G4 Cover Officer - Specialist Operations Advanced

19/04/2026, 23:55

568 

£4218

£3375

£49,392 

£ 2400

G4
Permanent
Intelligence
Collection
Intelligence, Investigation
Full time, Part time, Flexible Working, Homeworking, Job share
1
Disability Committed
Disability Leader
Civil Service Commission logo

G4 Cover Officer - Specialist Operations Advanced 

Location(s)

London, East Midlands, North East, North West, South East, West Midlands

About the Role

Information about the Command

The role of Intelligence is to develop the right operations, which target and disrupt - by the most effective means - the offenders who seek to cause the highest harm to the UK.
A diverse directorate with a wide variety of unique functions and specialist skillsets in our ranks, some of which we deliver as the national provider for the wider Serious Organised Crime (SOC) system. From our niche technical capabilities, to our overseas network of International Liaison Officers (ILO) and our Tasking teams, there are many component parts which contribute to the efforts of the directorate and the National Crime Agency (NCA).

Information about the Business Area

Intelligence Collection coordinates NCA collection capabilities against the NCA’s highest priorities. Intelligence Collection includes forensics, open source, covert human intelligence sources, undercover officers and technical collection capabilities. This includes responding to threats and exploiting opportunities relating to the use of electronic communications by Subjects of Interest using the various powers conferred within the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (IPA). This is a dynamic and diverse arena with constant and rapid change, suiting those officers who thrive on near constant challenge.

Specialist Operations within the NCA includes Advanced Undercover Officers (UCOs) and dual role Cover Officers / Advanced UCOs. Both are deployed as undercover officers to collect intelligence and evidence, proactively and reactively in support of NCA objectives and operations in accordance with the Serious and Organised Crime Strategy. Those in the dual role G4 Cover Officer / Advanced UCO will supervise the deployment of UCOs when not deployed themselves. UCOs will also engage in operations utilising covert haulage, maritime and aviation resources.
Undercover officers will: 
- Deploy as an undercover officer in support of the NCA and domestic and international partners, authorised projects and operations.    
- Enable the NCA and partners to maximise collection opportunities that are in line with the organisational intelligence and evidential requirements to support operations into complex serious and organised crime at both a national and international level.  
- Participate in the debrief of deployments to ensure that a full, accurate and timely account is disseminated to operational officers. 
-  Maintain an in-depth knowledge of legislation, case law and practices appropriate to covert operations and perform the role of a UCO legally with honesty and integrity. 
- Gather, maintain and record material from deployments to produce quality written and oral presentations of intelligence and evidence to support prosecutions, intelligence pictures or disruption as appropriate.  
- Give evidence at court both in the UK and abroad in line with legislation and NCA policies.  
- Undertake personal responsibility and accountability for the management and maintenance of operational assets and equipment and ensure training qualifications are in date and available for deployment.  
- Develop and maintain effective working relationships with internal & external UCOs in order to foster collaborative working and mentoring.  
- Provide support to colleagues to maintain covert premises, administration and assets to the standard required by the law and relevant covert law enforcement policies and procedures.
Duties & ResponsibilitiesOverview
Deploy as an Undercover Officer Deploy as an undercover officer in support of the NCA and domestic and international partners, authorised projects and operations. 
Supervision Supervise the deployment of undercover officers and assets in support of NCA projects and investigations.
Risk Management Ensure that the risks attached to a deployment are thoroughly assessed, documented and that adequate control measures are in place to manage the risks. 
Health & Safety Monitor deployment activity to ensure that health, safety and welfare of officers are not jeopardised and that the activity is not at a level that poses an unacceptable or unmanageable risk.
Knowledge of relevant Legislation Ensure UCOs do not go beyond the intended scope of authorised activity and that their activities are concurrent with the strategic and tactical objectives of the investigation. 
Subject Matter Expert Provide advice on legislation, policy, tactical options and evidential opportunities to assist in the planning and implementation of investigations / operations.  
Working TogetherDevelop and maintain effective working relationships with both internal & external stakeholders in order to foster collaborative working. 
On-Call duties Cover Officers will be expected to form part of an on-call roster. 
Deployment in or supervising UCOs involved in investigating CSAE and CSAMUCOs and Cover Officers may be expected to work directly or indirectly in tackling child sexual exploitation and abuse. This may involve exposure to child sexual abuse material.

Skills, Knowledge and ExperienceDescription
Advanced Undercover Officer To have successfully completed a UK accredited Advanced
Undercover Officer course
Cover Officer To have successfully completed an accredited Cover Officer course or to pass an accredited course within 12 months
CPIADemonstrable knowledge of disclosure /exhibits procedures
Legislation and ProcedureIn-depth knowledge of law enforcement investigations and criminal justice procedures including CPIA, PACE, RIPA, CCA and PII.  
Risk Management Experience of managing risk in an undercover environment
SOC work Proven relevant experience of UCO working in serious and organised crime operations  
Communication Communicate with others in a clear, honest and enthusiastic way in order to build trust.
Decision making (including Dynamic decision making)Make decisions confidently in time critical situations and under pressure, even when details are unclear or if they prove to be unpopular
Problem SolvingUsing logic and imagination to make sense of a situation and find an intelligent solution.

