Agent Handler Ref.1793

Stonewall Top Employer AwardSocial Mobility Foundation AwardThe Times Top 100Disability confident leader

Operational and Surveillance
London
£47,035 rising to £50,858 after three years

Relationship building. Empathy. Problem solving. Resilience. These are skills you likely use every day. They are also the skills you need to be an Agent Handler in MI5.

Our agents are members of the public who provide us with vital information about threats facing the UK. This means Agent Handlers are at the heart of what we do, working with our agents to gather the intelligence that helps to keep the country safe. Agent handling is an opportunity for you to use your skills to make an invaluable contribution to UK national security.

The role itself might be different to what you expect. Our Agent Handlers have a lot of independence, prioritising their own workload and organising when and where they meet agents, which is usually during a regular working day. Adept at interacting with a diverse range of people, you will develop a good relationship with your agents, taking time to understand and respond to situations and brief internal teams on intelligence developments. Naturally, a good proportion of your time will be spent out of the office, meeting your agents in relation to vital investigations, which will be underpinned by time in the office completing necessary legal obligations and producing written records of meetings. When you are meeting agents, there are a range of measures available to keep you and the agent safe.

Our specialist Agent Handling Course will give you all the skills and confidence you need to begin your Agent Handling career. But the learning will never really stop. You’ll have access to courses, mentoring and formal development pathways, and you can always rely on the full support and expertise of your colleagues.

Empathetic and curious as to what exactly makes a person tick and adept at interacting with a diverse range of people, you’ll create and nurture the trusting, long-term relationships that yield crucial intelligence. Your sound judgment, effective management of complex and challenging situations and ability to understand the significance of the information you have gathered, will see you making decisions that directly inform the investigations that keep the country safe.

Ultimately, you’ll be responsible for the safe, compliant and effective handling of agents.

The Agent Handler role is one of the most varied in MI5, because you’re responding to real situations, which often happen outside the normal 9-5. Given the nature of the work, the role can be busy and demanding, including the need to be contactable outside of work. In return, MI5 offers you a flexible working pattern, if you need to work late one day, come in later the next or you’ll be compensated with overtime or time off in lieu. Part-time working is also available. The working environment within MI5 is collaborative and supportive because everyone is working towards the same goal.

The MI5 is committed to equal opportunities and to reflecting the society we protect. All applications are welcome, but we particularly welcome applications from women and Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates. All appointments will be made on merit.

Candidates with the following desirable language skills; Chinese, Russian, Arabic, Urdu, Punjabi, or Farsi; are particularly encouraged to apply.

There are several stages to our recruitment process and it may take up to 18 months from your initial application to joining. These are the stages you will need to complete:

•    Initial Application
•    Full Application and Situational Judgement Test
•    Telephone Interview
•    Assessment Centre
•    Final Selection Board Interview
•    Medical and Driving Assessment
•    Developed Vetting

As you progress through the process we will give you more information about what to expect at the next stage and guidance on how to prepare.

If you are successful in the recruitment process, you will join us for a short induction and settling in period where you will learn more about working at MI5 as an agent handler. You will then need to pass our specialist Agent Handling training course, which will equip you with the skills and knowledge to perform the role confidently and effectively. Successful completion of this course is a requirement for the role and if you do not pass, we will not be able to offer you employment as an Agent Handler. However, you will receive a lot of support and guidance from experienced trainers during the course, along with regular feedback to help you achieve the standard required to pass.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to apply, you must meet our residency criteria. You must be a born or
naturalised British citizen and one of your parents must be a British citizen or have
substantial ties to the UK.

Candidates must normally have been resident in the UK for nine out of the last 10 years.
This is particularly important if you were born outside the UK. You will nonetheless be
considered if you have, for example, served overseas with HM Forces or in some other
official capacity as a representative of Her Majesty's Government, studied abroad, or lived
overseas with your parents.

Due to vetting requirements, you will need to be 18 years old, or above, to apply.

You must also hold a full UK manual driving licence to be eligible to apply for this role.

Discretion is vital. You should not discuss your application, other than with your partner or a
close family member.

Please note, you should only launch your application from within the UK. If you are based overseas, you should wait until you visit the UK to launch an application. Applying from outside the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application.

Further information on our eligibility criteria can be found on the How to Apply section.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme

As part of our commitment to being a ‘Disability Confident Leader’ we offer an interview to all candidates with a disability who meet our minimum criteria for the role that they are applying for. This is known as the Guaranteed Interview Scheme (GIS).

Along with the standard eligibility requirements for this post, your application will be assessed on how far you meet the job requirements. On successful completion of this stage, you will be invited to interview.  Please note that the guaranteed interview may be a telephone interview, as we do conduct interviews over the telephone for some positions.

The MI5 is committed to equal opportunities and to reflecting the society we protect. All applications are welcome, but we particularly welcome applications from women and Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates. All appointments will be made on merit.

This Program / Vacancy is closed to applications.