The Recruitment Process
I'm often asked what is the recruitment process for the Specials.
Well it's pretty similar to the process for joining the police full
time, although Special Constabularies tend to operate separate
recruitment processes to the regulars.
Note that each force does Specials recruitment in its own way... so your
experience may be slightly different. But these are the key
elements of the process, in roughly chronological order.
There's a lot of information here, but that's deliberate - I have
tried to bring together answers to all the common questions - either
choose from the index below, or read through the whole thing.
If after working your way through this lot, you still need more information, or have questions that aren't
answered here, check out the Q&A Archive and
visit the PoliceSpecials.com forum.
Application forms
First,
contact
your local force and ask for a Specials' information pack.
Or you can just walk into any police station and ask for an
application form. When you get it, read everything carefully.
Eligibility
Make sure you're eligible. You need to:
- be a national of a country within the European Economic Area
or, if a national of a country outside the EEA, have the right
to reside in this country without restrictions
- have the right to live in this country free of any
restrictions
- be aged between 18½ and 55 (retirement age
varies between forces)
- be of "good character" (more on this later)
Do you:
- Have good vision (explained below)
- Enjoy good health (explained below)
Finally, check the list of restricted occupations - if you are doing one of these jobs, you
are probably unable to become a Special.
Completing the forms
In the pack you'll find a detailed application form - in my
experience this is the same one as for the regulars.
- Follow the instructions, e.g. if it asks you to complete the
form in black ink, use black ink!
- Write using your usual handwriting - don't fill
everything out in CAPITALS!
- Watch out for spelling mistakes and keep it neat - avoid lots
of crossing out!
Criminal record / Previous Dealings with Police
You may be worried if you have had
dealings with the police in the past, or if you have a criminal
record (i.e. you've been convicted of an offence in a
court). Not all offences will bar you from becoming a Special,
but it's vital to disclose all
previous convictions, including motoring offences on your
application.
Applications from people with convictions or cautions for very
minor offences, such as speeding, may be considered. If you
have been convicted for drink-driving, or if you have been
disqualified from driving as a result of any other conviction, most
forces will not accept your application until at least 5 years after
the date of conviction.
If you're unsure about
anything where you've come to police attention, my advice is to
disclose it anyway. The police conduct fairly extensive background checks
and it will probably come to light. If this happens, at best you'll be put on the defensive explaining why you
omitted to mention it, or more likely the force will just reject your application
without further consideration.
There is more detail about what sort of convictions are and are
not acceptable
here on the Government's own police recruitment website.
Eyesight Standards
In the pack you should find a section explaining the need for you
to prove a certain standard of unaided vision. The current
(9/2005) Home Office eyesight standards for applicants to the police force
are as follows:
Unaided vision (without spectacles or lenses)
6/36 or better in either eye (2nd line down on optician’s
chart) is required. Binocular vision (vision with both eyes) worse
than 6/6 (7th line on optician's chart) requires correction.
Aided vision (wearing lenses or spectacles)
6/12 or better in either eye (5th line down on optician’s
chart) and 6/6 or better using both eyes (binocular vision) is
required.
Near vision
N6 at 40cm with both eyes together (aided).
Colour vision
Severe colour vision deficiencies (monochromats) are not
acceptable. Anomalous trichromats are acceptable. Severe
anomolous trichromats or dichromats are aceptable but you will
need to be aware of the deficiency and make appropriate
adjustments. The use of colour correcting lenses is not
acceptable.
Corrective eye treatment
Forces will reject applicants who have
undergone Radial Keratotomy (RK), Arcuate Keratotomy
or corneal grafts due to the side effects of these treatments.
Forces will accept
applications from people who have
undergone Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK), LASIK or LASEK
surgery provided that six weeks have elapsed since surgery, there
are no residual side effects and the other eyesight standards are
met.
Other eye conditions
Forces will reject
applicants with a history of a detached retina and glaucoma.
Medical Questionnaire
The pack will also include a questionnaire about
your medical history, and almost
certainly a waiver form allowing them to check up on any details
with your doctor.
You need to complete this honestly and in full.
No good lying about a condition which might cause you problems when
you're on duty as a police officer.
Your weight and height must be in proportion - you
must also not be overly underweight or overweight. To assess
this, your Body Mass Index (BMI) will be measured. Home Office
guidelines suggest state an applicant with a BMI between 18 and 30
should be considered acceptable. If your BMI is above 30 then you
would be advised to lose weight to reach a BMI of 29 or 30, likewise
if your BMI was below 18 then you would be advised to gain weight.
You can
check your BMI
at this
BBC website.
Background Checks
Once you've filled in all the application forms,
check them over one last time, make sure you've included everything
that's asked for, and post it. That's the first hurdle done!
Now settle down and wait. This is the time
consuming bit and you may not hear anything (other than an initial
acknowledgement perhaps) for some weeks.
To be a Special you need to be a person of "good
character". This means you must not be a criminal, nor must
you associate with criminals.
The force will carry out checks into your background
so if you were foolish enough not to
declare previous convictions, this is where they'll come to
light! They will also check into the backgrounds of your
immediate family. These checks are very time consuming, so be
patient! This is often called the "paper sift" stage, because
the force is sifting through your application.
Once these checks are successfully completed, you may be
contacted by a serving Special from the recruitment team to set up a
home visit.
Home Visit
The home visit doesn't rarely takes place these days, but some
forces still use them as an opportunity for you or your family to
meet one or two serving Specials and ask any questions or raise any
concerns you may have.
