City of London Special Constabulary Eligibility Checklist
To apply to join the City of London Special Constabulary you must be able to commit to the
following Terms of Service:
 To attend the classroom sessions and complete the self-study of the City of London
Special Constabulary Student Initial Training Programme. (See FAQS for the dates).
 Once you have completed the City of London Special Constabulary Student Initial
Training Programme, you will perform a minimum of 50 hours duty per Quarter (January
to March, April to June, July to September, October to December).
 To perform uniform response duties on Thursday or Friday evenings from 1830 hours to
2300 hours.
 To remain fit for duty i.e. to carry out policing duties competently, safely and lawfully.
If you can commit to the preceding Terms, please answer the following questions. If you
answer ‘Yes’ to any question, you will not be able to apply to join the City of London Special
Constabulary. If you have any questions please contact City of London Police HR Services by
emailing hrservices@cityoflondon.pnn.police.uk or calling 020 7601 2845.
Eligibility Criteria
Yes No
Are you younger than 18 years old?
Are there any restrictions on your right to remain in the UK?
(You must be a British citizen; a national of the EEA or EU (excluding Bulgaria
and Romania); or a national of any other country (including Bulgaria and
Romania) free of restrictions to remain in the UK or have an entitlement to do
so to be eligible to apply.)
Have you been absent from the UK for a total of three months in the past 3
years?
(Applicants must have resided continuously in the UK for the last 3 years, any
absence being no more than 3 months during this time. Applicants who have
resided abroad due to serving in the UK armed services or UK Government
Service are considered to have been resident in the UK.)
Are you a member of the British National Party, National Front or Combat 18 or
any other similar organisation?
Have you served any period of imprisonment or youth detention?
Do you have tattoos or piercings that could cause offence?
For example, they: undermine the dignity and authority of the office of
constable; could cause offence to members of the public or colleagues; be
considered garish, lewd or provocative; be numerous or particularly prominent
on the hands, forearms, neck or face.
Do you have outstanding County Court Judgements, have been registered
bankrupt with outstanding debts, have default accounts, or are subject to an
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Individual Voluntary Arrangement, Debt Referral Order, Debt Management
Programme, or a Voluntary Agreement registered with the County Court.
The following questions are about your employment:
Eligibility Criteria
Yes No
Are you a Police and Crime Commissioner?
Are you ‘member of a police force’ designated by the Police Act 1996, Police
Service of Northern Ireland, Police Scotland, States of Jersey Police, Isle of Man
Police, Guernsey Police, Garda Siochana, Ministry of Defence Police, Civil
Nuclear Constabulary, Northern Ireland Guard Service or any other police force?
Are you employed by any other Government or national crime investigation or
enforcement agency (e.g. the National Crime Agency) with limited policing
powers?
Are you a Police Community Support Officer?
Are you a member of a private or employer police force?
Do you work for the Crown Prosecution Service?
Are you a magistrate, judge or justices’ clerk?
Are you a Prison Officer?
Are you a traffic warden, civil enforcement officer or school crossing patrol
officer?
Are you a neighbourhood warden, street warden or other uniformed patrol
warden?
Are you an Immigration Officer?
Are you a Revenue and Customs Officer with warranted powers?
Are you are a Police Staff Investigator or other investigating officer, whether
designated as such under Section 38 of the Police Reform Act 2002 or not, of
any police force or law enforcement agency?
Are you a member of the UK Armed Services?
(This does not include those serving in the UK Armed Services Reserves).
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Are you a bailiff or warrant officer?
Are you a private detective or inquiry agent?
Are you a door supervisor, security guard or employed by a private security
company organisation with public-facing duties?
Are you a Revenue Protection Officer or similar?
Are you a Highway Agency Traffic Officer in an ‘on-road’ role?
Are you actively involved in politics?
Are you a front-line manager of a licensable activity or betting or gaming
establishment in the City of London Police District?
Do you, your spouse, or partner hold a licence or permit in pursuance of the law
relating to liquor licensing, refreshment house or betting and gaming or
regulating places of entertainment within the City of London Police District?
Are you a member of the Corporation of London Police Committee?
If your circumstances change once you have applied to join the City of London Special
Constabulary such that you answer ‘Yes’ to any of the above questions, then you must
advise HR Department by emailing hrservices@cityoflondon.pnn.police.uk or calling 020
7601 2845 as soon as possible.
There are criteria around your fitness and health.
 Certain medical conditions may prevent you from becoming a Special Constable. If
you successfully pass the Assessment Centre, you will need to ask your GP to
complete a medical questionnaire and you will need an eyesight test. You will be
assessed by the City of London Police Occupational Health Department to determine
whether you can join the City of London Special Constabulary.
 More
information
on
the
eyesight
standards
is
available
at
http://www.policecouldyou.co.uk/documents/hoc-25-2003.html.
 More
information
on
the
medical
standards
is
available
at
http://www.policecouldyou.co.uk/documents/hoc-59-2004.html.
 As you may need to chase a suspect you need to be physically fit. To join the City of
London Special Constabulary you need to be able to complete a shuttle run, or bleep
test. The same shuttle run will need to be completed at least annually to ensure you
remain fit. The shuttle run, is to level 5.4. This is broken down as follows:
Level
Shuttles per Level
Seconds per Shuttle
1
7 x 15m
7
2
8 x 15m
7
3
8 x 15m
6
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4
8 x 15m
6
5
4 x 15m
6
More
information
on
the
shuttle
run
is
available
at
http://www.policecouldyou.co.uk/documents/fitness-test-bleep.html
and
http://www.policecouldyou.co.uk/documents/fitness-test-info.html. You will be
allowed to attempt the fitness test once per application.
There are also criteria around convictions and cautions. You will not be able to apply if you
have served any period of imprisonment or youth detention. All other convictions and
cautions etc will be considered on individual merit, taking into consideration the
circumstances of the offence, age when the offence was committed, lapse of time since the
offence, and evidence of good character since the offence.
You must declare all convictions, cautions, reprimands, warnings, absolute and conditional
discharges, bind-overs, traffic offences (including fixed penalty notices, excluding parking
offences), penalty notices for disorder, any other fixed penalty notices, subject of an AntiSocial Behaviour Orders, Football Spectator Banning Orders, Risk of Sexual Harm Orders,
Harassment Orders, involvement with military authorities on disciplinary matters,
involvement in any criminal investigation, or having been associated with criminals on the
application form – otherwise your application will be rejected.
Please note that there are other factors which may prevent you from joining the City of
London Special Constabulary.
Some circumstances and occupations may require you to agree to a Memorandum of
Understanding if you are successful in your application. If these impact you, they will be
discussed with you after you apply.
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