Jobs in Hat, england, united kingdom

Job Title : Security Officer Ref. 3425

Mind Achieving Impact Award Social Mobility Foundation Award

The Times Top 100

Disability confident leader

The Prince's Responsible Business

Department : Security Officers

Location(s) : Bude

Job description

Salary and Hours : Extended Day Officers : £30,101

Monday to Friday. Each week you’ll work a different shift pattern of either 07 : 00-15 : 00 or 11 : 00-19 : 00.

24-Hour Officers : £35,246

A 12-hour shift pattern comprising 2 days and 2 nights. This will include : 2 day shifts (covering 0700-19 : 00 including an hour’s unpaid meal break, 2 night shifts covering 19 : 00-07 : 00 including an hour’s unpaid meal break) and 4 days off.

Flexible Working :

Due to the nature of the roles, flexible or remote working isn’t possible. Please be reassured that we’ll work with you to ensure you have a good work-life balance, taking into account any responsibilities outside of work as far as possible.

About Us

GCHQ is an intelligence, cyber and security agency with a mission to keep the UK safe. We use cutting-edge technology, ingenuity and partnerships to identify, analyse and disrupt threats. Working with our intelligence partners MI5 and MI6, we protect the UK from terrorism, cyber-attacks and espionage. At GCHQ you’ll do varied and fascinating work in a supportive and inclusive environment that puts the emphasis on teamwork.

The Role

As one of our Security Officers, you’ll be the first point of contact for visitors and staff as they enter our buildings. Working alongside a close-knit team of friendly colleagues, your role will revolve around preparing for and mitigating security risks, all to keep our building and people, safe.

Once you join, you’ll be fully equipped with all the training you need to feel knowledgeable and confident in any situation. And no prior experience in security is needed : just a willingness to learn and good customer service skills.

As part of our Security Control Room and together with your colleagues, you’ll oversee access to the building, conduct physical searches, patrol the grounds and monitor CCTV. Whether responding to an alarm, administering first aid, or advising a visitor on our security processes, you’ll ensure our security policies are adhered to and maintain accurate written logs of incidents.

You’ll also be a friendly, reassuring presence. As you greet people from all walks of life including government officials and colleagues from our partner agencies, you’ll guide them through any security processes they need to be aware of. As the first person they’ll see at GCHQ, you’ll make a great first impression, while completing any necessary checks and always remaining vigilant for anything unusual.

You’ll do it all as part of a team that’s just as supportive as they are knowledgeable. As you learn from your colleagues and develop your skills, you’ll have the opportunity to grow your career. With opportunities to work with our partner agencies MI5 and MI6, as well as other security teams throughout GCHQ, this could be just the beginning of an exciting career within the UK Intelligence Agencies.

About You

We’re aware that there might be misconceptions about what a Security Officer ‘looks like’ at GCHQ. But we’re not looking for a specific ‘type’ of person. We’re committed to ensuring all candidates, regardless their backgrounds, identities, lived experiences, and perspectives are given the support and training they need to thrive in this role.

You don’t need previous experience in security to apply, just a willingness to learn. You will need :

Customer service experience (e.g. retail, hospitality)

Maths and English Language GCSEs at grade C / 4 (or their equivalent) or above

Basic IT and Microsoft Office skills

The ability to commute for your assigned shift time

A driving licence (the role will involve driving patrols)

Motivated and proactive in anticipating problems, you’ll demonstrate situational awareness and be confident reacting to changing situations. As you’ll be part of a team and relaying important information, you’ll also be able to communicate clearly and enjoy working with others. You might currently work in customer service, be starting your career, or simply looking for a new challenge. Either way, you’ll have interpersonal skills, a friendly attitude, and a real enthusiasm and desire to make an impact as part of our supportive, professional team.

You don’t need a high level of fitness to apply, but there are physical aspects to the role including foot patrols internally and externally. These may take place on uneven ground, must be completed in all conditions, and can include accessing heavy doors and stairs / lifts. You’ll also need to be able to conduct physical search and screen activities which may involve manual lifting / moving of bags and equipment.

Training and Development

When you join, you’ll be trained on everything you need to know to be an effective Security Officer at GCHQ. This will include Security Industry Authority (SIA) certifications and emergency first aid, along with a 1–2-week induction with the security team prior to starting your shift pattern. You’ll also be assigned a buddy on shift to support you as you get settled in.

Rewards and Benefits

You’ll receive a starting salary of either £30,101 or £35,246 including shift allowances, depending on role, plus other benefits including :

25 days’ annual leave automatically rising to 30 days after 5 years' service, and an additional 10.5 days’ public and privilege holidays

Opportunities to be recognised through our employee performance scheme

Interest-free season ticket loan (travel and parking)

Excellent pension scheme

Cycle to work scheme

Facilities such as a gym, restaurant, and on-site coffee bars (at some locations)

Paid parental and adoption leave.

Equal Opportunities

At GCHQ diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. To protect the UK, we need a truly diverse workforce that reflects the society we serve. This includes diversity in every sense of the word : those with different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, ways of thinking and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including those from groups that are under-represented in our workforce such as women, those from an ethnic minority background, people with disabilities and those from low socio-economic backgrounds.

Find out more about our culture, working environment and diversity on our website :

https : / / www.GCHQ-careers.co.uk / life-at-gchq / diversity-inclusion.html

We’re Disability Confident

GCHQ are proud to have achieved Leader status within the DWP’s Disability Confident scheme. This is aimed at encouraging employers to think differently about disability and take action to improve how they recruit, retain, and develop disabled people. Being Disability Confident, we aim to offer a person-to-person interview to any candidate who self-identifies as disabled and meets the essential criteria for the role. This is our ‘Offer of Interview’ (OOI).

What to Expect

Our recruitment process is fair, transparent and based on merit. Here’s a brief overview of each stage, in order :

Eligibility sift – You’ll be asked a series of questions so we can determine your eligibility to apply. If you meet the criteria, you’ll be directed to the next stage automatically.

Application Form and Situational Judgement Test – You’ll be asked a series of Situational Judgement Test (SJT) questions, as well as questions relating to this vacancy.

Application sift – looking at your motivation for the role, as well as your answers to the application form questions and the results of your SJT.

Virtual Interview – If you successfully pass the sift, you’ll be offered a virtual interview.

Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process to progress to the next. Your application may take around 6-9 months to process including vetting, so we advise you continue any current employment until you have received your final job offer.

Before You Apply

To work at GCHQ, you need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. You can read our full eligibility criteria here.

This role requires the highest security clearance, known as Developed Vetting (DV). It’s something everyone in the UK Intelligence Community undertakes. You can find out more about the vetting process here.

Please note we have a strict drugs policy, so once you start your application, you can’t take any recreational drugs and you’ll need to declare your previous drug usage at the relevant stage.

Before you apply, we advise you to consider setting up a separate email address for your contact with us, to ensure your personal and application correspondence remain separate. Try to avoid having identifying features in your email address, such as your first and / or surname and date of birth. This is good practise and will help you manage your application with us more discretely.

The role is based in Bude so you’ll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application, as we do not offer relocation costs.

Please note, you should only launch your application from within the UK. If you are based overseas, you should wait until you visit the UK to launch an application. Applying from outside the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application. You should not discuss your application, other than with your partner or a close family member.

Right to Withdraw Statement :

Please be aware that we withhold the right to bring forward the closing date for this role from the original closing date once a certain number of applications have been received. Please be mindful of this and submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.