British Transport Police (BTP) is the national police force for the rail network in England, Scotland and Wales. Every day we ensure the safety and security of over six million passengers and railway staff.

In response to the UK threat level from international terrorism, and to ensure we have the right level of resources to respond to any threat, we are recruiting in Birmingham, Manchester and London. This is your opportunity to join a modern and forward-thinking force in a highly-trained role as one of our Authorised Firearms Officers (AFOs).

Our Authorised Firearms Officers provide the travelling public with a highly visible and reassuring presence, helping to achieve our objective to increase public confidence, whilst also working to detect and deter terrorism on the rail network. Our firearms officers are trained to the same national Armed Response Vehicle (ARV) profile used across all UK police forces, and are able to provide a swift and capable response to live incidents and emerging threats.

Please see the attached Candidate Information Pack for further information.

Application Process

Applying is easy; simply click on 'Apply' at the bottom left of this page and you will be taken through the process. You will be required to submit a copy of your full firearms training record (Chronicle or similar) for consideration as part of the shortlisting process. All applications must be completed online via this method, and applications which are not supported by a training record will not be considered.

This is the avenue for candidates applying from an ARV role within a Home Office force.

Initial eligibility criteria

At the time of application, you must be able to confirm:

• Successful completion of two-year probationary period as a Student Officer
• Currently serving in an armed capacity, or have served in an armed capacity within the last 12 months*
• Successful completion of Firearms Training to Armed Response (ARV) standard or higher
• Can provide certification to confirm licensing as an Authorised Firearms Officer
• If applying as a re-joiner, must have resigned or retired from previous Force.
• Must not have any findings of guilt for complaints for poor performance or subject to any current investigations for misconduct
• Must not currently be subject to an unsatisfactory performance review or action plan
• All mandatory training is up to date
• Served a minimum of 12 months in your current role if you have previously transferred from a force from which we do not accept transferees (MOD/CNC)

You will not be eligible to apply if you have an existing CCJ or IVA outstanding against you. Failure to disclose any of the above will lead to your application being rejected.

Applicants with a criminal record will be reviewed on a case by case basis, but may be rejected from the process dependent on the date and nature of the conviction. You are encouraged to email recruitmentteam@btp.pnn.police.uk if you have any queries on previous convictions.

*Please be advised if you applying as a re-joiner your start date must fall within 12 months of your last date in service as an operational Firearms Officer. Please contact recruitment prior to application to check future course dates.*

The closing date for this vacancy is Friday 31st December at 13:00pm and interviews will take place in January/February 2022.

We are currently looking at a start date of June 2022 for a bespoke Transferee Course however this will depend on amount of external interest from this campaign.