The Police Service of Northern Ireland is launching a new recruitment campaign for Police Constables on 30 September 2015 with a closing date of 5 pm on 23 October 2015. The previous recruitment campaigns in 2013 and 2014 generated a lot of interest, with over 13,000 applications over 2 campaigns, and we expect the level of interest to be high again.
Eligibility Criteria
We are looking for people who can commit to a career of public service, and meet the criteria below:
- Age: Applicants must have attained the age of 18 years and be no more than 57 on 23 April 2016.
- Nationality: Applicants must be eligible to work permanently in the UK.
- Education: Applicants must have a minimum of 5 GCSEs (or equivalent) at A*- C grade, including Maths and English Language. Additional guidance on equivalent qualifications is available at www.joinpsni.co.uk.
- Computer Literacy: Applicants must be able to demonstrate that they have the level of computer literacy required to effectively perform the role of police constable. This will be tested at a number of stages in the recruitment process.
How to apply
The Application Process involves the following stages:
- Online Application form
- Initial Selection Testing
- Assessment Centre
- Physical Competence Assessment (PCA), Medical Examination (including substance misuse test), Vetting, and online learning (assessed).
Please note that applications will close at 5 pm on Friday 23 October 2015. Candidates can find more information on www.joinpsni.co.uk.
Target groups
The Police Service of Northern Ireland continually strives to be representative of the entire community, and our priority in the forthcoming campaign will be to encourage applications from the following groups:
- Young people: reflecting the need to address the age profile of the organisation.
- Females: reflecting the need to increase the proportion of female officers in the organisation.
- Fermanagh, Tyrone & Foyle: increasing applicant flow from Fermanagh and Omagh, Derry and Strabane, and Mid-Ulster will allow greater flexibility in the allocation of police resources, and better resilience for local community policing.
- The Catholic community: to build on the progress towards a truly representative workforce.
- Areas of social deprivation: in an effort to increase the traditionally low response rates previously.
As part of the focus in encouraging applications from the groups noted above, we will be running a targeted advertising and social media campaign. This will be led by a high online presence, with adverts running across a range of formats.
Physical Competence Assessment
The role of a Police Constable has many physical demands and the Police Service of Northern Ireland requires Student Officers to pass a Physical Competence Assessment (PCA) before they can enter the Training College. We have made a minor change to the PCA for this campaign – the push/pull element does not form part of the assessment. We have made an indicative training plan available online at www.joinpsni.co.uk. Please encourage potential applicants to read and follow this guidance, starting now.
Closing
We are asking for your support with the forthcoming campaign, by highlighting these opportunities in your local community and encouraging potential candidates to apply. If you would like to highlight the opportunities on social media, we have a suggested ‘tweet’ below. Please use the #joinpsni handle for all twitter activity related to the recruitment campaign.
“PSNI are recruiting! Great job, great opportunities, help keep Northern Ireland safe”www.joinpsni.co.uk #joinpsni