South East weighting allowance (Per Annum)
£3,504
G6
Contract type Permanent
Command Across Commands
Business Area Across Business Areas
Type of role Analytical, Intelligence, Investigation, Operational Delivery, Strategy
Working pattern Full time, Flexible Working
Number of roles available 25
Location(s)
Birmingham, Bridgend, Bristol, Chelmsford, Crawley, Dover, Exeter, Gatwick Airport, Gillingham, Heathrow Airport, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Normanton (Calder), Nottingham, Slough, Solent, Stevenage, Sunderland, Tolworth, Warrington
About the Role
Information about the Command
The National Crime Agency’s Mission is to protect the public from serious and organised crime by targeting and pursuing those criminals who pose the greatest risk to the UK.
The NCA has a wide remit and we are looking for committed individuals to join us and to provide vital professional expertise across the NCA. There are roles within our operational and capabilities functions.
Our constantly evolving and expanding capabilities means that we need people with experience of project management to policing, crime analysis to commercial procurement.
Information about the Business Area
Placement in a business area will be dependant upon the command chosen.
Please view our Home page to see more detailed information on our various commands and business areas.
Role Summary
This is an opportunity to join the NCA as a trainee officer. You will take part in a structured, two-year training programme, at the end of which you will become an accredited NCA Investigator, Intelligence Analyst or Intelligence Officer.
Joining the NCA as a trainee, you will support us in leading the fight against Serious and Organised crime and protecting the public from the most dangerous criminals.
Enable us to develop your learning, knowledge and capability, equipping you with the skills and support to target and pursue those who pose greatest risk to the UK. Gain specialist skills and progress to experience a world of roles in one team, one NCA.
Role Description
The National Crime Agency (NCA) leads the UK’S fight against Serious and Organised
Crime, protecting the public from the most dangerous criminals. We are committed to
attracting new talent to our Team by recruiting trainees into the Agency and
developing them into capable accredited investigators (the investigations pathway),
Intelligence officers (the intelligence pathway) or Analysts (the analyst pathway).
The role of an NCA Investigator, Intelligence officer or Analyst requires no prior law
enforcement experience, with all successful trainees enrolled onto the bespoke
Officer Development Programme (ODP). This is a two year structured training
programme, in which officers are required to evidence competence across a range of
investigational, intelligence or analytical competencies.
During this process, by identifying and valuing the aptitudes of each individual and
developing their learning, knowledge and acquired ability, the Agency will seek to
place each person in an appropriate, challenging and rewarding role, on the
appropriate pathway.
By successfully completing this comprehensive training programme, which includes the requirement to successfully pass a series of exams, and achieving
accreditation as an NCA Investigator, NCA Intelligence officer, or NCA Analyst you will
be trained to partake in serious and organised crime investigations to a national
standard.
These roles are integral to the Agency’s ability to lead the UK’s fight to cut Serious and
Organised crime, and offer opportunity to specialise in both overt and covert
investigations and progress to a world of varied careers in one NCA.
Duties and Responsibilities
Serious and organised crime is one of the gravest threats to the UK's national security. The threats posed by which are constantly changing, becoming more challenging and complex to address. The National Crime Agency sits at the heart of the law enforcement response to these changing threats, protecting the public by disrupting and bringing to justice those serious and organised criminals who pose the highest risk to the UK.
NCA officers work at the forefront of law enforcement. Building the best possible intelligence picture of all serious and organised crime threats, relentlessly pursuing the most serious and dangerous offenders, and developing and delivering specialist capabilities on behalf of law enforcement and other partners.
There's no such thing as a typical NCA officer. We come from different backgrounds and cultures, speak many languages, and have diverse skills and experiences. What we have in common is dedication and a commitment to protecting the public from serious and organised crime. We are deeply committed to building our future capability, our people are proud to protect and enabling their future success is critical to our mission.
Please visit our website to understand more about the NCA and to read about a day in the life of an investigator or intelligence officer or see attached information about the role of an intelligence analyst.
As an NCA Investigator you will be directly engaged in the fight against Serious and
Organised Crime targeting organised offenders both nationally and internationally in
order to minimise risk to the UK.
As part of a focused team you will identify, gather, review and develop evidence, using
both overt and covert tactics, including surveillance, in order to obtain a complete
evidential picture and implement effective operational strategies to facilitate these
offenders being brought to justice.
The role will see you receive comprehensive training which will prepare and enable you
to competently perform all initial investigational roles to include: arrest, conflict
management, systematic search, witness, victim and suspect interview, appropriate
level case file preparation and disclosure and Court Room presentation.
