Salary: Band 6, £15,472 rising to £16,666 basic annually (equating to a potential £19,549 - £21,057 with shift and weekend allowances) Please note shift allowances are subject to change based on hours/weekends worked, the amount stated is not definitive, however gives an idea of the potential uplift to your base salary.
Location: Ponteland or South Shields
Hours: Part time 22.27 hours per week, to view the shift pattern
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Working for #TeamNP
Northumbria Police is one of the largest police forces in the country, serving a population of 1.5 million people from a wide range of various communities, covering an area of more than 2,000 square miles.
There are around 5,800 people working at Northumbria Police and 488 more who contribute by volunteering for one of our various volunteer schemes.
A career at Northumbria Police is like no other, it’s our people that make it an exciting and inclusive place to work – a place where you can let your skills shine. We are passionate about where we live and what we do, we deliver exceptional support to our communities, and we work together to make our local area a safer place for us all. Every single person at Northumbria Police is valued for their amazing contribution – and we are all part of something truly special.
What we offer
• 26 days’ leave pro rata (increasing to 30 days pro rata for 5 years+ service) plus 8 bank holidays
• Enhanced Maternity, Shared Parental and Adoption leave
• Fantastic market leading public sector pension scheme
• Corporate Travel schemes – local rail, bus services and metro
• Access to Private Healthcare and Eye Test Vouchers
• Discounts on shopping and eating out thanks to the Blue Light Card and Blue Light Tickets
• To take care of your physical and mental well-being, we’ve invested in extensive paid sick leave, trained mental health first aiders on-site, an employee advice service and access to gyms in some stations
• Sports & Social Club – join our thriving sports scene at Team NP and enjoy further exclusive discounts on days out and travel
• Cycle to work scheme
The role
Here at Northumbria Police, we think our region is amazing! It takes a great deal of people from different backgrounds, with diverse skills and experience to serve the force area effectively, think you have what it takes to help us make a difference? Do you want to be the voice that can help in someone’s time of need? This could be the perfect time for you to join us in our Communications department as a Contact Handler.
As a Contact Handler you play an instrumental role in our response to emergencies, helping the force reduce crime and increase confidence. You are the first point of contact for our community – and will be at the forefront of delivering an outstanding service, as well as coordinating police and emergency service response.
These vacancies are for Contact Handler courses starting June/ August 2023. Training can take up to a maximum of 14 weeks full time and you must be available to attend the full training programme.
What you’ll do
If you join TeamNP you will become part of the fast-paced, customer-focused Communications Centre, based at either Ponteland or South Shields.
As a Contact Handler you will perform one of the most demanding roles in the force and one which is key to inspiring confidence in the community. Although challenging, this role can also be extremely rewarding.
You will gather information from callers by using your excellent communication skills, recording key messages whilst maintaining a professional manner.
You’ll need to be able to accurately input data into various police IT systems and gather information from force databases to support our frontline police officers.
Using your experience, training, and judgement you will assess vulnerability and provide a high quality of service, ensuring the needs of victims and customers are at the heart of what we do.
Calls will include 999 emergency, 101 non-emergency, and any contact made via other means, such as email and digital. It is important to know that you will be working in a dynamic environment dealing with a wide variety of situations daily and managing calls from people who may be distressed or vulnerable. You must be able to work and make decisions under pressure, displaying high levels of emotional resilience to be able to deal with real time emergency situations.
What you’ll bring
• Excellent communication and listening skills.
• Outstanding interpersonal skills with the ability to build rapport quickly.
• A passion for problem-solving.
• The ability to assess and understand key information.
• Confidence to multitask, recording information accurately with attention to detail.
• IT competence across a range of applications.
We know it's important for you to feel that you're not only part of a great team, but part of a community. We welcome applications from suitably qualified people from all sections of the community, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.
Harnessing these differences creates a productive environment in which everyone feels valued, and their talents are fully utilised. Appointments are based on merit alone.
Interested to learn more? For further information about the role please contact Jacqui Turnbull 9820 by email at Jacqui.Turnbull@northumbria.police.uk
Just so you know
Our application form will help us understand how your work experience, education and life experience has prepared you for the role of a Contact Handler with TeamNP. To help support your application research what makes us tick here at Northumbria, the role you’re applying for and the values that contribute.
For any queries about the application process, please contact our Talent Acquisition Team by email at careers@northumbria.police.uk.
If your application is successful, we’ll ask you to complete a Recruitment Vetting (RV) form, therefore you must be a resident of the UK for a minimum period of 3 years to ensure vetting checks can be successfully performed. A job offer will be dependent upon vetting clearance, medical information, and references.
Terms of appointment
This is a permanent role subject to a 24-month commitment to post.
All staff must successfully complete their probationary period before they are eligible to apply for a Northumbria Police vacancy.