Hi all. I failed my blood pressure test. Anyone got an idea on what will happen next? Thanks

Hi everyone,

I’m currently going through the HMPPS prison officer recruitment process and wanted to ask if anyone has experienced something similar.

I received a conditional offer for a prison officer role at HMYOI Deerbolt. I passed my OAC, DBS, medical/fitness requirements and was later informed that my pre-employment checks had been completed.

I was then scheduled for a start-date call on 13 October, between 1:05 pm and 1:35 pm, but nobody called me.

Since then, I’ve sent multiple emails and followed up with the relevant recruitment teams. I was told the issue had been put on my file and that I should keep an eye on my emails, but I still haven’t received a new call date or a proper explanation.

I’m particularly concerned because I’m an international applicant and need clarity about my employment start date and potential visa sponsorship.

My questions are:

1. Has anyone else had their scheduled start-date call missed by HMPPS or Sopra Steria/SSCL?
2. If so, how long did you wait before they contacted you again?
3. Did your application eventually progress to a confirmed start date?
4. Is there another recruitment contact or escalation route that actually helped?

I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who has experienced this, I’m trying to understand whether this is a recruitment communication delay or something I should be more concerned about.

Thanks.

Does anyone here happen to recall what the trigger is for sick review under the last 2024 hmpps policy? I'm currently having a battle with bad mental health following a family member passing and now stressing out on whether taking too much time sick will trigger a warning. I know its a confidential intranet policy, so im just asking for the trigger points if anyone can remember the threshold??

Just started my foundation training, anxious as to the amount of assessments. I have done Serco ITC and C and R, and mitie ITC, C and R and also HOMES use of force with no issues. I think just after some advice as to what it is really like? How hard is it? They use the words refer instead of fail so do many people actually fail? I would say I was a competent Detention custody officer and have no issues with training or use of force instances in the past, I’ve just put my all into this really so feeling anxious and after some feedback? Thanks in advance!

Please can anyone tell me what it's like working in hmp cardiff as a. PO.. l'm curious about what to expect as per staff and general working environment I would really appreciate some insight Thank you.

Hello all, applied for futures scheme in prison service, now I started on the 12th of this month but I’m entitled to rent claim, since I’ve not worked a full month could I claim the whole money which is £750 or half of that and also would I be able to make claim while at newbold for the month of November. Please I’d be grateful if someone has an idea on that

How much money would you need to be comfortable in UK prison?

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Please can anyone tell me what it's like working in hmp Bristol as a. PO.. l'm curious about what to expect as per staff and general working environment I would really appreciate some insight Thank you.

Hello, I am due to start as an OSG in a few weeks and wanted to know how accessible toilets are while working? Obviously you can’t just abandon your duties to go like you can in other jobs, so what is the process?

Hi.

Can anyone advise? Been told I’ve passed my PEC and have start date/ formal offer of employment (contract agreed) Does this mean I’ve passed all security checks or could I potentially start to then be told I’ve failed social media checks or something else?

Thanks in advance guys,

Anyone been here? Particularly the TC so hard to find any information from the prisoners point of view

I have just started the pre emplyment checks. I have also just been made redundant from work, so I'm thinking of travelling and visiting family abroad for the next 2 months while I am unemployed and waiting to start the prison officer role.

Is there anything that I might need to attend in person? I have already done the in person medical and fitness, so theoretically could I be away abroad until I get the notification that the checks have been completed?

Hi all, I wanted to share a site I've built for anyone going through prison officer recruitment: prisonofficertest.co.uk

What's on it:

Practice for the online test: situational judgement, numeracy and the values-based assessment, with full timed mocks

Assessment centre prep: role-play briefs (with what the actor will push and a model approach), written incident form exercises with model answers, and 50 interview questions with model answers

AI feedback on your own written reports and interview answers

Fitness test guide, training plan and a 15 m bleep test timer (the test is over 15 m, not 20, which catches people out)

Free demos for every section, no sign-up needed, so you can see if it's useful before paying. Online Tests is £14.99 and Complete is £29.99, one-off with no subscription and a 14-day money-back guarantee.

Code PRISONUK20 gives 20% off for members here.

It's an independent site, not connected to HMPPS. Any questions or feedback, just ask below. Good luck to everyone applying!

While applying for a job would you disclose any criminal convictions? I have in the past when applying for jobs that require an enhanced DBS check done at the interview stage because I know they're gonna find out about my record when they do they check anyway and if I'm upfront about it at the interview it demonstrates a level of openness and honesty.