Additionally you will receive instruction in specialist ground breaking overt and covert
investigational techniques and innovative approaches and be empowered to make
decisions which help disrupt and bring to justice criminals who present the highest
National threat to the UK.
In doing so you will utilise the skills of associated NCA teams such as Intelligence and
Forensics and develop close working partnerships with other UK and overseas Law
Enforcement agencies, UK Police and the Crown Prosecution Service.
This is a rewarding but physically demanding role often involving working long and/or
anti-social hours with the potential for working patterns to change at short notice and
calling for both commitment and flexibility. Investigators are required to be trained in
the use of force and be able to operate Personal Protective Equipment, including PAVA
spray, batons and handcuffs.
You may have to Investigate Child sexual abuse/exploitation involving exposure to
images and material and will undergo psychological assessments upon taking up the
role and at regular intervals once in post. As a consequence you should consider the
sensitive nature of this work before deciding to apply for this position.
Investigations Pathway – Driving Licence Requirement
A full, valid UK/EU driving license is an essential requirement for candidates applying to the Investigations Pathway. Candidates will be required to present their documentation as part of the recruitment process. Failure to provide satisfactory evidence of a full UK/EU driving license will result in candidates being ineligible for appointment to the Investigations Pathway and any offer for this route may be withdrawn.
As an Intelligence Analyst, your role will be to conduct complex and wide-ranging
analysis in support of the National Crime Agency's mission; developing intelligence
products and contributing to the National Strategic Assessment, Annual Plan,
National Intelligence Requirements and National Control Strategy to aid the fight to
cut serious and organised crime.
As a trainee you will receive comprehensive training which will prepare and enable you
to complete the Intelligence Analyst role. You will learn about analysis, exploitation
and making recommendations to support the development of intelligence. You will
learn about and gain access to a wide range of covert and overt capabilities to inform
this work, in support of both tactical and strategic objectives.
Intelligence officer
As an NCA Intelligence Officer, you will be working at the centre of the action,
undertaking and helping to prioritise development work on tasked projects and
operations in the UK and overseas. You will play a key role in contributing towards the
NCA’s mission of protecting the public from serious and organised crime.
You will receive comprehensive training to enable you to competently collect,
evaluate, develop and exploit intelligence from a range of sources. This training,
together with mentoring and support will see you build specialist knowledge around a
range of threat areas affecting the UK.
Your role will see you interacting with other NCA departments and teams, as well as
external partners including government, Law Enforcement, UK Intelligence
Community, public, private and third sector partners. You will be directing and
supporting tactical operational activity in the UK and overseas to cause maximum
disruption to individuals and groups involved in serious organised crime.
As an Intelligence Officer you will work closely with Intelligence Analysts using
multiple data sets to build and develop knowledge. Your work will contribute to the
NCA’s National Strategic Assessment by building understanding of the threat to the
UK from serious and organised crime.
Working as an Intelligence Officer is an exciting and rewarding role which is hugely
varied and challenging. There are a number of roles available within several different
departments. Depending on your role there may be the opportunity to travel within the
UK and Internationally.
Please Note:
- You will be able to submit your preference(s) in terms of pathways at a later point in the application process. Preferences will be considered but cannot be guaranteed. You may be posted to any pathway, dependent on business needs.
- To enable the NCA to respond agilely to evolving threats, successful candidates must be flexible and may be required to move to different roles to meet business needs.
- The number of immediate and future roles at each location may vary due to business requirements. Intelligence Officer and Intelligence Analyst pathways are currently only available in London, Warrington, Birmingham or Bristol. If you are successful and have applied to any other location, you will be considered for the Investigations pathway.
- Candidates on the intelligence officer/analyst pathway will be expected to undertake Managing Secret and Sensitive Intelligence training within the role as a mandatory requirement.
- Successful candidates at sift will be invited to a virtual interview. Candidates will be required to pass the interview in order to progress to the next stage.
You must meet the essential criteria and evidence this within your application to be considered for the role.
Entry Requirements
- Must be able to travel for training to various UK sites.
- Must be able to commit to 40 hours a week following successful completion of the pathway (37 hours a week for the initial training period).
- Must be able to be flexible and to work variable shift patterns as required. Following successful completion of the pathway, candidates may be expected to work shift patterns and be on-call.
- Some roles require officers to obtain DV or DV STRAP within 12 months of entry. If DV or DV STRAP cannot be obtained, you will be required to move to a non-DV role.
- Hybrid working cannot be accommodated in all roles, and will not normally be able to be accommodated at all until after the full two year training programme has been completed.
