Northamptonshire Police has high standards and our continually striving to provide a top quality service for the people of Northamptonshire.

Our aim is simple: We are after the finest quality recruits to join our Force. In return we can offer you a varied and interesting Policing career.

Please read below the essential criteria, which you must meet to be successful at paper sift. If any of your answers to the questions below is no, your application will be rejected. If you have a question that is not covered below please contact the Recruitment Team.

Age
Nationality
Driving Licence
Criminal Record
Financial History
Tattoos
Previous Applications
Eyesight Standards
Medical Standards
Disability Discrimination Act
Working Patterns
Postings/Location
Personal Life
Business Interests
Residency Requirements
Identification Check

Age

Are you 17 and 6 months or over? If so, you may apply but must be 18 years old when you join. There is no upper age limit, but the medical requirement and fitness test is the same for all officers and you would be expected to meet and maintain this standard. You also need to bear in mind that the normal retirement age for constables is 55. As a minimum you will need to complete two years probation and one year of service.

Nationality

Are you a British Citizen, Commonwealth Citizen, a member of the EC or EEA, Citizen of the Irish Republic or a foreign national who is resident in the UK, free from restrictions?

Driving Licence

You must hold a full driving licence before applying to join Northants Police. Your driving licence must not have 7 points or more within the last five years.

Criminal Record

Applicants may still be eligible to join the police service; it will depend on their nature and the circumstances of the offence. Failure to disclose convictions or cautions will, however, result in your application being terminated.

You must declare all convictions for any past offences, formal cautions, (including juvenile, i.e. under 18 years), and any bind-overs imposed by any court. You must include traffic convictions such as speeding, careless driving and drink driving.

An application will not be accepted from those who have been convicted or cautioned for a serious offence including:

• Murder
• Manslaughter
• Death by reckless driving
• Rape
• Kidnapping
• Firearms offences
• Hostage taking
• Incest with a girl under the age of 13
• Buggery with a boy under the age of 16 or a person who has not consented
• Indecent assault which constitutes an act of gross indecency
• Intercourse with a girl under the age of 13
• The offence of causing an explosion likely to endanger life or property
• Hijacking or torture
• Espionage
• Terrorism
• Sabotage
• Actions intended to overthrow or undermine parliamentary democracy by political, industrial or violent means, Or
• Is or has recently been a member of any organisation which has advocated such activities, or associated with any such organisations or any of its members in such as to raise reasonable doubts about his or her reliability, or is susceptible to pressure or improper influence, e.g. because of current or past conduct, or has shown dishonesty or lack of integrity which throws doubts upon their reliability, or has demonstrated behaviour, or is subject to circumstances, which may otherwise indicate unreliability.

Police Regulations state that no member of a police force may be a member of the following organisations:

• The British National Party
• Combat 18
• The National Front

Applications will also be rejected if an applicant has:

• Committed an offence – as an adult or juvenile – which resulted in a prison sentence including custodial, suspended or deferred sentence and sentences served at a youth offenders’ institution or community home.
• Received a formal caution (including reprimands and final warnings) for a recordable offence within the last five years.
• Been convicted as a juvenile within the last five years for any recordable offence.
• Any other recordable offence within the last five years other than those listed above.

Convictions which will lead to rejection unless there are very compelling circumstances include:

• Violence
• Offences involving serious violence of injury including Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH) and Actual Bodily Harm (ABH)
• Offences involving unsolicited violence toward others
• Unlawful possession of weapons, firearms or going equipped to steal
• Acts of indecency
• Abuse or neglect of children
• Public Order offences - involvement in riot, violent disorder, affray, causing intentional harassment, alarm or distress
• Racially motivated or homophobic offences
• Dishonesty
• Interference with the Administration of justice or the investigation of offences
• Burglary
• Offences which involve elements or acts of dishonesty, corruption, substantial financial gain or serious loss to anyone including theft, fraud and deception
• Drugs and driving
• Serious involvement in drugs including possession of Class A drug (Heroin, morphine) or more than one Class B drug (amphetamines) and/ or supplying drugs of any kind
• Reckless or Dangerous Driving within the last ten years
• One offence of drink driving or drunk in charge or drugs driving within the preceding ten years
• More than one offence of drink driving or drunk in charge or drugs driving
• Other serious motoring offences such as convictions within the last five years of driving without insurance, failing to stop after an accident or driving whilst disqualified
• More than three endorsable traffic convictions (including fixed penalties) within the last five years (for offences on different dates)
• Two or more convictions for regulatory offences such as failure to renew vehicle excise licence within the last five years
• An applicant's age at the time of an offence and the aggravating circumstances surrounding the offence will all have a bearing in the following cases:
• Drunk and Disorderly - no more than one offence and only after two years have elapsed following a caution or three years have elapsed following a bind over/ conviction
• Minor drugs offences or substance abuse - no more than one offence and only after two years have elapsed following a caution or three years from conviction
• Common Assault - no more than one offence as a juvenile or young adult and only after two years have elapsed from end of bind over/ conviction

We will also want to know whether any of your close family or associates is involved in criminal activity and we will therefore search for any criminal convictions or cautions against your family. You must advise them that these enquiries will be made. The police service cannot disclose the result of these enquiries to you.