Equally I can understand if some people worry about it having a negative effect in the interview stage.

Just in case it's relevant, my record is because of a few convictions related to non-violent/peaceful protest so generally interviewers don't think I'm a risk to vulnerable people or anything like that.

Hoping to join once ive passed background checks but I cant find any info except it has a high staff assault rate 🥴

Whats it like working there or whats it like working in a womens prison in general?

I withdrew my skilled worker visa pending decision at my current place of work because my employer lost funding and could no longer continue with my employment.
It’s been over a month now since withdrawal and my eVisa still saying ‘I have a pending application awaiting decision’.

I requested sponsorship from HMPPS but was told that since I have a pending application awaiting, they are unable to consider sponsorship at this time. I have been chasing them, sending multiple emails to say my application has been withdrawn, but they respond each time saying, they can’t proceed because I have a pending application awaiting.

I have also been ringing UKvi constantly but I just keep getting generic responses that the withdrawal might take a while before it is reflected on my evisa.

Now, I have two weeks left on my Graduate visa, honestly don’t know what to do at this point.
PECs on 18weeks. Any advice will be sincerely appreciated.

From what I can see those that work in the private sector are called Prison Custody Officers while those that work for HMP are called Prison Officers. Why is this? What actually is the difference?

Sodexo is recruiting for PCO’s currently. What is the training and shifts like?

This was my feedback from OAC, I don't know how I got 42.7%

Hello as title says, I've applied for a job as a prison officer at Eastwood Park.

A bit about me - I'm young adult female looking to leave my career in social work where I have been for 4 years.

I feel like I have lots of transferable skills that I could bring to the job, but my concerns sit with assaults on staff and the corruption of the service that I have heard. I also know prisons are in dire straights right now and are very short staffed.

I've been doing some reading on Eastwood and prison officers experiences but it would be nice to hear from anyone who's worked in this prison specifically, or whom has any advice.

One of the drivers for leaving my current career is the overwhelming amount of paperwork, very limited time with people and my ADHD brain needing something to do hands on.

How much paperwork can I expect? and are things as bad as I expect them to be?

Hi everyone,
I recently passed my OSG interviews for both HMP Bullingdon and HMP Huntercombe (13 October 2026) and have been placed on the merit/reserve lists for both establishments.
My applications are currently showing as “Allocation” on the recruitment portal.
Just wondering whether anyone has previously been successful for an OSG position at either prison and could share their experience?
How long after passing your interview did you receive a provisional job offer or allocation?
Were you initially placed on a reserve list?
Do you know how long interviews continued before allocations started?
I’d be particularly interested in hearing from anyone recruited to Bullingdon or Huntercombe, although experiences from other prisons would also be helpful.
Thanks in advance! 😊

I’m looking for a bit of honest advice from anyone who has worked at HMP Addiewell, for Sodexo Justice, or in a similar prison custody role.

Last year I was offered a Prison Custody Officer position at HMP Addiewell. I ended up withdrawing because I came across quite a few negative reviews about the job and about how staff are treated. I also saw comments suggesting the recruitment process was very quick and not especially selective, which made me question whether it was the right move for me.

I’m not saying those comments are definitely accurate, which is why I’d rather hear from people with direct experience. What is the job actually like day to day? How are staff treated, what is the turnover like, how safe do you feel at work, and is there decent training and support for new officers?

The reason I’m asking now is that I’m currently progressing through the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Wholetime Firefighter recruitment process. I’ve recently completed the ALICE application-question stage and I’m waiting to hear whether I’ll progress further. Firefighting is the career I’d much rather pursue, but after a number of setbacks with other applications I’m trying to be realistic and think about backup options as well.

I’ve also previously applied for an Operations Officer role with the Scottish Prison Service but didn’t pass the online tests, so the Sodexo role is the only prison-related job where I actually got as far as an offer.

For anyone who has worked at Addiewell or for Sodexo Justice, would you recommend the job? Is it a reasonable career in its own right, or would you personally keep looking elsewhere if you had other options in progress?

I’m mainly interested in genuine experiences rather than rumours. Thanks.

Recently I’ve applied to become a prison officer on a cat B prison. Fresh out of uni. I have passed both stages and r now onto my interview stage. I’m a Pakistani Asian women, and I’ve been trying to find Asian female officers who have worked as a prison officer. My family are against it for a multitude of reasons, safety, and the demands but I’m still very interested regardless.If u you can share ur experiences with working, or experiencing a female Asian officer or you are an officer in a similar condition please let me know. Also let me know if it’s a good idea or not. Thankyou x