About Us

We are MI5, we protect the UK from threats to national security such as terrorism and espionage. We gather intelligence and work closely with the police and the UK’s other intelligence agencies to detect threats and work out ways to stop them.

At MI5, we work hard to keep our country safe. And it’s equally important that we protect our people, places, and property. When you join us as a Security Officer, you’ll help us do just that – from one, or several, of our locations.

The Role

As an MI5 Security Officer, you’ll help to protect our assets, people and places and make our complex security operation a success. You’ll work with a team of motivated professionals to provide a reassuring presence, while conducting a range of security duties and responsibilities.

A main focus of the role will be to use bespoke security architecture (e.g. CCTV and Access Control systems) to maintain security assurance across our estates. You’ll also be responsible for processing visitors and vehicles and engaging in incident and emergency response.

About you

It takes people from a variety of backgrounds to help us tackle the threats that we face and MI5 is committed to reflecting the society we protect. For this reason, our Security Officers come from all walks of life, and you don’t need any security experience to apply. Instead, you’ll have good customer service skills and be keen to learn. You’ll need to enjoy working in a team, be calm under pressure and understand when to be insistent.

You’ll also need to communicate comfortably with a range of people and take care to write clearly and concisely. With excellent attention to detail, you’ll compile accurate written logs. Proactive and motivated, you’ll be an effective time manager with strong administrative and observational skills.

We’ll also expect you to have some basic IT skills, including the ability to use email and Microsoft Office.

Training and Development

At MI5, continuous learning and development is at the heart of all that we do. You’ll be supported to gain professional security qualifications and to develop other skills.

We’ll also provide you with suitable tailored and ongoing security practitioner training and mentoring. This will include exposure to our protocols/procedures and security systems as well as customer care, conflict management/resolution and fire safety. You might contribute towards project work aimed at further improving our security offering.

You are required to stay within the specialism of the security team for a minimum of 5 years during which time you might apply for promotion, subject to agreement from your line manager and business/organisational needs. After five years you might seek out other opportunities in other areas of the organisation.

Shift Patterns

As part of the application process, you may need to select which shift pattern you are applying for, 24-hour or day shifts.

•    Our 24-hour shift workers typically work a full 7-day week comprising day and night shifts. This will include: 2 day shifts (covering 0600-1830, including an hour’s unpaid meal break), 2 night shifts (covering 1800-0630 including an hour’s unpaid meal break) and 4 days off.*

•    Our Day Officers typically work Monday to Friday. Each week you will work a different shift pattern of either 06:00 – 15:00, 08:00 – 17:00 or 11:00 – 20:00*

Please note there are currently 24-hour and day shift patterns available in London. In Wiltshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire there are only 24-hour shifts available.

If you are successful in your application, you will be required to wear a uniform.

It is expected that successful applicants will commence employment between February and April 2023.

Fitness

A reasonable level of personal fitness is important due to the nature of this role. Candidates are expected to undertake and pass a Fitness for Role medical which includes having a body mass index of 30 or less and a blood pressure within NICE guidelines of less than 140/90. If successful, applicants will need to maintain their fitness levels throughout their placement as periodic medicals form part of the deployment of a Security Officer.

Rewards and Benefits

You’ll receive a starting salary in Wiltshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire :  24-hour shift pattern £32,190 (including allowances and overtime) plus other benefits including:

•    25 Days Annual Leave automatically rising to 30 days after 5 years' service, and an additional 10.5 days public and privilege holidays.
•    Interest-free season ticket loan
•    Cycle to work scheme
•    Facilities such as a subsidised gym and restaurant, and on-site coffee bars
•    Paid parental and adoption leave

Culture and Working Environment

As part of our team, you’ll discover an inclusive workplace that’s welcoming, supportive and encouraging. You’ll be part of an organisation where people want to support one another and make a difference. Aside from fostering an open culture, we have a range of growing affinity groups. For example: 

·    Ethnic Minority and gender equality networks
·    Groups supporting wellbeing, mental health, neurodiversity, and disability
·    Faith/No Faith communities for staff to come together
·    LGBTQ+ support networks

You’ll also find a variety of sports, activity, interest, and social groups to help you settle in and connect with colleagues.