Qualifications, Membership and Licences
- Full, valid UK driving license (includes Full EU License) (Investigations only).
- GCSE English and Mathematics achieving a minimum Grade 5/C or equivalent.
Any applications from candidates not meeting this eligibility criteria will not progress.
A pay flexibility case seeking to modernise NCA pay frameworks was approved by the Government in July 2026. The NCA recognises and engages in collective bargaining with three trade unions: The National Crime Officers Association (NCOA), Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) and FDA. Therefore, our terms and conditions are currently undergoing a formal review, in consultation with these recognised trade unions. The outcome is expected to be known by early 2027.
Allowances are reviewed annually and may be increased, decreased or removed.
All salary offers will be made in line with Remuneration Policy.
- Roles based in London will receive an additional London Weighting (Per Annum) of £4,379
- Roles based in the South-East will receive an additional South-East Allowance (Per Annum) of £3,504
All NCA employees are members of the UK Civil Service and eligible for the Civil Service pension scheme, alongside your salary the NCA contributes £10,843. Further information on the benefits of the scheme is available on the Civil Service Pension Website.
New entrants to the NCA receive 26 days annual leave, rising to 31 on completion of 5 years continuous service, plus 8 bank holidays.
If qualifying criteria is met new joiners from UK Police Forces or the UK Intelligence Community (UKIC) will have service with those employers taken into account for continuous service purposes for annual leave entitlement only, this will be up to a maximum of 31 days leave (including 1 privilege day).
Other benefits include:
- Flexible working, including flexi-time, compressed hours and job sharing (in line with business requirements)
- Family friendly policies, notably above the statutory minimum
- Learning and Development opportunities
- Interest free loans and advances, including season tickets, childcare and rental deposits
- Discounts and Savings with a wide variety of services including Cycle to Work, Smart Tech schemes, dental insurance, gym discounts and savings on everyday spending, available through the Reward Gateway | Edenred and Blue Light Card schemes.
- Staff support groups/networks
- Sports and social activities, including membership to the Civil Service Sports Council (CSSC)
Following successful completion of NCA Phase One, you will transition to the NCA Spot Rate pay structure and receive G5 Spot Rate 1 – Developing. At this stage, you will retain G6 Trainee status and your contracted working hours will increase to 40 hours per week.
Following completion of Phase One, you will commence working towards the required accreditation. Progression to Phase Two is subject to successful completion of NCA Foundation Exams 1 and 2.
The ODP may take up to two years to complete. Upon successful completion of the programme, you will be appointed as a G5 Officer – Investigations, Intelligence or Intelligence Analyst with a base salary aligned to G5 Spot Rate 2 – Developing.
Successful completion of the NCA Foundation Exams is a requirement of the programme. Where a trainee is unsuccessful in passing the required examinations, following all authorised retake opportunities, their employment with the NCA will be terminated. In such circumstances, the NCA may, at its absolute discretion, consider offering a suitable Grade 6 role as an alternative to termination.
Selection Process Details
This vacancy is using the Success Profiles framework and will assess using the following criteria: Behaviours, Experience
Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
How we will assess you
Your application will be assessed against the following:
Experience Criteria - will be assessed by 250word examples on:
- Experience in taking initiative to resolve a problem or improve a situation
- Experience of gathering and interpreting information from a range of sources to make an informed decision
- Experience of working in a team to achieve a common goal.
A panel will assess how well your application demonstrates the requirements outlined above.
In the event of a high number of applications, we may operate a longlist. Applicants will need to meet the minimum pass mark for the lead criteria.
- Experience in taking initiative to resolve a problem or improve a situation.
Candidates who do not meet the minimum pass mark for the lead criteria will not progress to having their other criteria assessed. Applications must meet the minimum criteria to be progressed to the assessment stage.
You will receive an acknowledgement once your application is submitted.
We aim to have sift completed and scores released within 10 working days of the closing date of the advert. For high volume campaigns this timeframe may be extended.
Scores will be provided but further feedback will not be available at this stage.
The format of this assessment will be Interview which will be tested on the criteria listed in the Success Profiles at Assessment section.
If you are successful you will be invited to the second assessment.
Assessment 2
The format of this assessment will be Assessment Centre which will be tested on via the details listed below.
Candidates successful at interview will be invited to an in-person assessment centre.
The assessment centre will be an all day event that will consist of the following:
Candidates will be required to complete two written assessments and a role-play assessmentas part of the selection process.
To progress, candidates must achieve a pass mark in at least one of the three assessments. Candidates who do not achieve a pass mark in any of the assessments will not progress further in the recruitment process.
