Police community support officers (PCSOs) work in a neighbourhood policing team dealing with minor offences and crime prevention.
£17,500 Starter
to£23,250 Experienced
39 to 41 a week
evenings / weekends / bank holidays on shifts
You can get into this job through:
You can get into this role through a higher apprenticeship as a police community support officer.
To do this apprenticeship, you'll need:
You'll need good communication skills, and experience of working with the public in community settings will be useful.
It may be helpful if you have experience of community work or you've volunteered as a special constable.
Police UK has more details on how you can get involved.
You can apply to become a police community support officer and often don't need formal qualifications. Employers will be more interested in your personal qualities and character.
You'll need a good level of spoken and written English, so some police forces may ask for English GCSE at grade 4 (C).
Each police force has its own selection process. This will usually involve:
Great value is placed on personal qualities and character, especially:
You can find out more about the role of police community support officer from the College of Policing.
You'll need:
You'll need to:
You will also need the right to live and work in the UK without restrictions.
Your work will vary from one day to another, but will usually include:
You could work in the community.
Your working environment may be physically and emotionally demanding and outdoors in all weathers.
You may need to wear a uniform.
There is no formal route from PCSO to police officer, but the training and experience you gain could help you if you want to move into this role.
You could also use your experience to mentor and train new PCSOs.