The recruitment process

Joining Nottinghamshire Police is more than just starting a job. It’s the beginning of a rewarding career where you’ll make a real difference in your community. Our recruitment process is designed to be fair, transparent, and supportive to ensure that every candidate can demonstrate their skills and potential. We're committed to ensuring the process is accessible for everyone and reasonable adjustments can be requested for consideration at any stage of your application by emailing our recruitment team. Nottinghamshire Police will aim to accommodate wherever possible.

Below you’ll find information on what you can expect from the application stage, through to an offer.

Please note, roles within our control room fall under police staff.

If you have any additional questions, please contact our recruitment team.

Application form

All roles begin with an online application where you’ll be asked personal information, references and your reasons for wanting to apply. There may also be some competency-based questions which relate to activities and behaviours stated in the role profile.

Here are our tips for filling in the application form.

Basic eligibility checks

All applications will then undergo a shortlisting process by our recruitment team who assess an individual’s suitability for the role and determine whether that individual can then progress with their application.

The recruitment team will carry out basic checks on things like your driving license, qualifications and right to work in the UK.

National sift

Please skip to the interview stage if you are looking to apply for a police staff role or to the fitness stage if you’re applying as a transferee from another police force.

Candidates applying to become a police officer, police community support officer or a special constable will be required to complete an online questionnaire-based assessment delivered by the College of Policing to be able to progress into the next stage of the application.

The purpose of the sift is to test you on your decision-making and the behaviours you’ll need to serve with Nottinghamshire Police.

More information on the national sift can be found here.

Online assessment

Please skip to the medical stage if you are looking to apply to become a police community support officer.

If you make it through the national sift, you’ll be invited to complete the online assessment. This involves three exercises that test key values and competencies that every serving officer should have.

During the online assessment there will be a competency-based video interview to ask you questions on how you have dealt with specific situations in the past, a written exercise where you will be asked to assume the role of a police constable and complete a task for your line manager, and a verbal exercise where you will be presented with issues and asked to deliver an appropriate response.

More information on the online assessment can be found here.

Fitness tests

To become a police officer or special constable, you must reach a minimum standard of level 5.4 on a 15-metre bleep test in an endurance shuttle run.

Your body mass index can be calculated using the online NHS tool.

Medical tests

A medical assessment will review your health and confirm whether it is safe for you to conduct the role of a police officer, special constable or a police community support officer safely. Prior to your appointment you will need to complete a set of forms which require visits to your opticians and GP to obtain information. Hair and urine samples will be sent to a laboratory for substance abuse screening and a hearing and spirometry tests will also be done. Individuals who are unable to provide a hair sample for religious reasons may instead just provide a urine sample.

If you are concerned of any existing medical conditions, please visit the national medical standards for police officers.

Interview

If successful following the other stages, candidates will be invited to be interviewed by the hiring manager(s) for staff roles and by a sergeant, detective or current member of police staff for an officer role.  

Interviews are usually conducted at our Headquarters but please refer to your email from the recruitment team to confirm the exact location.

Conditional offer and pre-employment checks

If successful at the interview stage, every candidate will be subject to undergo vetting and reference checks to ensure we employ those with the highest levels of integrity and professionalism.

Under the vetting process, you will be required to provide personal details about yourself, family members and co-residents.

Things we check include:

• Previous arrests, investigations, cautions, convictions, penalty notices, intelligence reports, motoring offences and open-source material

• Financial checks to ensure you do not have any unmanageable debt, are living beyond your means, or are likely to succumb to coercion

• Social media accounts to ensure you present yourself in an appropriate manner and are not likely to bring Nottinghamshire Police into disrepute

• All tattoos that a candidate has will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Any tattoo that is considered offensive or inappropriate would result in your application being declined

The following will result in an automatic decline of your vetting application:

• If you have any County Court judgements (CCJ’s), an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) or if you have declared bankruptcy

• If you have cautions or convictions, unless there are exceptionally compelling circumstances surrounding the original incident

• Any offence either as an adult or juvenile that resulted in a prison sentence where a vulnerable person was targeted, if the offence was motivated by hate or discrimination, or is domestic abuse related

• If you are a registered sex offender or are subject to a registration requirement in respect of any other conviction

• If you are currently on the police barred list

A biometric vetting appointment will be made to take fingerprints and DNA for officer roles which will be saved and assessed against the national police databases.

We will also contact your previous employers dating back five years as well as a character referee for references. This will include a two-year sickness absence review.

Please visit our vetting page for more information.

Formal offer

Congratulations! Upon completion of all assessments and successful vetting, selected candidates will receive an unconditional offer and be placed on our holding list for officer roles. You’ll then be notified of suitable vacancies and forthcoming training intakes.

For staff roles, you will be sent a contract of employment and will agree on a suitable start date with the hiring manager(s).

Further questions?

If you have any further questions, please email our recruitment team.