The visit is also intended to keep up your interest and encourage
you to see the recruitment process through to the end - for various
reasons many of those who apply fail to see it through.
Certainly home visits are not vetting procedures, although if
during the visit a candidate shows obvious warning signs, like using
racist language, then their application is likely to
fail!
Seriously though, candidates are judged on the assessment alone and on their own
merits, not on what's discussed at a home visit.
Assessment
Most forces run some sort of assessment and this is the key event
in the process. These typically
last a half day or sometimes a whole day. You will be invited
well in advance and given some basic information on what to bring,
and what to prepare.
Assessments vary but usually they are broken into a set of
exercises. During these sessions you will be evaluated on your
confidence, interpersonal skills, how you work in a team, your
demonstration of leadership and your overall initiative.
The exercises may include a presentation or talk to the rest of
the candidates, a scenario which you need to discuss as a team, role
plays, and a logic exercise to try and solve, again usually as a
team.
This whole process sounds a bit daunting, but don't be put off,
the assessment is not designed to catch you out, but to ensure you
have the "right stuff" to be a police officer. Obviously
you're not expected to know any law or procedure at this stage but
the assessors do want to see if you have strength of character and
moral fibre.
Some of the characteristics assessors are looking for in a police officer
include confidence, listening skills,
common sense, empathy, leadership, an ability to express yourself
and relate to people, initiative, maybe even
a degree of moral and/or physical courage.
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PIR Test
During the assessment day you will most likely be required to complete a written
test. Increasingly, forces are using the "PIRT" - Police Initial Recruitment
Test (also just called the "PIR"). This
is used to establish if you are able to write clearly and accurately
- since there is plenty of paperwork involved in policework too -
but also to test reasoning and logic skills.
The main areas tested in the PIR are:
- The ability to spell words and construct sentences correctly
- The ability to check information quickly and correctly
- The ability to solve numerical problems accurately
- The ability to reason logically when given facts about events
The PIR is designed
to assess the potential of an applicant's
mental skills. You're advised to brush up on your basic mental
arithmetic, i.e. without using a calculator, or working it out on
paper! To help you practice, you can
see some example questions and answers
courtesy of West Midlands Police, or get this book:
Recommended!
Police Initial Recruitment Test (PIRT) - Mock Test
Mock question papers - with answers - so you can practice before the actual test.
You can buy this book (and many others besides!) from our
recommended books
list. |
There were changes to the PIR in late 2002, in particular the removal of the observation test. Previously with this
element included, the pass mark was 230 out of 360; now the pass
mark is 168 points out of a maximum possible total of 298.
Medical
Some forces ask you to submit to a medical check (i.e. an
examination by a doctor) - including a hearing test, check on blood
pressure, breathing analysis, urine test - before you can be
accepted, although this seems to be quite rare for entry into the
Specials.
Fitness
The final hurdle is the fitness test! This is one of the
stages that causes the most concern for many potential recruits, but
it's not as bad as you may fear.
The national fitness test has now been introduced in just about
every force which requires fitness tests for Specials (they all
require fitness tests for regulars). More and more forces are introducing fitness tests for Specials
and in many cases they are the same as for the regulars. It means
it's tougher to get in, but Specials these days perform front-line
policing duties most of the time, so this make sense.
The three elements of this test are:
- Endurance (aka
bleep/beep/shuttle test) to level 5.4
During this element you have to run to and fro along a 15 metre
track in time to a series of bleeps which
progressively become faster. You have to run as long as
possible before you can no longer keep up with the bleeps.
You must reach at least level 5.4 in order to pass the fitness test.
The total running time is about 3 minutes, 40 seconds.
- Dynamic Strength - Push 34kg,
Pull 35kg
This part of the test is measured on a
machine which (in my experience at least!) looks like a large rowing
machine with a seat at each end. In the first part of the test, you
are pushing against the machine, in the second part, you are pulling
against it. You do 3 'warm ups' then 5 maximum force
pushes/pulls. You must reach at least 34 kg push strength, and 35 kg
pull strength.
This final part of the test measures the
grip strength in your hand using a dvice called a dynamometer.
You grip it in your preferred hand get two attempts to record the
maximum grip you can. The pass mark is 32 kg.
Performance on each of these provides a good indicator of your
capability of performing various police tasks. The test elements are
run consecutively and minimum standards need to be achieved on each.
If you fail to reach the minimum standard in one component of the
test, you fail the whole test. If you don’t pass the test at your
first attempt you can re-take it. However, if you fail the test
after three attempts your application will be halted and
you will have to wait for at least six months before re-applying..
Start your training
Unless you are already undertaking regular fitness training, you
may fail this test.
Start your preparation as soon as possible! My advice would be to go to your
gym or sports centre, explain what you need to do to pass, and get
them to help you with a training programme.
Always start off gently and build up slowly. If you have any
medical condition, haven't exercised for a while, are over 40, have
been ill or have any joint problems you should always contact your
GP or physician before starting any physical programme.
Other help
That's it!
In theory, if you've passed the paper sift, successfully
completed the PIR, shone at the assessment and sailed through the
fitness test, you're in! Congratulations!
You will be contacted by the force who will provide you with
details of your first posting (which police station you're going to
be based at), when and
where the training programme starts,
where to report for your uniform fitting and how to get your warrant card.
Now the fun really starts! |