Financial History

Applicants will have their financial status checked. These checks are carried out because police officers have access to privileged information that may make them vulnerable to corruption.
It is important that applicants are not under pressure from undischarged debts or liabilities. This does not mean that sensible management of debts or loans, such as a mortgage will preclude applicants. Applicants who have:

• Existing County Court Judgements outstanding against them will be rejected
• Discharged County Court Judgements will be considered
• Been registered bankrupt and their bankruptcy debts have not been discharged will be rejected
• Been registered as bankrupt and their bankruptcy debts have been discharged will not be considered until three years after the discharge of the debt
• If you have discharged bankruptcy debts you will need to provide a Certificate of Satisfaction with your application.

Tattoos

Tattoos are unacceptable if they:

Undermine the dignity and authority of the office of constable
Are garish, numerous or particularly prominent, i.e. on the forearm, face or neck.
Could cause offence to members of the public or colleagues. This includes tattoos that are rude, lewd, crude, racist, sexist, sectarian, homophobic, violent or intimidating.
If you have a tattoo you must complete the tattoo form in the application detailing what and where the tattoo is.

Previous applications

If you have been unsuccessful with any Force you must wait 6 months before re-applying.

Eyesight standards

The current standards are as follows:
Aided vision (wearing lenses or spectacles) – 6/12 or better with either eye, (5th line down on optician’s chart), and 6/6 with bother eyes (7th line down).
If you wear spectacles or contact lenses you also need to reach 6/36, (2nd line down), unaided.
Near vision – N6 at 40cm with both eyes together (aided)
Colour vision – The use of colour correcting lenses are not acceptable.
Severe colour vision deficiencies (monochromats) are not acceptable. Anomalous trichromats are acceptable. Severe anomalous trichromats or dichromats are also acceptable but you will need to be aware of the deficiency and make appropriate adjustments.

Corrective eye treatment – We will reject applicants who have undergone Radial Keratotomy, Arcuate Keratotomy or corneal grafts due to the side effects of these treatments.
Other forms of refractive surgery such as LASIK, LASEK, ICRS, EPIFLAP, are all acceptable provided 3 months have elapsed since surgery, there are no post-op issues and other eyesight standards are met.

Medical standards

All recruits must be in good health and be fit – both physically and mentally – to perform police duties. We consider each applicant individually and in accordance with Force policy. Candidates requiring more information will need to complete the medical questionnaire and forward to the Recruitment Team. You will be required to attend a medical appointment towards the end of the process.

Disability Discrimination Act.

Police Officers are covered by the Disability Discrimination Act. If you have a disability, we will make adjustments where it is reasonable to do so. You will need to provide information on your medical form about your disability. If you have dyslexia you must provide a full adult psychological report with your application, this must be funded by yourself.
Disability is defined as “a physical or mental impairment, which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on the ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”.

Working patterns

Are you prepared to work a 24-hour shift pattern, nights, weekends and bank
holidays?

Postings/location

Are you prepared to serve anywhere within Northamptonshire? This may mean you need to re-locate.

Personal life

Are you prepared to avoid any conduct likely to bring the force into disrepute? Are your family supportive of your decision to become an Officer?

Business Interests

Do you have any business interests? You must declare any you have on the application. The Head of Human Resources will decide if you are eligible to join and whether the business interest is compatible with being a member of the Force.

Residency Requirements

· Recruitment Vetting 3 years: you must not have been outside of the UK for more than 3 months at any one time, or plane on being out of the UK for more than 3 months

· Management Vetting 5 years

· NPPV (Contractor/agency/temps/etc) 3 years.

For National Security Vetting the minimum periods of residence are:

· CTC 3 years

· SC 5 years

· DV 10 years

- (Please Note: The Republic of Ireland is not part of the UK)

Identification Check

Full 10-year passport, or
Full EC passport/identity card
Birth Certificate (issued at or within a few weeks of birth - not a short replacement one)
And one original document from the following list to support and confirm current address and identity:
British driving licence
Form P45
Proof of residence i.e. Council Tax, Bank statement or utilities bill

Young persons may have difficulty in fulfilling these requirements and should be asked to provide a letter and passport photograph countersigned by a professionally qualified person defined in the British Passport application form.