Before You Apply

With our roles in Wiltshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire, you’ll be given the option to select your preferred location at the start of your application. More information about location will be provided as you progress through the application process.  You will require a full driver’s license for regional roles.

To work at MI5 you need to be a British citizen. We do have a strict drugs policy, so once you start your application, you can’t take any recreational drugs and you’ll need to declare your previous drug usage at the relevant stage.

Honesty and integrity are really important if you want to work at MI5. Take some time to read about the vetting process and make sure you meet the criteria in the vetting pages of the ‘How to Apply’ section. The process can take some time, but this is just because it’s thorough. Giving misleading information and omitting or concealing information during the recruitment and vetting process is viewed very seriously.

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.

Equal Opportunities

At MI5 diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. To protect the UK, we need a truly diverse workforce that reflects the society we serve. This includes diversity in every sense of the word: those with different backgrounds, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, ways of thinking and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including those from groups that are under-represented in our workforce.
 
We’re Disability Confident

MI5 are proud to have achieved Leader status within the DWP’s Disability Confident scheme.  This is aimed at encouraging employers to think differently about disability and take action to improve how they recruit, retain, and develop disabled people. Being Disability Confident, we aim to ensure that a fair and proportionate number of disabled applicants that meet the minimum criteria for this position will be offered an interview where practicable; this is known as ‘Offer of an Interview.’ To secure an interview for this vacancy, the minimum criteria (in order of application process) are:

•    Eligibility questions – You will be asked a series of questions relating to this vacancy. If you meet the eligibility criteria, you will directed to the initial application form.
•    Situational Judgement Tests – You will be required to reach the pass mark set for the situational judgement tests
•    Application form – You will be required to pass an application form sift

On successful completion of these stages, you will be invited to complete a telephone interview. This is our offer of an interview.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to apply, you must be a British Citizen. One of your parents must be a British Citizen or must have one of the nationalities or citizenships from one of the following: British Overseas territory, British subject, British National (Overseas), British protected person, citizenship of the Commonwealth, EEA nationality, or citizenship of the United States of America. If deceased, have had such citizenship or nationality before death. If you hold dual nationality, of which one component is British, you will nonetheless be considered. If successful, you will not normally be required to give up your non-British citizenship but, as a condition of your employment or secondment, MI5 may impose restrictions on your postings, work travel and/or general use of that nationality. Candidates must normally have been resident in the UK for seven out of the last ten years. This is particularly important if you were born outside the UK. Each case will be carefully considered on its own facts. You can apply at the age of 17 years and 6 months, if successful you will not be offered a start date prior to your 18th birthday. 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 of the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application. Further information on our eligibility criteria can be found on the Applying section.
 
What To Expect

Our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here is a brief overview of each stage, in order:

•    Initial application – You will complete some basic personal details and eligibility questions
•    Situational Judgement Tests – You will complete a series of hypothetical workplace scenarios related to the Security Officer role within the application form
•    Full application – You will complete your education and work history and answer some motivational fit questions
•    Telephone Interview – You will answer some motivational fit, competency and scenario-based questions
•    Online Interview – You will answer some additional motivational fit, competency and scenario-based questions and short written/verbal assessment.
•    The next stage is a security interview with a vetting officer and then fitness test.

Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process in order to progress to the next. Your application may take around 6 - 9 months to process including vetting, so we advise you continue any current employment until you have received a formal job offer.
 
Our Vetting

To work in this role, you will need the highest security clearance, known as Developed Vetting (DV). It’s something everyone in the UK Intelligence Community has to go through and it can take some time. As part of the DV process you will be asked to fill in a detailed questionnaire and attend an interview with a vetting officer. In your interview the vetting officer will have a thorough, compassionate, and honest discussion with you about you as a person and your life experiences, to ensure holding a DV clearance is right for you. You don’t need to do any preparation for your vetting interview, just be honest and be yourself. All applicants for DV are treated impartially and consistently, irrespective of gender, race, disability, religion, age, sexual orientation, and other protected characteristics.

The closing date for this role is 23:00 on Wednesday 6/7/22

Please be aware that we withhold the right to bring forward the closing date for this role from the original closing date once a certain number of applications have been received. We also withhold the right to close applications for specific location preferences while keeping other location options open for applications. Please be mindful of this and submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.