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With training, teamwork and the support you need to succeed.

As a prison officer, you’ll be trained for every situation. Whatever the challenge, you’ll have the support you need from your team to make a difference every day.

Why people love the job

Pay

Your pay depends on where you work in England and Wales, and your weekly shift hours.

You will start on a 37 hour contract until your initial training is complete. After this you can choose to increase your hours to 39 or 41 hours a week.

You can also earn more if overtime is available in your prison. Plus you’ll enjoy one of the best pension schemes in the UK and a range of great Civil Service benefits.

See below for details of how much you can expect to earn.

Example starting salary for a 39 hour week (including 20% unsocial hours allowance)

Inner London £35,931
Outer London £34,140  to £36,140 *
South and South East £32,702 to £34,202 *
Other locations £30,702

*includes market supplements.

See full salary information for England and Wales

Inner London

HMP Brixton, Pentonville, Wandsworth, Wormwood Scrubs

37 hours £33,799
39 hours £35,931
41 hours £38,062

Outer London

HMP Downview, Feltham, High Down

37 hours £34,114*
39 hours £36,140*
41 hours £38,165*
* includes a market supplement of £2,000

HMP Belmarsh, Isis

37 hours £32,114
39 hours £34,140
41 hours £36,165

South and South East

HMP Aylesbury, Bullingdon, Woodhill

37 hours £32,380 *
39 hours £34,202*
41 hours £36,023*
* includes a market supplement of £3,500

HMP Bedford, Coldingley, Cookham Wood, Elmley, Grendon and Springhill, Highpoint, Huntercombe, Send, Standford Hill, Swaleside, The Mount, Winchester

37 hours £30,880 *
39 hours £32,702 *
41 hours £34,523 *
* includes a market supplement of £2,000

Other locations

All other government-run prisons in England and Wales

37 hours £28,880
39 hours £30,702
41 hours £32,523

Applying for your first prison officer role?

If you’re happy to work away from home for your first 23 months, why not consider applying via one of these first time prison officer schemes.

By choosing to join a prison that is 75 minutes (90 minutes in London) or more from where you currently live, you’ll:

  • get higher take-home pay than is available via our standard prison officer recruitment process
  • start your paid training sooner than you would if you applied via our standard application process
  • start at the same time as other new prison officers – a great opportunity to begin your career with a group of like-minded people

First time prison officer recruitment scheme: make a positive impact early on in your career by joining one of our busier prisons.

Prison Futures: while you may need to wait some time for a prison officer vacancy to come up at your local prison, you will be able to start your new career sooner and be guaranteed a role there in 2 years’ time.

Benefits

  • 25 days’ annual holiday (rising to 30 days after 10 years service)
  • paid time off for public holidays and 1 extra privilege day*
  • generous maternity leave cover
  • a Civil Service pension with employer contributions of over 25%
  • cycle to work scheme and travel loans
  • tenancy loan agreements
  • access to local keyworker housing schemes
  • a free on-site gym
  • access to a range of discounts, including the Blue Light Card Scheme
  • employee assistance programmes.

 

*As prisons operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, you will be expected to work on some public and bank holidays. Any that you do work will be added to your annual leave entitlement.

Working for HM Prison & Probation Service

HM Prison & Probation Service (HMPPS), created in April 2017, oversees 121 prisons and employs over 42,000 staff across England and Wales.

You will be joining a team committed to improving the rehabilitation of offenders and carrying out the biggest reform of the prison system in a generation.

You will be working for an organisation that rewards performance, invests in your career development and cares about your well-being both inside and outside of work.

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