 days after 10 years’ service)
paid time off for public holidays and 1 extra privilege day
Civil Service pension of up to 20% of your salary
cycle to work scheme, travel loans and other benefits
Read more about prison officer benefits
Job offers: Merit vacancy
This is a merit job vacancy. If you are successful at the online assessment centre, you will be added to a merit list based on your score.
When all applicants have completed the assessment centre, the prison will make job offers to individuals with the highest scores first when positions become available.
You can stay on the merit list for 12 months. After this, you’ll need to apply again.
Operational Support Grade Role
Our Online Assessment Centre (OAC), will not only assess you against the key criteria to become a prison officer but will also determine your suitability for appointment as an operational support grade OSG If following attendance at your OAC, you are unsuccessful in your application to become a prison officer, we may instead offer you an alternative role as an OSG. Operational support grade - Ministry of Justice
The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of Civil Servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles. If you feel the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you can raise a formal complaint by contacting Shared Services Connected Ltd: call 0845 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or email Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com
We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging.
Disability support
As a Disability Confident employer, we are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, talent and abilities, by making adjustments throughout the recruitment process and in the workplace. You can request reasonable adjustments within the application form.
If you need assistance, please call 0345 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am-6pm) or email MoJ-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com.
Starting salary: £35,875 (for a 39 hour week inc 20% unsocial)
Vacancy type: Merit
Advance into Justice is a recruitment scheme targeted at supporting those who have served in the Armed Forces and their families into employment within operational roles within HMPPS.
Advance into Justice is open to Service Leavers, Armed Forces Veterans, their Spouses and Legal Partners.
Eligible applicants who pass our assessment processes will be offered a 2 year fixed-term appointment with the option after 12 months, to convert to permanency, subject to approval, under Exception 10 of the Civil Service recruitment principles.
All provisional offers will be held for a period of 12 months from the point of offer, to allow service leavers to plan for their exit from the Armed Forces and transition directly into a career with HMPPS.
Candidates are requested to select 3 establishment preferences
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.
During the recruitment process you will be assessed on the behaviours, strengths and abilities you need to become an effective prison officer. These include:
communicating and influencing
managing a quality service
making effective decisions
caring
To become a prison officer, you will need to:
be at least 18 years old at the commencement of employment
meet the Civil Service Nationality requirements
pass a medical and fitness assessment
meet the required eyesight standard in both eyes
for safety reasons, meet a suitable standard of hearing.
CTC vetting will be undertaken for the high security prisons – ie Belmarsh, Frankland, Full Sutton, Long Lartin, Manchester, Wakefield, Whitemoor and Woodhill.
How to apply
The online application begins with important details such as your National Insurance number and right to work in the UK.
You will then be invited to complete the online test, to see if you have the basic judgement and numerical skills expected of a prison officer.
If you pass the online test, we will invite you to an online assessment centre (OAC).
Pay
The initial training is 37 hours a week. After training, you can choose to work 37, 39 or 41 hours a week. Your annual salary will reflect your weekly hours.
Please refer to main advert for pay scales for individual prisons.
Benefits
25 days’ annual holiday (rising to 30 days after 10 years’ service)
paid time off for public holidays and 1 extra privilege day
Civil Service pension of up to 20% of your salary
cycle to work scheme, travel loans and other benefits
Read more about prison officer benefits
Job offers: Merit vacancy
This is a merit job vacancy. If you are successful at the online assessment centre, you will be added to a merit list based on your score.
When all applicants have completed the assessment centre, the prison will make job offers to individuals with the highest scores first when positions become available.
You can stay on the merit list for 12 months. After this, you’ll need to apply again.
Operational Support Grade Role
Our Online Assessment Centre (OAC), will not only assess you against the key criteria to become a prison officer but will also determine your suitability for appointment as an operational support grade OSG If following attendance at your OAC, you are unsuccessful in your application to become a prison officer, we may instead offer you an alternative role as an OSG. Operational support grade - Ministry of Justice
The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of Civil Servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles. If you feel the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you can raise a formal complaint by contacting Shared Services Connected Ltd: call 0845 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or email Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com
We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging.
Disability support
As a Disability Confident employer, we are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, talent and abilities, by making adjustments throughout the recruitment process and in the workplace. You can request reasonable adjustments within the application form.
If you need assistance, please call 0345 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am-6pm) or email MoJ-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com.