On Call Duties

There will be a regular expectation of on call duties in line with a departmental rota.  This will generally be a week of on call, covering overnight periods during the working week, and continued 48 hour cover over the weekend.  The on call rota can change with operational requirements, but will typically necessitate one week in five or six.

Essential Criteria

You must meet the essential criteria and evidence this within your application to be considered for the role.

Candidates will need to have the following to be eligible to apply:

To have successfully completed a UK accredited Advanced Undercover Officer course.

Any applications from candidates not meeting this eligibility criteria will not progress.

Salary

Allowances are reviewed annually and may be increased, decreased or removed.
All salary offers will be made in line with Remuneration Policy. 
  • Roles based in London will receive an additional London Weighting (Per Annum) of £4218
  • Roles based in the South-East will receive an additional South-East Allowance (Per Annum) of £3375
  • This role attracts a Special Duties Bonus Payment (SDBP) up to £2400 (Per Annum)
This role attracts a SPOT Rate salary. SPOT Rate offers a progressive increase in pay to reflect the skills and experience of the officer.

Benefits

All NCA employees are members of the UK Civil Service and eligible for the Civil Service pension scheme, alongside your salary the NCA contributes £13130. Further information on the benefits of the scheme is available on the Civil Service Pension Website.

New entrants to the NCA receive 26 days annual leave, rising to 31 on completion of 5 years continuous service, plus 8 bank holidays.  

If qualifying criteria is met new joiners from UK Police Forces or the UK Intelligence Community (UKIC) will have service with those employers taken into account for continuous service purposes for annual leave entitlement only, this will be up to a maximum of 31 days leave (including 1 privilege day).

Other benefits include:

  • Flexible working, including flexi-time, compressed hours and job sharing (in line with business requirements) 
  • Family friendly policies, notably above the statutory minimum
  • Learning and Development opportunities
  • Interest free loans and advances, including season tickets, childcare and rental deposits
  • Housing schemes - Key Worker status
  • Discounts and Savings with a wide variety of services including Cycle to Work, Smart Tech schemes, dental insurance, gym discounts and savings on everyday spending, available through the Reward Gateway | Edenred and Blue Light Card schemes.
  • Staff support groups/networks
  • Sports and social activities, including membership to the Civil Service Sports Council (CSSC) 

Further information is available on the NCA Website.

Selection Process Details

This vacancy is using the Success Profiles framework and will assess using the following criteria: Strengths, Technical Skills 
Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action.  Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

How we will assess you

Your application will be assessed against the following:
Technical - this will be assessed by 250 word examples on:
  • In-depth knowledge of law enforcement investigations and criminal justice procedures including CPIA, PACE, RIPA and PII. 
  • Experience of managing risk in an undercover environment 
  • Proven relevant experience of UCO working in serious and organised crime operations 
A panel will assess how well your application demonstrates the requirements outlined above.

Longlist

In the event of a high number of applications, we may operate a longlist. Applicants will need to meet the minimum pass mark for the lead criteria.

 - In-depth knowledge of law enforcement investigations and criminal justice procedures including CPIA, PACE, RIPA and PII. .

Candidates who do not meet the minimum pass mark for the lead criteria will not progress to having their other criteria assessed. Applications must meet the minimum criteria to be progressed to the assessment stage.

You will receive an acknowledgement once your application is submitted.

We aim to have sift completed and scores released within 10 working days of the closing date of the advert. For high volume campaigns this timeframe may be extended.

Scores will be provided but further feedback will not be available at this stage.

For guidance on the application process, visit: 
NCA Applying and Onboarding 

Assessment 1

The format of this assessment will be Interview which will be tested on the criteria listed in the Success Profiles at Assessment section.

Success Profiles at Assessment

Technical
  • In-depth knowledge of law enforcement investigations and criminal justice procedures including CPIA, PACE, RIPA and PII. 
  • Experience of managing risk in an undercover environment 
  • Proven relevant experience of UCO working in serious and organised crime operations 

Strengths

Strengths are tested at interview stage - the strengths tested are not shared before the interview.

Assessment Outcome
Outcomes will be communicated via the NCA recruitment portal. 
If successful but no role is immediately available, you may be placed on a reserve list for 12 months. 
Reserve lists can be used to fill similar role types across the Agency where the assessment criteria is considered a match by the recruitment team and the business area.

In the event of a tie at the assessment stage, available roles will be offered in merit order using the following order: 

  1. Lead criteria (behaviours/technical/experience)
  2. If still tied, desirable criteria will be assessed (if advertised) 
  3. If still tied, application sift scores will be used
Feedback is provided only to those who attend an assessment.
You will be subject to vetting and pre-employment checks before appointment.
Once the vacancy closes, the advert will no longer be accessible. Please save a copy for your records. 
We encourage all candidates to visit the NCA Careers Page for more information.

