About the job

Summary

The first duty of the government is to keep citizens safe and the country secure. The Home Office has been at the front line of this endeavour since 1782. As such, the Home Office plays a fundamental role in the security and economic prosperity of the United Kingdom.

The Home Office mission is fundamentally important: to keep Britain’s streets safe and its borders secure. Each and every member of the Home Office plays a part in making that happen.

Immigration Enforcement is an operational command of the Home Office. It was set up on 1st April 2012. Immigration Enforcement is a professional law enforcement organisation that works with cross-Government partners and drives action across the Border, Immigration and Citizenship system.

Immigration Enforcement’s vision is to reduce the size of the illegal population and the harm it causes.

This vision is supported by 3 core objectives to:

• Prevent migrants from entering the UK illegally and overstaying

• Deal with threats associated with immigration offending

• Encourage and enforce the return of illegal migrants from the UK

Immigration Enforcement prides itself on being an open and supportive workplace. We actively embrace diversity and promote equality of opportunity, to enable us to reflect the communities that we serve. We provide people with the opportunity to work at pace and deliver in stretching roles. You will learn a lot in your day to day work – but we also provide excellent wider learning and development opportunities.

This is an exciting opportunity for the right candidate to develop and embed a wide range people and engagement skills within a high performing team, delivering what is required to continue to make the team a great place to work and to support staff and senior managers in delivery.

Job description

We are looking for candidates who want real stretch and development in their everyday roles.

Immigration Enforcement tackles the criminality behind organised immigration crime. Our Criminal and Financial Investigation (CFI) teams play a fundamental role in tackling immigration crime, as part of a multi-layered UK law enforcement approach. Through working closely with partners in the National Crime Agency, territorial policing and many other agencies and departments, our CFI Teams take vigorous action against those criminals that seek to benefit from illegal migration.

Working in the CFI teams is challenging and fast paced, requiring quick decision making in demanding situations. As a Criminal Investigator you would undertake a wide range of activities which support the detection, apprehension and removal of immigration offenders. Our people need to operate in sometimes difficult and pressurised environments and are required to make well balanced decisions. You would be expected to demonstrate the highest standards of professionalism and teamwork.

We investigate criminality linked to immigration abuse under the Immigration Act 1971 and related legislation such as the Identity Documents Act 2010. Such offences might include facilitation, human trafficking and the use of false or fraudulently obtained documents.

In England and Wales we use powers under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) in much the same way as the police do, while in Scotland and Northern Ireland we currently rely on the Immigration Acts.

Working for us is interesting and varied and gives you the chance to make a real difference to people's lives.

Our experienced Crime Investigators are also vital to the development of others beginning their career journeys in Immigration Enforcement. Successful candidates are expected to use their knowledge and skills to mentor and coach colleagues through the completion of their PIP portfolios (OCPs). They will harness workplace learning opportunities to build the expertise of their teams by working collaboratively, supporting, guiding and providing meaningful feedback. By doing so they will enhance and empower those around them to grow and achieve their potential.

Applicants will also be expected to achieve and maintain PIP 2 accreditation. Since December 2011 Immigration Enforcement has required all criminal investigators to hold accreditation at one of the relevant levels of PIP. PIP is an accreditation programme for Detectives and Criminal Investigators which is owned by the National Police Chiefs Council and governed by the College of Policing.

The post you are considering applying for requires you to undergo PIP training. In order to achieve PIP1 accreditation, the current training programme is 7 weeks. This is comprised of classroom based training at either of our CFI training locations and also working within your teams at your office location. Some of this training will require you to stay away from home when attending classroom based training.

Once PIP1 is achieved, there is an expectation that you progress onwards to PIP2 but there is flexibility according to our business need.

There will be a requirement to attend court to give evidence. All Criminal and Financial Investigation staff are required to disclose any adverse judicial decisions or internal disciplinary matters under CPIA. Applicants need to bear this in mind when considering their eligibility for this post.

This role is physically demanding, so you will also need to be physically fit. The successful candidate will be required to undergo and pass a health assessment, which is usually repeated every three years (although this can sometimes be yearly for specific health reasons). Successful candidates will also need to be arrest trained to PST level 3 and pass an annual PST refresher.

As a Criminal Investigator you would undertake a wide range of activities which support the detection, apprehension and removal of immigration offenders.

You would be expected to demonstrate the highest standards of professionalism and teamwork with adherence to our vision statement.

Our people need to operate in sometimes difficult and pressurised environments and are required to make well balanced decisions.

Responsibilities include arresting suspected immigration offenders, obtaining and executing search warrants, conducting PACE interviews, collecting, preserving and recording evidence.

You would be responsible for (but not limited to):

• Obtaining and executing search warrants

• Arresting suspected immigration offenders

• Searching persons or property (either for health & safety or evidence)

• Conducting PACE interviews with suspected offenders

• Collecting, preserving and recording evidence

• Conducting checks on databases and updating as required

• Driving official vehicles and transporting of suspects, including custodial responsibilities

• Referring cases to senior grades as appropriate

• Critical Incident Command (Bronze commander)

• Supporting and undertaking POCA cash seizure activity

• There will be a requirement to attend court to give evidence.

Allowances:

The post is being advertised on HO annual hour's working terms and conditions and attracts an annual hours allowance (AHA). The initial rate will be confirmed when you have started in post and will be paid as a percentage of your basic salary. If a member of staff has agreed an annualised hour's arrangement, this does not become a permanent or guaranteed right. Annualised hours working is subject to changes in operational needs and managers can adjust, cease or suspend it, for operational or performance reasons.

Pay

New entrants to the Civil Service will be expected to join on the minimum of the pay range and this is non-negotiable. Existing Civil Servants will have their salary calculated in accordance with the Department’s pay on transfer / pay on promotion rules.

Essential Requirements:

You must:

• Hold a full and valid passport which you MUST present at interview, or be willing to apply for a passport within 5 days of receiving a provisional offer of employment

• Be able to provide all of the documents we need to complete your pre-employment screening and security clearance

• Either hold a minimum of two A Levels at Grade C and above or relevant experience

• Hold a full UK Driving Licence (manual) which you MUST present at interview

• The successful candidates will be required to undergo and pass a health assessment, which is usually repeated every three years (although this can sometimes be yearly for specific health reasons).

• Successful candidates will also need to be arrest trained to PST level 3 and pass an annual PST refresher.

• Applicants should note that it is a requirement of the post that arrest and criminal investigation accreditation is achieved and maintained.

Responsibilities

We are looking for candidates who are:

• Committed to continuous improvement, in an environment where performance matters

• Thrive in a complex rules based environment

• Demonstrate sound people and communication skills and are strong when working as part of a team

• Able to confidently manage potentially difficult and challenging situations, robustly enforcing UK law whilst maintaining professionalism and sensitivity

• Think in an objective and analytical manner.

We would welcome applications from experienced criminal investigators to those who have no law enforcement / investigation background.

This post requires working anti-social hours, weekends and bank holidays. Travel within the UK and some overseas travel may be required.

When completing your application you will have the opportunity to select your preferred location(s). Please ensure you select all locations you are interested in.

Licences

Full UK Manual Driving Licence

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Delivering at Pace
• Seeing the Big Picture