About the job

Job summary

Intercept Operations is a key part of the NCA’s Intelligence Directorate.

Operating within the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 Intercept Operations officers target and intercept criminal communications. Officers apply their specialist skills to analyse the content of communications, identifying tactical and strategic intelligence which drives the Agency’s response.

Working collaboratively with NCA Investigations, other intelligence departments, UKIC and broader Law Enforcement partners, Intercept Operations are at the forefront of NCA operations tackling Serious and Organised Crime.

Job description

Intercept Operations (IO) Officers are responsible for the covert collection and analysis of criminal communications. The unique and critical insight provided by IO means that Officers are at the forefront of tacking the threat from Serious and Organised Crime, providing the intelligence obtained from intercepted communications to operational teams to effect arrests, the seizure of money, drugs and firearms and prevent loss of life.

Successful candidates will undertake a dedicated training programme to ensure they have the skills needed to operate effectively in this rewarding and dynamic environment.

• This is a designated post that is open to UK Nationals. 
• IPP Accreditation or equivalent experience in a relevant role is desirable but not essential.
• All successful candidates must be able to attain DV clearance within 12 months. 
• Your appointment as an TI officer of the National Crime Agency and continued employment is dependent on successful completion of the Pre-Training Assessment and a 10 week TI training programme (which is pass or fail).

***To be considered, you will need to successfully complete SC Enhanced clearance before commencing the role and achieve DV clearance within the first 12 months in post.***

***All NCA officers must hold SC Enhanced upon entry as a minimum. To meet the National Security Vetting requirements for this role you will need to have resided in the UK for a minimum of 3 out of the past 5 years. For DV clearance you will need to have resided in the UK for a minimum of 5 out of the past 7 years. For more information please see the Candidate information Pack***

Person specification

Responsibilities:

• Within the department specialist skilled Officers exploit intercepted communications to direct response to the highest harm criminals impacting the UK.
• The NCA’s pursuit of criminals operating upstream, overseas and online requires an intercept capability that can produce live-time tactical intelligence to operational teams. Officers apply their expert knowledge to intercepted product to produce timely tactical and strategic intelligence. This mission critical capability underpins operational activity, whether it is identifying and disseminating intelligence around a firearms, cash or drugs handover or an opportunity to identify a person of interest, Interceptors ensure that NCA operations are directed to achieve the greatest impact.
• Working alongside a number of the NCA’s other covert intelligence capabilities Officers play a pivotal role, drawing intelligence from a range of sources to determine the required response.
• This is a challenging but rewarding role unlike any other, the position afforded to Interceptors means you will gain an unparalleled insight and understanding of Serious Organised Crime. You can expect a varied and fulfilling career with exposure to all the threats that the NCA targets, no two days will ever be quite the same.
• As well as directly contributing to operational results you will also learn to manage high-pressure situations and apply your training to deliver the national Kidnap response, working with operational teams to recover hostages and arrest those responsible. You will also respond to threat to life situations, ensuring that whether as a result of a drug dispute or exploitation of trafficked migrants, life is preserved and the public is protected.
• Intercept Operations is an aptitude based role, our Pre-Training Assessment is designed to identify if you have the aptitude needed. As a result it does not matter what your background is, whilst IPP or PIP accreditation will give you a great starting point and valuable experience, our in house training team will ensure you have all the necessary skills to operate successfully as an Interceptor.
• As the nature of criminal communications and technology continues to develop the skills of Intercept Officers must also adapt. Significant focus is placed on the development of new ways to target and exploit content and any interest, skills or experience you have in data exploitation, programming or foreign languages will also give you a good basis from which to develop your skills as an Interceptor.
• Once in post successful candidates will undertake a 10 week Intercept Training Programme to develop your ability to interpret and manage intercepted product.
• The NCA is a 24/7 organisation, successful candidates will be required to work shifts. An early shift is 06:30 to 14:30 and late is 14:00 – 22:00 with a night shift 22:00-06:30. You are also required to work 1 weekend in 4. Requirement will be directed by your line manager.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £34,672, National Crime Agency contributes £9,361 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

If you wish to apply for this vacancy, you must submit your application by 23:55 on Sunday 17th December 2023.

You will be asked to complete a CV as part of the application process,  Please see the candidate information pack for more information.

During the application process you will be asked to complete a personal statement assessing the below criteria.

• Effective communication to a wide range of stakeholders
• Application of understanding to solve problems
• Ability to analyse information from a wide range of sources

Once submitted your application will be acknowledged by the Government Recruitment Service.

