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Work as a prison officer at HMP Frankland

Quick facts (Back to top)

  • A category A high security prison near Durham in northeast England
  • You will need Counter Terrorism Check clearance
  • Earn between £33,746 and £38,003 a year
Apply now

About HMP Frankland (Back to top)

Frankland Prison is in Brasside, a small village near Durham in north-east England.  

With a capacity of 850 adult male prisoners who are awaiting trial or serving long custodial sentences, HMP Frankland is the largest category A high security prison in the UK.  

Eligibility to work in a category A high security prison (Back to top)

To work as a prison officer at HMP Frankland, you must:

  • Complete enhanced pre-employment checks
  • Have Counter Terrorism Check (CTC) security clearance. For this, you must have been resident in the UK for the last 3 years.

What’s it like working in a long term high security prisons? (Back to top)

Watch this short video to hear some of our prison officers talking about what it’s like working in a high security prison.  

Find out more about what it’s like working as a prison officer and the skills and qualities you need.

Inside HMP Frankland (Back to top)

As you will be working with prisoners who are generally serving long-sentences, you will need great communication skills and the ability to build long-term rapport with a range of people. This can include encouraging individuals to engage in a range of purposeful activities to make the most of their time in prison and address some of their reasons for offending.   

Prisoners in Frankland Prison have access to the following: 

  • Educational opportunities range from entry level functional skills courses in English and Maths, to vocational qualifications in subjects such as information and communication technology (ICT), to Open University distance learning courses. 
  • Supported by peer mentors, prisoners have opportunities to work in onsite workshops in industrial cleaning, painting, recycling, upholstery and food preparation. 
  • A range of offending behaviour programmes and interventions for prisoners with complex personality disorders are also available. 

Getting to Frankland Prison (Back to top)

Prisons run to tight time schedules so you will need to plan your travel to ensure you are at work and ready to start your shift on time. This could mean travelling at times when local public transport isn’t running. 

With plenty of free, onsite parking, Frankland Prison is a 15-minute drive from Durham town centre. It takes 35 to 40 minutes, by bus and some walking, to get to the prison from Durham train station during peak commuting times.

How long will it take you to get there? (postcode search opens in a new window)

For example, SW1A 1AA

Pay and benefits (Back to top)

As a prison officer, you will start on a 37 hour a week contract until you have completed your initial training. You can then choose to increase your hours to 39 or 41 hours. This means you can earn between £33,746 and £38,003 a year as a prison officer at HMP Manchester.

As an employee of Frankland Prison, you will have access to a range of facilities and employee benefits including: 

  • use of a free onsite gym 
  • extensive free onsite parking 
  • excellent training and career progression opportunities 

This is in addition to the great benefits you get from being a part of HM Prison and Probation Service. 

Apply now