PCSO recruitment process

During the eligibility process, we must check you meet all the criteria detailed below, before you can continue with your application.

You must:

• be aged 18 or over
• have been a UK resident for the past three years
• be either a British Citizen, a citizen of the EU, EAA, or Commonwealth or foreign national with indefinite leave to remain in the UK
• be in good health, mentally and physically

You must not:

• have a County Court Judgement (CCJ) which has not been satisfied
• be currently declared bankrupt and for a period of three years afterwards
• be subject to a Debt Relief Order and for a period of three years afterwards
• be a member of certain national groups, for example, British National Party, Combat 18 or National Front
• have any tattoos which would cause offence
• have been placed on the Police Barred and Advisory Lists within five years from the date of listing in the case of gross misconduct, or three years from the date of listing in the case of poor performance
• have any criminal convictions or cautions (minor offences will be considered)

If you are successful at the eligibility stage, we will ask you to complete an online application form.

You will need to fill in your personal details, employment history and references.

Once we have received your completed application form, we will invite you to attend a Familiarisation Event.

The purpose of this compulsory event is to provide you with further information on the learning programme, the process of becoming a PCSO and to give you an opportunity to hear from our staff what it is like working as a PCSO in Avon and Somerset.

Once your application form is received and checked, you will be invited to register for the College of Policing National Sift.

The National Sift consists of two online exercises that reflect the competencies and values relevant to the role of a PCSO. You will be asked to complete a situational judgement test and a behavioural style questionnaire.

Situational Judgement Test

The situational judgement test measures your:

• ability to choose appropriate actions in situations similar to those you could face as a PCSO
• judgement and ability to make effective decisions against the competency and values framework

Behavioural Styles Questionnaire

The behavioural styles questionnaire measures your typical behaviour and preferences at work. The purpose of the questionnaire is to assess whether you have the right behaviours and attitudes to be effective in the role.

Once you have successfully completed your online assessment you will be invited to attend an in-person interview.

Further information regarding interview will be provided once you reach this stage.

You will need to reach the same standard of health medical, biometrics and vetting checks as a police officer. You can find more details of this on steps 4 and 5 on the police officer recruitment process page.

If you are successful at your assessment you will be invited to complete these pre-employment checks at Police Headquarters, Portishead.

Once all of the pre-appointment checks have been successfully completed, you will receive a final offer of appointment and we will allocated you a place on the next available training course.

Once you have reached this stage we will start to communicate with you more frequently so that you are prepared for your first day as a PCSO and the start of your exciting career with Avon and Somerset Police.