Careers in our Control Centre

The Operations Control Centre (OCC) is at the heart of our prisoner escorting operations, and the control room team plays a crucial role in coordinating the safe and efficient transportation of prisoners. For us, it's all about effective planning and logistics, ensuring that we operate in the most efficient way, managing risk, and ensuring safety and security are always our top priority. You will need to be ready to respond quickly and calmly to dynamic situations, often taking the lead with multiple stakeholders.

Prisoners can include adults, young people and children - and we coordinate their secure transportation from A to B, including police stations, courts, prisons, secure training centres and secure children’s schools.

What does our Control Centre team do?

• Plan and coordinate: Oversee the real-time tracking of prisoner escort vans, with effective planning and scheduling of all resources
• Communicate: Maintain clear and effective communication both internally and with external stakeholders.
• Problem-solve: Quickly and efficiently handle any issues or emergencies that arise during transportation.
• Manage data accurately: Analyse and complete reports, recording and managing detailed logs of all activities and incidents.

What training do we offer?

Our comprehensive training programme helps make sure you're ready for anything:

• Introductory training: Your first 2-3 weeks include Serco learning modules
• First Aid and control training: Includes first aid certification and understanding control and restraint techniques
• Buddy system: New starters are paired with experienced team members for hands-on training and support
• Classroom-based learning: Covers policies, procedures, and an introduction to our vehicles and operations

“The OCC is the hub where everything happens. The information comes in from the prisons and police stations overnight, then we allocate vehicles for the morning to make sure everybody gets to court on time.”

Situations you could encounter

• Managing unexpected delays due to traffic or weather conditions
• Coordinating with multiple organisations to ensure the safe arrival of prisoners
• Responding to emergencies with calm and effective solutions

Hours and shifts

• Day shifts: 12-hour shifts from 07:00–19:00, with a rotation of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, followed by Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, then a week of rest days. There will be a rostered day every three weeks to account for annualised hours.
• Night shifts: 12-hour shifts from 19:00–07:00, with a rotation of Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, followed by Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. Night rotations occur about three times a year.

Our vetting process

• Security clearance: Enhanced Level 2 clearance is required
• Timescales: The vetting process takes approximately 6-8 weeks

Join our team

Ready to make a difference? Apply now to join our dedicated control centre team.