The following criteria apply – please click on the heading for further information about that particular point.

You must have a full UK driving licence and live in Sussex
You need to be at least 18 years old
You need to be a British citizen or a member of the EC/EEA
You should not have a criminal record
You must be of sound financial status
You must be physically fit
You need to be in good health medically and physically
Your eyesight needs to meet the eligibility criteria

Other questions you may have

How long does the recruitment process take?
Can I apply to more than one force at a time?
When can I work in specialised units?
What is the starting salary?
Can I choose where I will be posted?

You must have a full UK manual driving license at the time of appointment and live in Sussex
You should not have more than three endorseable traffic convictions (including fixed penalties) and/or two or more convictions for regulatory offences within the last five years such as failure to renew vehicle excise licence. Please note you are not required to hold a driving license at the start of your application. Reasonable adjustments may be considered to those unable to drive due to medical reasons. Applicants must live in Sussex.

You need to be at least 17 years and 6 months old
You must be 18 years of age by the time you are appointed, but are free to apply so long as you're 17 years and 6 months or above. The current, normal retirement age for police constables and sergeants is 60 years. New recruits are required to undertake a two year probationary period.

You need to be a British citizen or a member of the EC/EEA.
You must be a British citizen, an EC/EEA national or a Commonwealth citizen or foreign national with no restrictions on your stay in the United Kingdom. You must also have been a resident in the UK for 3 years immediately prior to your application (the only exception to this rule is if your absence was for less than three months or if you have taken a gap year lasting less than twelve months either pre or post university).

You should not have a criminal record
Police officers must respect and uphold the law. They should be law abiding and have a high standard of personal behaviour and social conduct.

Officers with criminal associations or convictions may be vulnerable to pressure to disclose information. Convictions and cautions can also undermine a police officer’s position as a witness in court. For these reasons, Sussex Police needs to be careful about recruiting people with cautions or convictions.

Applications will therefore not be accepted from any candidate who has received a caution, conviction, fixed penalty notice or bindover for any offence, even if this was as a juvenile or even if this would usually be considered as 'spent' (by virtue of provisions of the Rehabiliation of Offenders Act 1974 - Exemptions Order 1975). On the application form you must declare any involvement you have had with police investigations or with military or transport police, even where the investigation did not lead to a prosecution.

Motoring offences are treated slightly differently - depending on the nature of the offence, the number of offences and how long ago they occurred. Candidates will be rejected if they have any of the following:

Reckless or Dangerous Driving; or one offence of drink driving, drunk in charge or drugs driving within the last ten years.

Other serious motoring offences such as convictions within the last five years, driving without insurance, failing to stop after an accident of driving whilst disqualified.

The above is offered as a guide only. If you have doubts about whether you qualify under this heading, please contact recruitment for further advice.

You must be of sound financial status
Police officers are in a privileged position with regard to access of information and could be considered potentially vulnerable to corruption. Applicants to the police service should not therefore be under pressure from undischarged debts or liabilities and should be able to manage loans and debts sensibly.

Applicants who have existing County Court Judgements outstanding against them or who have been registered bankrupt and their bankruptcy debts have not been discharged will not be considered.

Applicants who have discharged County Court Judgements may be considered.

Applicants who have been registered as bankrupt and their bankruptcy debts have been discharged will only be considered after three years from discharge of the debt.

Recruitment is dependent upon successful financial vetting checks.



You must be physically fit
Applicants must be physically fit enough to perform the duties of a constable safely and effectively to handle police equipment.

As part of the recruitment process you will be required to take the national Job related Fitness Test to ensure you can undertake physically demanding tasks such as running, chasing suspects and handling police equipment. The test is demanding and you will need to start training as soon as you apply. You can read more about the Job Related Fitness test here. You can also download a short video which gives a better of idea of what is expected of you.

You need to be in good health medically and physically
Police officers encounter stressful situations, trauma, physical confrontation and work long hours on shifts. They need to be resilient enough to cope with the demands and pressures of police work. Applicants must therefore be in good health mentally and physically to undertake police duties.

You can find out more about health requirements on the Police Could You? Website.

Your eyesight needs to meet the eligibility criteria
You are eligible if you can see the 4th line from the bottom of an optician’s chart with either your right or left eye and 2nd line from the bottom of the chart with both eyes together with contact lenses or glasses and the 2nd line from the top without.

If you have undergone Radical Kerabotomy (RK) or Arcuate Keratomomy or had a corneal graft then you are not eligible.

If you have undergone other refractive surgery such as Photorefractive Keractectomy (PRK), LASIK, LASKE or ICRS then you will still be eligible as long as six weeks has passed.

Other questions you may have

How long does the recruitment process take?
Currently it takes approximately up to 18 months.

Can I apply to more than one force at a time?
No. We will have to reject your application if you have applied to another force.

When can I work in specialised units?
After completion of your two years probation you may apply for vacancies in specialised units.

What is the starting salary?
With effect from 1st of September 2009 it is £22,680 plus £1,000 South East allowance. With effect from 1st of September 2010 it is £23,259 plus £1,000 South East allowance

Can I choose where I will be posted?
You will be given the opportunity to state your preference of posting, however we must fill vacancies where probationers are required.