Careers Service

Law Enforcement and Offender Management

Offender management and probation

Work in this area involves supervising offenders within prisons or supporting them when they have been released from prison or on parole. Roles are typically found within HM Prison Service, National Probation Service, and local government youth offending teams.

Third sector organisations and charities also provide a range of services in this sector for example drug and alcohol addiction services. Researching local organisations and charities will allow you to learn about the services they offer; accessing work experience with some of them will allow you to gain the insights required to gain employment in the area.

Ideal candidates will have compassion, the ability to communicate with a range of people, problem solving skills, and be able to follow procedures and protocols. Learning about the various roles and understanding the responsibilities is essential as the work can be challenging as well as rewarding.

• HM Prisons and Probation Service This website contains information about job roles, training provided and the applications process.
• Youth offending team Learn what youth offending teams do and access information about services in your area.

Police

• See Emergency Services and Armed Forces

Departments within the Civil Service

There are a range of government departments who are also responsible for upholding and enforcing the law. The Home Office are responsible for services such as police, immigration and border force. HMRC (Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs) are responsible for the administration and collection of all taxes in the UK. A career in Counter Fraud or the Serious Fraud Office may also be of interest.

• Counter Fraud Research the department and the variety of careers including the role of an investigator.
• HM Revenue and Customs Learn what HMRC do and understand the range of enforcement jobs including compliance, and intelligence roles.
• Working for the Home Office Gain an understanding about careers at the Home Office and research job roles.
• Serious Fraud Office Learn about the work the department do, the organisations they work with and the career opportunities.

Explore job roles

Careers in this sector are open to graduates with a degree in any subject. Selection often focusses on skills, it is therefore important to have an understanding of them and access opportunities to gain experience to demonstrate them when applying for roles.

Use the job profiles to find out about entry routes, experience, qualifications, salary and skills required.

• Border Force officer Prospects
• Community development officer Prospects
• Detective Prospects
• Immigration officer Target Jobs
• Police officer Prospects
• Probation officer Prospects
• Youth worker Prospects

Getting in and getting experience

• Use our transferable skills pages to explore ways to gain the top skills employers are looking for.

• Work experience in public facing roles where you have had to problem solve and provide customer service is valuable.
• Volunteering with community organisations, charities and youth work may help you get experience in supporting individuals and groups. See our advice on volunteering.
• National Association of Care and Resettlement of Offenders (NARCO), search for volunteering opportunities and learn what the organisation does, NARCO
• Clinks organises workshops and events which will allow you to gain an insight into the sector, Clinks, events

Finding and applying for jobs

• Civil Service When researching vacancies, narrow the search by selecting an organisation (this is a department within the service).
• Success Profiles Civil Service applications require candidates to provide evidence of specific behaviours. This link provides information about the behaviours.
• Clinks Research job vacancies, and volunteering opportunities.
• HMRC Tax Professional This is a graduate programme at HMRC specialising in tax.
• Probation finder Access information about probation and contact centres in England and Wales for speculative applications.
• Unlocked graduates This is a prison leadership development programme.
• Youth offending teams Location and contact details of youth offending teams nationwide. Use this list as a starting point for speculative applications.

Next steps

When planning your next steps you may have additional questions or want to explore certain aspects in more detail:

• Equality diversity and your future career Explore diversity in the workplace and the support available to you.

• Careers guidance appointments For help with planning your career, making decisions and exploring options