HM Prison and Probation Service
202608: Prison Officer - HMP Hollesley - Part Time
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Part-Time Prison Officer – HMP Hollesley
Location: HMP Hollesley, Hollesley, Suffolk, England, IP12 3JW
Starting Salary: £15,104 (for a 16 hour week - 2 days per week inc 20% unsocial)
City/Town: Woodbridge
Region: East of England
Vacancy Type: Merit
Visa Sponsorship: Skilled Worker visa sponsorship may be available for this role, subject to eligibility and in line with the UK Immigration Rules in force at the time of application. However, due to current immigration requirements and recruitment timescales, candidates who require Skilled Worker visa sponsorship are unlikely to be sponsored if applying to this campaign.
Job Description:
An extraordinary job. Done by someone like you.
Prison officers protect the public and help make an impact on prisoners' lives.
If you have the integrity, skills and strength of character we’re looking for, this fast-paced role could be the start of a successful career.
Someone like you
There’s no such thing as a typical prison officer. Our officers come from different walks of life, just like the offenders they work with. Whether you’re a parent, a teacher, have worked in retail, the armed forces, or just feel like you’re a natural people person, you’ll have the empathy, self-confidence, great communication skills and resilience we want.
No matter the challenge, you’ll take the time to build constructive, positive and professional relationships with prisoners who could be at the lowest point in their lives.
Teamwork plays a vital role in this environment, so you’ll need to be fully committed to supporting your colleagues and understand the importance of acting as one team to keep the prison, and everyone who works here safe. You will be required to work various shifts and some weekends.
An extraordinary job
In this unique career, you’ll have the opportunity to carry out many different roles in any one day. One minute you’re a peacekeeper, the next you’re a counsellor or a teacher. You’ll work directly with prisoners in a unique environment, helping to protect the public and make a positive impact.
Find out more about this varied role and day-to-day life as a prison officer.
Eligibility
To Become a Prison Officer, You Will Need To:
- be at least 18 years old at the point you commence employment
- meet the Civil Service Nationality requirements
- pass a medical and fitness assessment as part of the application process
- meet the required eyesight standard in both eyes (both with and without corrective lenses)
- have a suitable standard of hearing (without the use of hearing aids)
Whilst tattoos are permitted, including those that are visible, they must not be deemed as offensive, discriminatory, violent or intimidating in any way. Facial tattoos are generally not acceptable, except where this is for cultural, religious, or medical reasons.
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To work in a high security prison (category A) you must have been a resident in the UK for the last 3 years.
Travel to Work
A driving licence and own transport is beneficial but is not an essential requirement of the role (unless specified).
Essential Skills
You need to show:
- communication and influencing skills
- commitment to quality
- effective decision-making
- care and understanding
Pay
The initial training is 16 hours (2 days) a week. After training, you can choose to work 12,16 or 24 hours a week. Your annual salary will reflect your weekly hours.
- 12 hours a week = £11,328 a year
- 16 hours a week = £15,104 a year
- 24 hours a week = £22,656 a year
All salary figures quoted include any additional allowances that are applicable to the role/location.
Benefits
- 25 days’ annual holiday pro rata (rising to 30 days after 10 years’ service)
- paid time off for public holidays and 1 extra privilege day
- Civil Service pension with employer contributions of 28.97%
- cycle to work scheme, travel loans and other benefits
Assessment Process
During The Recruitment Process You Will Be Assessed On The Behaviours, Strengths And Abilities You Need To Become An Effective Prison Officer. These Include:
- communicating and influencing
- managing a quality service
- making effective decisions
- caring
Your natural strengths are assessed to find out what motivates and energises you. We will also assess your numerical, written English and spoken English abilities.
Online Tests
- Stage 1: basic judgement and numerical skills expected of a prison officer.
- Stage 2: values-based assessment to understand how well you demonstrate the values needed to be an effective prison officer.
The online assessment centre (OAC)
On successful completion of the online test, we will invite you to an online assessment centre where we test to see if you have the abilities, behaviours and strengths to be a prison officer.
Job offers: merit vacancy
This is a merit job vacancy. If you are successful at the online assessment centre, you will be added to a merit list based on your score.
When all applicants have completed the assessment centre, the prison will make job offers to individuals with the highest scores first when positions become available.
You can stay on the merit list for 12 months. After this, you’ll need to apply again.
If your application is unsuccessful at the sift/assessment stage, a six-month waiting period will be applied during which time you will not be allowed to submit any further applications for prison officer positions.
Medical and Fitness
Once we identify a vacancy for you, we will invite you to complete a medical and fitness test. This will cover an eyesight test, hearing test and basic health screening, including a blood pressure check.
Get help with your application
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Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of Civil Servants.
We Recruit By Merit On The Basis Of Fair And Open Competition, As Outlined In the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles.
Diversity & Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found.
Reasonable Adjustment Support
As a Disability Confident employer, the MoJ is committed to ensuring that everyone can demonstrate their skills, talent, and abilities.
Applying
Please refer to additional job description attachment
If you require any assistance, please call 0345 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am-6pm) or e-mail Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com. Please quote the job reference 20660
Closing date: 29th October 2026
Supporting document: [Band-3-PO-Safe-Decent-and-Secure-JD048-v8.0 (1).pdf – 150KB](Opens in a new window)
A Great Place to Work for Veterans
The "Making the Civil Service a Great Place to work for veterans" initiative includes a guaranteed interview scheme to those who meet the minimum criteria to provide eligible former members of the Armed Forces with opportunities to secure rewarding jobs.
Redeployment Interview Scheme
Civil Service departments are expected to explore redeployment opportunities before making an individual redundant. The MoJ are committed, as part of the Redeployment Interview Scheme, to providing opportunities to those who are 'at risk of redundancy'.
What’s it really like to work as a prison officer?
Our interactive online activity will give you an insight into some of the situations prison officers may experience day-to-day in their work.
Contact point for applicants
Job Contact :
- Name: SSCL Recruitment Enquiries Team
- Email: Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com
- Telephone: 0845 241 5358
Further information
Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. If you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles and would like to raise this, please contact SSCL (Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com) in the first instance. If the role has been advertised externally (outside of the Civil Service) and you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitment/complaints
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