HMP Durham is recruiting motivated and responsible Prison Officers to join its professional custodial team. This role offers a secure and rewarding career within the UK Civil Service, with structured training, long-term progression, and a clear commitment to public safety and rehabilitation.
As a Prison Officer, you will play a vital role in maintaining safety, security, and order while supporting individuals in custody to make positive changes. The position requires strong communication and influencing skills, as you will engage with a wide range of people in a challenging but highly structured environment. You will be expected to demonstrate sound judgement, effective decision-making, and a consistent commitment to quality and professionalism.
Successful candidates will show care, understanding, and resilience, alongside the ability to remain calm under pressure and work as part of a disciplined team. You must be at least 18 years old at the point of commencing employment and meet the Civil Service nationality requirements. Full training will be provided to ensure you are fully prepared for the responsibilities of the role.
This Prison Officer role at HMP Durham offers a stable career with competitive benefits and development opportunities. A sponsorship switch may be available for eligible candidates, subject to Home Office and Civil Service requirements.
Position: Prison Officer
Salary: £33,746 -£38,003 per year
Job Type: Full-Time/Part Time/Job Share
Location: Durham
Descriptions & requirements
Job description
An extraordinary job. Done by someone like you.
Prison officers protect the public and help make an impact on prisoners’ lives.
If you have the integrity, skills and strength of character we’re looking for, this fast-paced role could be the start of a successful career.
This role is not eligible for new Skilled Worker visas in accordance with the current immigration rules.
From 22 July 2025, the Government introduced changes to the Skilled Worker visa route. The department cannot consider sponsoring you for this role unless you have held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes. If you have held a Skilled
Worker visa continuously, please raise this during your vetting checks and eligibility will be assessed in accordance with the immigration rules and transitional provisions in place.
If you are applying for this role and you have not held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes, you will need to consider your options for obtaining and/or maintaining your right to work in the UK in light of these changes. Successful applicants must ensure they have and maintain the legal right to live and work in the Civil Service and in the United Kingdom.
The Department will continue to comply with UK Immigration Rules applied in the UK and Civil Service. You can read more about Skilled Worker visas and the eligibility criteria here.
Someone like you
There’s no such thing as a typical prison officer. Our officers come from different walks of life, just like the offenders they work with. Whether you’re a parent, a teacher, have worked in retail, the armed forces, or just feel like you’re a natural people person, you’ll have the empathy, self-confidence, great communication skills and resilience we want.
No matter the challenge, you’ll take the time to build constructive, positive and professional relationships with prisoners who could be at the lowest point in their lives.
Teamwork plays a vital role in this environment, so you’ll need to be fully committed to supporting your colleagues and understand the importance of acting as one team to keep the prison, prisoners and everyone who works here safe.
You will be required to work various shifts and some weekends
An extraordinary job.
In this unique career, you’ll have the opportunity to carry out many different roles in any one day. One minute you’re a peacekeeper, the next you’re a counsellor or a teacher. You’ll work directly with prisoners in a unique environment, helping to protect the public and make a positive impact.
Eligibility
To become a prison officer, you will need to:
- be at least 18 years old at the point you commence employment
- meet the Civil Service Nationality requirements (see nationality section below)
- as this is a physically active job, you will need to pass a medical and fitness assessment as part of the application process
- meet the required eyesight standard in both eyes (both with and without corrective lenses)
- For safety reasons, everyone training to be a prison officer needs a suitable standard of hearin(without the use of hearing aids)
Travel to Work
Some prison establishments are situated in rural locations with limited public transport options; therefore, a driving licence and own transport is beneficial but is not an essential requirement of the role (unless specified). Please note that shift start, and finish times are fixed, and it is your responsibility to get to and from your place of work on time for the start of your shift. Please carefully consider the location of this vacancy and your transport options before applying.
Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
- UK nationals
- Nationals of the Republic of Ireland
- Nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
- Nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families
- Nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
- Individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
- Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Successful applicants must ensure they have and maintain the legal right to live and work in the Civil Service and in the United Kingdom.
Essential skills
You don’t need qualifications to become a prison officer. Personal qualities are more important. You need to show:
- Communication and influencing skills
- Commitment to quality
- Effective decision-making
- Care and understanding
Pay
The initial training is 37 hours a week. After training, you can choose to work 37, 39 or 41 hours a week. Your annual salary will reflect your weekly hours.
37 hours a week = £33,746 a year
39 hours a week = £35,875 a year
41 hours a week = £38,003 a year
All salary figures quoted include any additional allowances that are applicable to the role/location.
Prisons operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This means you will have to cover various shift patterns that will include evenings, some nights, weekends and public holidays (these days are added to your holiday allowance). Most prisons work with a changing shift pattern of 39 hours a week.
You may also have opportunities to work additional paid hours
Benefits
- 25 days’ annual holiday (rising to 30 days after 10 years’ service)
- paid time off for public holidays and 1 extra privilege day
- Civil Service pension of up to 20% of your salary
- cycle to work scheme, travel loans and other benefits
Assessment Process
During the recruitment process you will be assessed on the behaviours, strengths and abilities you need to become an effective prison officer. These include:
- Communicating and influencing
- Managing a quality service
- Making effective decisions
- Caring
Your natural strengths are assessed to find out what motivates and energises you. We will also assess your numerical, written English and spoken English abilities.
Online Tests
Once you have completed your initial application form, you will be invited to complete stage 1 of the online test, to see if you have the basic judgement and numerical skills expected of a prison officer.
If you are successful, we will invite you to the stage 2 online test (task-based assessment) to see if you have the natural behaviours and qualities needed to be an effective prison officer.
The online assessment centre (OAC)
On successful completion of the online tests, we will invite you to an online assessment centre where we test to see if you have the abilities, behaviours and strengths to be a prison officer.
Application Process
To apply for this role and become a Prison officer, KINDLY VISIT HERE
Application Deadline
January 27th, 2026