Only candidates who meet this minimum assessment requirement will be considered for progression.
Substance Tests
As part of the recruitment process, candidates will be required to undertake a substance test in line with National Crime Agency requirements.
Further information will be provided to successful candidates from interview.
Please Note: Candidates are responsible for any costs associated with attending the assessment centre. Unfortunately, we are unable to reimburse travel, accommodation, or any other expenses.
Post- Assessment
Following the assessment centre, successful candidates will be posted in merit order of location and aligned to business priority.
Whilst candidates' pathway preferences will be taken into consideration wherever possible, allocation to a pathway will be based on aptitude assessment performance, organisational requirements and operational needs. Therefore, a preferred pathway cannot be guaranteed.
Outcomes will be communicated via the NCA recruitment portal.
If successful but no role is immediately available, you may be placed on a reserve list for 12 months.
Reserve lists can be used to fill similar role types across the Agency where the assessment criteria is considered a match by the recruitment team and the business area.
In the event of a tie at the assessment stage, available roles will be offered in merit order using the following order:
- Lead criteria (behaviours/technical/experience)
- If still tied, desirable criteria will be assessed (if advertised)
- If still tied, application sift scores will be used
Feedback is provided only to those who attend an assessment.
You will be subject to vetting and pre-employment checks before appointment.
Once the vacancy closes, the advert will no longer be accessible. Please save a copy for your records.
Eligibility, Pre-Employment Check and Vetting
If you are an internal candidate who has passed interview but is undergoing an internal investigation or have a written warning in place preventing a post move you may not be able to be posted until this investigation is concluded or restriction lifted.
Nationality Requirements
This role is broadly open to the following groups:
• UK nationals or dual nationals, where one component is British
• 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)
• 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
You will be required to participate in digital right to work and address checks as part of the recruitment process.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is SC Enhanced. All security clearances will be managed by the NCA.
Prior to commencing the role, you will need to successfully complete SC Enhanced clearance.
The requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years.
Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.
For further information on National Security Vetting checks please visit the following page Demystifying Vetting
Individuals will be required to undertake and pass a substance misuse test as part of pre-employment checks.
Occupational Health
Successful candidates will be expected to undertake an occupational health assessment. Depending on the role an in-person medical may be required in either London or Warrington. Unfortunately, travel costs will not be reimbursed.
Things you need to know
Multi Location
Where multiple locations are advertised, appointments will be made in merit order for each location.
Please indicate up to three location preferencesclearly. Only your first three preferences will be considered.You may be allocated to any of the locations you select. If decline an offer for a location you have selected as a preference, a further offer may not be made.
If you choose to reject an offer and no alternative preferred location can be offered, you will not be able to return to the process or be placed on a reserve list .
Only the advertised locations are available; any additional notes added to the application will not be taken into account.
Near Miss
If you meet the criteria for a lower grade, you may be offered that role if not appointable at the advertised grade.
Conversely, if found appointable at a higher grade but no posts are available, you may be offered a lower-grade role.
All offers are made based on merit.
Hybrid Working
The NCA supports hybrid working. The extent of remote working will depend on the role and can be discussed at the offer stage.
Reasonable Adjustments
We’re proud to be a Disability Confident Leader and an inclusive, equal opportunities employer.
We’re committed to creating a workplace where everyone can be their authentic self. If you’re neurodiverse, have a disability, or live with a long-term health condition, we encourage you to let us know about any reasonable adjustments you may need during the recruitment process.
If you experience accessibility issues with the advert or require reasonable adjustments, please contact our Recruitment Team at central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk before the advert closing date.
Please ensure you complete the ‘Equal opportunities’ and 'Reasonable Adjustments' sections in the application form to inform us on what support you may need in the recruitment process.
In order to monitor the effectiveness of the National Crime Agency's Diversity & Inclusion strategy, we require certain personal details about you on submission of your application for statistical and monitoring purposes only. Please note that this will be treated in confidence and will not impact your application.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.
If you believe your application has not been treated fairly, email: central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk (quoting the vacancy reference). If unresolved, you may elevate your complaint to the Civil Service Commission .
Working for the NCA
The National Crime Agency is a 24/7 organisation, and working patterns must support business requirements. Some roles may require you to respond at short notice or outside of core hours.
If preferable, alternative contract types may be available. Please review the green bar of this advert to view all available contract types for this role. Where Loan or Secondment options are available, these would be for existing Civil Servants (Loan) and applicants from accredited Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) or any other employer (Secondment). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.
For any specific queries about the role that are not covered by the advert, please contact:
Name : Central Recruitment Team
Email : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk
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