Eligibility

The Special Constabulary seeks to encourage individuals from all backgrounds and aims to be representative of the communities it serves.

The basic requirements for being a Special are to be:

• A British citizen, or a national of a country within the European Economic Area or, if not, have leave to remain in the UK free of restrictions
• At least age 17 to apply (but cannot be appointed until age 18)
• Of good character (to meet the professional integrity and ethical behaviours of an officer)
• In good health, both physically and mentally (to meet the fitness, medical and eyesight standards)
• Able to speak and write English competently

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for appointment as a Special Constable, the following criteria apply:

Nationality

• You must be a British citizen or a citizen of a country that is a member of the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland. Commonwealth citizens and foreign nationals are also eligible to apply but only if they are resident in the UK with indefinite leave to enter or remain, or EU settled status
• Applicants who are Commonwealth citizens or other foreign nationals, must provide proof (by submitting a copy of their passport) there are no restrictions on their stay in the UK. Nationals of the EEA or Switzerland must provide evidence their stay is free from restrictions

Residency

• You must be resident in the UK for 3-years prior to applying. If you have been out of the country for more than 3-months in the last 3-years, then you will have to provide sufficient information for consideration for us to carry out necessary security vetting checks
• All applicants must possess a valid national insurance number

Age

• You can apply to become a Special Constable from 17 years of age. To be formally appointed you must be at least 18 years of age. old
• There is no upper age limit for appointment, but you must be able to meet the required fitness, medical and eyesight standards

Convictions & Cautions

• Convictions or cautions will not necessarily preclude you from appointment. 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 will not be considered if you have any convictions for theft, dishonesty, violence, or Public Order offences
• You must have no Cautions or Juvenile Convictions for recordable offences within the last 5-years
• You may be considered if it is 10 years since the date of conviction for drink driving, or 5 years since the date of conviction for driving without insurance

Financial Position

• Special Constables are in a privileged position regarding access to information and could be considered potentially vulnerable to corruption. Applicants should not therefore be under pressure from undischarged debts or liabilities and should be able to manage loans and debts sensibly
• You must have no County Court Judgments (CCJs) outstanding against you. You may be considered if you have a discharged CCJ
• If you have been registered as bankrupt and your bankruptcy depts have been discharged, you will only be considered after 3-years from the discharge date
• If you are the subject of a current Individual Voluntary Arrangements, you may not be considered

Tattoos

• Tattoos are not a bar to appointment. However, some tattoos could potentially offend members of the public or colleagues or could discredit the police service.  It depends on their size, nature and location, and sometimes on the extent
• We won’t accept candidates with tattoos which are visible on the hands, face or neck
• We won’t accept candidates with tattoos considered offensive by GMP (ie rude, lewd, crude, racist, sexist, sectarian, homophobic or violent), whether the tattoos are visible or not
• We will consider candidates with tattoos that are non-visible and considered to be non-offensive by GMP as they can be covered by uniform or clothing whilst on duty (eg a tattoo on the forearm should be covered by long sleeves)

Health & Fitness

• In order to become a Special Constable, you must be in good health, of sound constitution and able physically and mentally to perform the duties of a Special once appointed
• Prior to appointment, successful applicants fill in a medical questionnaire and undertake a medical examination which will also include an eyesight test. If you fail to meet the medical and eyesight standards, you cannot be appointed as a Special Constable
• Prior to appointment, you will need to undertake the Job-Related Fitness Test (JRFT). This is an aerobic test to assess your ability to meet the physiological demands of the Personal Safety Training and the role of an officer.  The JRFT, often referred to as the ‘bleep test’, request you to reach level 5.4 on the multi-stage fitness test

Qualifications

• Although you do not need any formal qualifications, a good standard of education is required
• Special Constables must be competent in both spoken and written English
• For those without formal qualifications, a test which assesses your English and Maths skills forms part of the standard pre-sift process which all Specials candidates

Incompatible Jobs

• Some occupations are considered incompatible with being a Special Constable. This may be due to nature of a role, working in a particular industry or sector, role responsibilities and regulatory powers attached
• You cannot be appointed as a Special Constable if you are in any of the following occupations:
  
  - Serving members of the armed forces
  - Traffic wardens, civil enforcement officers and school crossing patrols
  - Neighbourhood, street wardens and other uniformed patrol wardens
  - Highways Agency Traffic Officers employed in an ‘on-road’ capacity
  - Police Community Support Officers
  - Members of employers’ police forces and private constabularies
  - Magistrates, judges, justices' clerks and Crown Prosecution Service employees
  - NCA staff designated with immigration officer and/or revenue and customs officer powers
  - Police & Crime Commissioners in the force area they are appointed
  - Immigration Officers

• The Chief Constable will consider whether you can be appointed as a Special Constable if you are in any of the following occupations:
  - Members of the armed forces reserves – subject to reserve commitments taking precedence
  - Fire Service personnel – subject to agreement of the Chief Fire Officer
  - Persons where employment bestows client privilege – subject to employer approval
  - Members of medical and health professions – subject to NHS Trust or Health Authority confirmation
  - Regular NCA staff and NCA staff designated with constable powers – subject to agreement of the Director General of NCA
  - Holders of premises licences, designated premises supervisors, personal licences and licensees of betting/gaming premises
  - Probation officers and youth and social workers involved in the administration of criminal law
  - Bailiffs, warrant officers, private detectives and inquiry agents
  - Those involved in the private security industry
  - Civilian staff employed by the Office of the Police & Crime Commissioner

• If you are applying for or considering a job in any of the above occupations, please think carefully before you apply for the Special Constabulary. If you start a job in any of the above occupations at any point during your application, or if there are changes in any of the information you provide in your application, you must inform us immediately.

Further Information

For further information about eligibility, please email us.

If you have any general queries about becoming a Special Constable, please email us.