Candidates must pass this criteria for their application to be progressed.

A panel will then assess your application to select those demonstrating the best fit for the role by considering the evidence you have provided against the criteria set out in the Entry Criteria section.

Failure to address any or all of these may affect your application.

Sift results are expected to be released w/c 8th January 2024.

Candidates successful at shortlisting will be invited to attend a half day Pre-Training Assessment (PTA). Candidates are required to pass the PTA in order to be invited to interview.
Any candidate who has previously completed and passed the NCA TI Pre-Training Assessment and/or the Intercept Training Programme (previously LITP or Foundation Course) will not be required to attend the PTA and can progress to the next stage of the recruitment process.

Interviews will take place throughout January and February 2024 - locations to be confirmed. Please be advised that the type of interview (eg. virtual/face-to-face) may be subject to change and successful candidates will be notified of this prior to attending. However the interview is conducted, the interview criteria will remain as shown on page 19 of the Candidate Information pack.

The above sift and interview dates are an indicative timeline.

Should you be successful at sift but cannot attend on the interview date(s) listed the recruitment team cannot guarantee an alternative date. Please contact the recruitment team.

You will then be asked to attend an interview in order to have a more in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence.

Full details of the assessment process will be made available to shortlisted candidates.

Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Any instances of plagiarism including copying of examples/answers from internet sources will result in a withdrawal of your application. Further action, including disciplinary action, may be considered in such cases involving internal candidates. Providing false or misleading information would be contrary to the core values of honesty and integrity expected of all Civil Servants.

 

Multi-Location

Where more than one location is advertised, candidates will be appointed in merit order for each location. You will be asked to state your location preference on your application.

Please be aware that you can be posted to any location that you put in your preferences. If you would only like to be posted to one location, please confirm one location only. If you are posted to a location that you have requested and you do not accept that location, you may not be offered another role.

Please note, only advertised location can be offered. Notes populated in a free text box will not be taken into consideration.

Near Miss

Candidates who are judged to be a near miss at interview may be considered for other positions in the NCA which may be at a lower grade, but have a potential skills match.

Hybrid Working

Here at the NCA we have a hybrid working arrangement in place enabling officers to work a proportion of their role remotely. Eligibility and the degree of home working will vary depending on the requirements of the role. Further details can be discussed at offer stage.

Reasonable Adjustment

We are committed to ensuring our recruitment process is inclusive and accessible to all. As part of our application process you will be prompted to provide details of any reasonable adjustment to our recruitment process that you may need. If you have a disability or long-term condition (a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long term effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities protected under the Equality Act 2010) and need us to make any adjustments or do anything differently during the recruitment process, please let us know by emailing ncarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Please contact us by emailing ncarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk or calling 0117 372 0000 as soon as possible before the closing date if you wish to discuss any reasonable adjustments before applying.

 

Inclusion and Accessibility

The NCA embraces and values diversity in all forms. Being truly reflective of the communities we serve and building a culture where everyone can perform at their best is critical to leading the UK’s fight against serious and organised crime – something which affects us all. We want to recruit and retain the very best and broadest diversity of officers so the NCA welcomes applications from individuals from all backgrounds.

We are proud to be an inclusive, equal opportunities employer. As a Disability Confident Leader we are committed to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment process.

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact ncarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

VETTING REQUIREMENTS SC

All security clearances require you to provide evidence of your UK footprint where you have been physically present in the UK.

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.

If you require SC clearance you will need to provide evidence of the below requirements.

Checks will be made against:

• Departmental or company records (personnel files, staff reports, sick leave reports and security records)
• UK criminal records covering both spent and unspent criminal records.
• Your credit and financial history with a credit reference agency
• Security Services records

VETTING REQUIREMENTS - DV 

All security clearances require you to provide evidence of your UK footprint where you have been physically present in the UK.

The requirement for DV is to have been present in the UK for at least 7 of the last 10 years.

Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.

If you require DV clearance you will need to provide evidence of the below requirements.

Checks will be made against:

•       successful completion of the BPSS
•       UK criminal record and identity checks
•       credit reference checks
•       relevant personnel and medical checks (if required)

 

We encourage all candidates to thoroughly review the candidate pack which explains the role further before submitting an application.

If you have any specific queries about the role that are not covered by the candidate pack, please contact:

ncarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• 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) (opens in a new window)
• 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

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. 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.