Quick facts (Back to top)
- A category A high security prison in Thamesmead, Southeast London.
- You will need Counter Terrorism Check Clearance
- Earn between £37,525 and £42,258 a year
About Belmarsh Prison (Back to top)
HMP Belmarsh is a category A high security prison in Thamesmead, Southeast London.
It has a capacity of 773 adult male prisoners who are on remand awaiting trial or serving long custodial sentences.
Eligibility to work in a category A high security prison (Back to top)
To work as a prison officer at HMP Belmarsh, you must:
- Have Counter Terrorism Check (CTC) security clearance. For this, you must have been resident in the UK for the last 3 years.
- Complete enhanced pre-employment screening checks.
What’s it like working in a long term high security prison? (Back to top)
You don’t need specific experience or qualifications to be a prison officer. Personal qualities are more important. Watch this short video featuring some of our staff talking about their work and see if it’s for you.
As a prison officer in Belmarsh Prison, you will work with prisoners who are serving long sentences. You will therefore need strong communication skills and be able to build rapport with a wide range of people over a long period of time.
Starting work as a prison officer at Belmarsh Prison (Back to top)
To help you safely and effectively work as a prison officer, you will get the following on top of your foundation training, when you start at HMP Belmarsh:
- A 2-week structured induction programme
- A 2-week consolidation learning programme
- A 2-week upskilling programme
Throughout your first year, you will also have the following support:
- access to an experienced work buddy
- bi-weekly check-ins with your line manager
- quarterly developmental meetings with the new starter team and your line manager
- group supervision sessions
- individual personal development sessions
- networking and familiarisation days with staff from other prisons
- ad-hoc opportunities for upskilling to help you meet the required work standards
Inside Belmarsh Prison (Back to top)
To make the most of their time in prison and address some of their reasons for offending, prisoners are encouraged to engage in a range of purposeful activities. These include:
- studying a range of subjects, from basic literacy and numeracy skills, to vocational qualifications
- work opportunities in the onsite kitchen
- ground maintenance work
Selected prisoners complete a level 3 award in education and training, qualifying to be teaching assistants and providing peer-led learning and skills development to other prisoners.
How to get to Belmarsh 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.
Belmarsh Prison is a short bus ride from Woolwich Arsenal train station. Plumstead train station is about a mile walk away.
There is plenty of free onsite parking for staff.
How long will it take you to get there? (postcode search opens in a new window)
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 £37,525 and £42,258 as a prison officer at HMP Belmarsh.
Take a look at the full prison officer starting salary information for HMPPS prisons.
As an employee of HMP Belmarsh, you will have access to a range of facilities and employee benefits including:
- use of a free onsite gym
- extensive free onsite parking
- an onsite staff mess offering a range of hot and cold meals and snacks
- 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.