Prison Officer

Prison Officer – HMP Elmley

Employer: HM Prison & Probation Service
Location: HMP Elmley, Church Road, Eastchurch, Sheerness, ME12 4DZ
Salary: £38,428 – £42,834 per year, depending on contracted hours
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time, part-time, flexible working and job share
Grade: Administrative Officer
Number of vacancies: 20
Reference: 473485
Closing date: 29 October 2026 at 11:55pm

About the role

HM Prison & Probation Service is recruiting Prison Officers at HMP Elmley in Eastchurch, Kent.

Prison Officers help protect the public while supporting prisoners and helping them make positive changes. The role involves working directly with prisoners and building constructive, professional relationships in a challenging environment.

Teamwork is an important part of the role, and officers must be prepared to work different shifts, including evenings, some nights, weekends and public holidays.

Salary and working hours

Initial training is 37 hours per week. After training, employees can choose to work 37, 39 or 41 hours per week, with salary reflecting the contracted hours:

• 37 hours: £38,428 per year
• 39 hours: £40,316 per year
• 41 hours: £42,834 per year

The advertised salary figures include applicable allowances for the role and location.

The prison operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Most prisons operate changing shift patterns, and there may also be opportunities to work additional paid hours.

Who can apply?

No formal qualifications are required to become a Prison Officer. Personal qualities and the ability to demonstrate the required skills are important.

Applicants should be able to demonstrate:

• Communication and influencing skills
• Commitment to quality
• Effective decision-making
• Care and understanding
• Resilience and confidence when working with people
• Ability to work effectively as part of a team

Eligibility requirements

Applicants must:

• Be at least 18 years old when they start employment
• Meet the Civil Service nationality requirements
• Pass the required medical and fitness assessment
• Meet the required eyesight standard
• Meet the required hearing standard without hearing aids

Tattoos are permitted, including visible tattoos, provided they are not offensive, discriminatory, violent or intimidating. Facial tattoos are generally not accepted except for cultural, religious or medical reasons.

For work in a high-security Category A prison, applicants must normally have been resident in the UK for the previous three years.

Skilled Worker visa sponsorship

Sponsorship is not guaranteed.

The advert states that Skilled Worker visa sponsorship may be available subject to eligibility and the UK Immigration Rules, but candidates who require Skilled Worker sponsorship are unlikely to be sponsored for this campaign because of current immigration requirements and recruitment timescales.

Applicants are responsible for ensuring that they have and can maintain the appropriate right to work in the UK.

The employer also states that applicants should carefully consider their right to work in the UK before applying.

Important: This role should not be treated as a reliable Skilled Worker sponsorship opportunity.

Travel and location

The role is based at HMP Elmley, Church Road, Eastchurch, Sheerness, ME12 4DZ.

Some prison establishments have limited public transport options. A driving licence and access to a vehicle may therefore be beneficial, although they are not essential unless specifically stated.

Shift start and finish times are fixed, so applicants should consider how they will travel to and from the prison before applying.

Benefits

The role includes:

• 25 days’ annual leave, increasing to 30 days after 10 years’ service
• Paid public holidays
• One additional privilege day
• Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
• Cycle to work scheme
• Travel loans
• Other Civil Service benefits

Recruitment and assessment process

Candidates will be assessed against the behaviours, strengths and abilities required for the Prison Officer role.

The assessment includes:

• Communicating and influencing
• Managing a quality service
• Making effective decisions
• Caring
• Numerical ability
• Written English
• Spoken English

Applicants first complete an initial application and Stage 1 online test covering basic judgement and numerical skills.

Successful candidates are then invited to the Stage 2 Values-Based Assessment. Those who pass may progress to the Online Assessment Centre (OAC).

Candidates who achieve the required pass mark but are not initially selected for an OAC may remain under consideration for a later assessment place.

Candidates who were unsuccessful at Stage 2 within the previous six months can now re-apply.

Merit vacancy

This is a merit vacancy.

Candidates who successfully complete the Online Assessment Centre will be placed on a merit list according to their assessment score.

As positions become available, job offers will be made to candidates with the highest scores first.

Successful candidates can remain on the merit list for up to 12 months.

Medical and fitness assessment

Once a suitable vacancy is identified, candidates will be invited to complete medical and fitness checks.

These include:

• Eyesight assessment
• Hearing assessment
• Basic health screening
• Blood pressure check
• Fitness assessment

Medical and fitness assessments cannot be completed outside the UK. Candidates must attend a UK-based assessment centre to progress their application.

Operational Support Grade opportunity

The Online Assessment Centre also assesses suitability for an Operational Support Grade (OSG) position.

If a candidate is unsuccessful for the Prison Officer role following the OAC, they may instead be offered an OSG role where appropriate.

Security checks

Successful candidates will be required to undergo the relevant security checks, including an enhanced or equivalent criminal record check and Baseline Personnel Security Standard checks.

A medical will also be required.

Application process

Applications must be submitted online before the closing date.

Closing date: 29 October 2026 at 11:55pm

Job reference: 473485

For application assistance, contact the SSCL Recruitment Enquiries Team on 0345 241 5358 or Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com and quote reference 20530.

Source

Civil Service Jobs / HM Prison & Probation Service