Eligibility, Pre-Employment Check and Vetting

Please see the NCA T&Cs and Privacy Policy (pdf) for details on how your data is handled. 
If you are an internal candidate who has passed interview but is undergoing an internal investigation or have a written warning in place preventing a post move you may not be able to be posted until this investigation is concluded or restriction lifted.

Nationality Requirements

This role is broadly open to the following groups:
• UK nationals or dual nationals, where one component is British
Further information on nationality requirements
You will be required to participate in digital right to work and address checks as part of the recruitment process.

Security and Vetting

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard checks.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is SC Enhanced. All security clearances will be managed by the NCA.
For more information on security vetting please visit: UK Security Vetting guidance for applicants and Demystifying Vetting and see our vetting charter at: The Vetting Charter.

Vetting requirements - SC Enhanced

Prior to commencing the role, you will need to successfully complete SC Enhanced clearance and then achieve both DV Enhanced and DV STRAP clearance within the first 12 months in post. 
The requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years.
The requirement for DV Enhanced clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 7 of the last 10 years.
To obtain DV STRAP you must be willing to undergo STRAP induction and must hold full UK nationality or dual nationality, where one component is British. Applications will be considered on a case by case basis.
Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.
If you fail to obtain the increased clearance within 12 months of starting, your contract of employment is at risk of termination.
For further information on National Security Vetting checks please visit the following page Demystifying Vetting
Individuals will be required to undertake and pass a substance misuse test as part of pre-employment checks.

Occupational Health

Successful candidates will be expected to undertake an occupational health assessment. Depending on the role an in-person medical may be required in either London or Warrington. Unfortunately, travel costs will not be reimbursed.

Things you need to know

Operational Roles

The National Crime Agency is a law enforcement agency and as such we are part of the Criminal Justice System. Therefore if you are going into an operational role we need to be aware if any of our officers have, either before they join us or afterwards, any of the following:

Any criminal conviction (including Court Martial), or caution or fixed penalty notice for disorder or theft;
Any adverse judicial findings;
Any charges or summonses where the proceedings are not complete;
Any misconduct or gross misconduct findings or where proceedings are not complete.

You will be asked to complete a declaration covering the above if offered a role with the NCA.

Each case will be considered on its merits and a positive declaration does not automatically mean that your application will not be progressed. However, should you fail to disclose a relevant matter then your application or employment will be adversely affected. If in doubt, please declare it at this stage.

Near Miss

If you meet the criteria for a lower grade, you may be offered that role if not appointable at the advertised grade.

Conversely, if found appointable at a higher grade but no posts are available, you may be offered a lower-grade role.

All offers are made based on merit.

Hybrid Working

The NCA supports hybrid working. The extent of remote working will depend on the role and can be discussed at the offer stage.

Reasonable Adjustments

We’re proud to be a Disability Confident Leader and an inclusive, equal opportunities employer. 

We’re committed to creating a workplace where everyone can be their authentic self. If you’re neurodiverse, have a disability, or live with a long-term health condition, we encourage you to let us know about any reasonable adjustments you may need during the recruitment process. 

If you experience accessibility issues with the advert or require reasonable adjustments, please contact our Recruitment Team at Central.Recruitment@nca.gov.uk before the advert closing date.

Please ensure you complete the ‘Equal opportunities’ and 'Reasonable Adjustments' sections in the application form to inform us on what support you may need in the recruitment process.

For more on our Disability Confident commitment, visit Disability Confident Scheme | Civil Service Careers.  

Visit NCA Benefits and Support for more details. 

Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy

In order to monitor the effectiveness of the National Crime Agency's Diversity & Inclusion strategy, we require certain personal details about you on submission of your application for statistical and monitoring purposes only. Please note that this will be treated in confidence and will not impact your application.

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative.

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit on merit through fair and open competition, in line with the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles.

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.

If you believe your application has not been treated fairly, email: Central.Recruitment@nca.gov.uk (quoting the vacancy reference). 
If unresolved, you may escalate your complaint to the Civil Service Commission. 

Working for the NCA

The National Crime Agency is a 24/7 organisation, and working patterns must support business requirements. Some roles may require you to respond at short notice or outside of core hours.
If preferable, alternative contract types may be available. Please review the green bar of this advert to view all available contract types for this role. Where Loan or Secondment options are available, these would be for existing Civil Servants (Loan) and applicants from accredited Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) or any other employer (Secondment). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.
If you have any specific queries about the role that are not covered by the advert, please contact:

Name : Central Recruitment Team
Email : Central.Recruitment@nca.gov.uk

Attachments


NCA T&Cs and Privacy Policy (pdf)

This vacancy is closed to applications.