Ex-cop to RAF Police Officer

[LSOB]

Ladies and Gents

I'm not sure if this is in the right place so please feel free to move if necessary.

I'm an ex-cop who had been working for a Home Office force. Loads of reasons for leaving but the back stabbing lack of support was my main jumping point.

I have been looking at RAF Police Officer as I am 33 and too old to join as an airman. I am engaged to be married and hoping to be starting a family.

The recruiting standards on the RAF website are GCSE and A-Levels or equivalent. I have an NVQ Level 4 and Level 3 in Policing which are in excess of A-Levels. I have emailed RAF Careers who told me they couldn't answer my question and to ring. I rang and was then told they didn't know why I had been told to call as they didn't know the answer. I asked for RAF Police recruiting and/or someone at OASC but they couldn't pass my details on or provide me with the details. I'm basically wondering whether they could (if they want) accept those qualifications as they are directly related to the role (except any green training).

I have done a bit of background and spoke with a RAFP Flight Sergeant at an RAF Station that shall remain unnamed to protect him. The first plus point he mentioned was that it isn't like the Police and they don't hunt their own (as in RAFP colleagues). He said that if I wanted any action then I should go Airman (obviously I can't). He said that officers do get 'involved' but their practical policing inabilities tend to show. He said it would be great to have an ex-cop on board and that I could be in a position to push for change after a few years.

However, does anyone know what my realistic chances are?

Thanks in advance.

 

[chiprafp]

I think the best you can do is apply and let them decide the equivalency of your qualifications but am surprised they could not give you an indication.

Good luck with it though.

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[Digzster]

Quote: "Loads of reasons for leaving but the back stabbing lack of support was my main jumping point."

Chip,

I think the OP will be sadly disappointed if he thinks us blue suits are any different!

When I read this the first thing I thought was "who's reading my mind"! Oh well, 8 weeks to go before they start calling me Mister and I have to pay tax on fuel.

 

[chiprafp]

Ahhh but he will be an officer ;-)

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[Digzster]

Ahhh but he will be an officer ;-)

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And the difference in this case is?.....................................

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[LSOB]

Ah crap...is it going to be out of the frying pan and into the fire???

 

[Stevienics]

Cool the heels a bit

Baseline, and you can check with Warwick Hunt, you are going to need GCSEs in English and Maths as I understand it.

It may have changed, but in practice they always insisted on this.

 

[Iceman999]

Slightly off topic but relating to age...........Is it 29 and that's it with the RAF? You have to enlist before you're 29th birthday? Why is this when the Army and Navy take people up until 33? The Army in particular would have more reasons physically than the RAF to stipulate 29 but don't.

Is it purely the RAF is never short of applicants/potential recruits and use this as another filtering tool like they do with gcse's???

Not knocking the RAF, just wanted to know the reasoning behind it if anyone knows?

 

[Digzster]

Ah crap...is it going to be out of the frying pan and into the fire???

LSOB,

Don't take my comments too much to heart. You will need to retain a sense of humour in whatever job you go to (it's just that forces humour is a bit darker, be warned)! DT_Xtremez_30:

Hope that you can get a result.

 

[Gonterseed]

Well said Digzster. Before I got on the train to Swinderby almost everyone I knew (including my dear old Dad) seemed to have heaps of stories about how crap it is going to be and all the sh!t that they experienced. By the time I'd been in a couple of years I was wondering what they were all on about. Most of the "not so enjoyable and challenging" situations, people, activities etc are made a lot worse by crew room banter.

 

[chiprafp]

Been in 16 years and to be honest the majority of it I have loved. There has been some back stabbing but generally people who are into that get found out and side lined quite easily.

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[LSOB]

I made my call to RAF Careers line again and the girl I spoke to was much more helpful. She reckoned that my NVQ Level 3 and Level 4 in Policing would be accepted as an equivalent for A-Levels. However, she said that I will probably need to get key skills in Maths. But then she put a caveat on it - 'it depends on whether the AFCO are prepared to put you forward.'

So, a call will be made to my AFCO tomorrow...

 

[Warwick Hunt]

Cool the heels a bit

Baseline, and you can check with Warwick Hunt, you are going to need GCSEs in English and Maths as I understand it.

It may have changed, but in practice they always insisted on this.

That is correct. The minimum quals required for commissioning into the RAF Police are 5 x GCSEs, or equivalent, at grade C or above, including Maths and English, plus 2 x A Levels, or equivalent, at grade C or above. NVQ level 4 can be accepted as A Level equivalent but liaise with your local AFCO.

Good luck.

 

[NotAnIDOYet]

That is correct. The minimum quals required for commissioning into the RAF Police are 5 x GCSEs, or equivalent, at grade C or above, including Maths and English, plus 2 x A Levels, or equivalent, at grade C or above. NVQ level 4 can be accepted as A Level equivalent but liaise with your local AFCO.

Good luck.

Knowing that they are slightly short on provost officers at the moment, would this not be an opportune time for somebody on the inside to have a word with the branch sponsor? They can waive all kinds of things if they are so minded!

We had a student sent back to OASC for reselection ages ago who has just been asked if he wants to be a provost. Any serving police types want to give this route a go for the man?

LSOB, I did send you a pm last week about speaking to a friend of mine, he was a provost officer before he saw the light and rebranched but he would probably know who to speak to.

 

[LSOB]

NotAnIDOYet

PM sent.