Role: Technical Support Officer

Department: Crime Services

Location: Carbrook, Sheffield

Salary: £31,296 - £35,526

Hours: 37        

Contract Type: Temporary for 12 months

We have an exciting opportunity for a Technical Support Officer to provide technical support and advice in relation to overt and covert use of technical surveillance equipment.  This role is temporary for 12 months.

What the role will be responsible for:

• To participate in technical response to policing operations providing 24 hour standby service to deploy technical equipment to meet the needs of the organisation.
• Install surveillance equipment in support of policing operations, ensuring Health & Safety standards and manufacturer’s warranties are complied with ensuing equipment is used safely and repair costs are minimised and records maintained.
• Install and maintain temporary alarms for personal/ intruder protection, and permanent alarms to police buildings along with associated receiving equipment.
• Maintain service and repair technical equipment used in the TSU.  Design and manufacture technical equipment for use within policing operations and assist in ensuring that component and stock levels are maintained to meet the requirements of the unit.
• Undertake project work and feasibility studies as directed by the unit manager, including the preparation of equipment specifications, give advice and guidance to other members of the force to ensure that equipment and resources identified are suitable for the required purpose.
• Contribute to the preparation, issue and maintenance of records of equipment held by the force, give instruction in its use, ensuring all equipment issued is authorised, and complies with good practice and force/national procedures.
• Required to work outside normal hours and work at short notice 
• Contribute to the development of an effective and advanced technical service through liaison with colleagues in the force, external agencies and units including manufacturers, suppliers.
• Provide 24hr cover on call (Rota)
• Provide advice on the purchase of equipment.
• Deal with enquiries to the unit from both external organisations and the force, ensuring that confidential information is not disclosed and that a high level of service is maintained.
• Provide evidence at court
• To create, update, and amend information held on Police systems and other relevant South Yorkshire Police intelligence and recording systems as and when appropriate
• Deal with enquirers by telephone, in person or by other means, whether police officers, members of the public, other Criminal Justice Agencies or bone-fide authorities.
• Maintains accurate records of relevant information using appropriate systems to ensure an audit trail and to measure and improve performance.

Skills and experience:

• A minimum of BTEC (or equivalent) qualification in electronics or IT
• Extensive workplace experience in an audio/visual processing or telecommunications/IT capacity
• Knowledge and ability to operate computerised systems.  Installation and maintenance of technical equipment
• Holder of current and full UK driving license. Must be able to pass a police driving test in a police vehicle
• Preparation of detailed technical reports and documentation and participate in technical presentations
• A working knowledge of Health and Safety issues
• As part of this role the wearing of Personal Issue Body Armour will be required on some occasions

Skills and experience as documented in the role profile need to be evidenced in your application to be considered for interview

For more detailed information relating to the role, skills and experience for this role, please click here to view the role profile

What we offer:

We offer generous entitlements and supportive policies to enable a better work-life balance, some of which are listed below:

• A highly competitive salary and access to a generous pension scheme
• Generous annual leave allowance
• A wide range of family friendly policies including enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption leave 
• Flexible working arrangements including flexi-time and hybrid working
• A transparent and collaborative team culture underpinned by our core values of Fairness, Integrity & Trust
• Comprehensive range of development and leadership courses to develop your career with South Yorkshire Police
• Employee Assistant Programme (accessible 24/7) offering confidential support and advice 
• Flexible lifestyle benefits such as: Blue Light Card, Company Shop, Cycle to work scheme
• Committed to embedding sustainability: South Yorkshire Police Sustainability Strategy 2020-2025 (yhrn.police)
• Membership to the Sports and Social Club
• Access to a wide range of staff support groups and networks

Eligibility:

Applicants must meet the minimum requirement checkable history criteria, which must be taken into account for individuals applying to work with South Yorkshire Police in any capacity. A minimum checkable history of 5 years is required for this role and successfully undergoing recruitment vetting procedure is a pre-requisite of employment with South Yorkshire Police.

Appearance & Standards:

South Yorkshire Police is committed to striking a proportionate balance between self-expression and the need to maintain role sensitive professional standards in dress and appearance. Officers, staff, and volunteers of South Yorkshire Police are permitted to have tattoos visible whilst on duty provided the tattoo is not considered to be unacceptable or otherwise inappropriate. Tattoos will be reviewed as part of the recruitment and selection process. 

Smarter ways of Working:

South Yorkshire Police is committed to developing working practices which assist staff to balance their personal and professional lives, whilst meeting the needs of the organisation. This in turn enables South Yorkshire Police to provide an outstanding service to the community.

There are 3 different categories as part of this which are: Fixed, Field and Hybrid. 

This role has been evaluated as a hybrid role.

Hybrid: Applicable when the work can be undertaken at any location, whether that be a SYP building or from home.

South Yorkshire Police’s Key Values: 

At South Yorkshire Police we have 3 key values which run through everything we do Fairness, Integrity & Trust, the attached document details the key behaviours we expect all employees to adhere to.

Contact details:

For further information about the role, please contact: William Fox on 01709 8322549 

Closing Date: 22^nd January 2025

Closing dates are not normally extended, other than in exceptional circumstances and agreement is made between the Talent Acquisition Manager and the Line Manager for the role.

How to apply:

Please click ‘Apply’ 

Candidate Information:

Please note that, should you be successful at the interview stage and before appointment, the relevant pre-employment checks are required. These include references, medical clearance, vetting clearance and sickness absence criteria check.

Diversity & Inclusion:

Applications are particularly welcome from female and ethnic minority candidates.

It is really important to us that the department represents the community we serve, in order for us to provide the best service, utilising a range of backgrounds, experience and skills. We support and value all officers and staff and the unique experiences they bring to the role. We strongly encourage and welcome applications from these valuable underrepresented groups.

If you are from an underrepresented group and want to find out more about the support we can offer, please contact our dedicated team on positiveaction@southyorks.pnn.police.uk

In addition, we will look to support anyone who requires Part Time/Job share working hours. 

Internal Candidates:

This vacancy is temporary therefore, you must have the support of your current Line Manager to apply. If you are a permanent member of staff, this would be classed as a secondment opportunity. If you are on a fixed term contract, you must contact the Talent Acquisition Team before applying. 

Please ensure that you and your current line manager complete the attached consent form. Please email the completed form to the hiring line manager, with the role title and the closing date stated in the subject of your email. 

Without support, your application will not be considered any further.

The decision to make all adverts temporary for a fixed term of 12 months is due to the financial position. As the financial position becomes clearer, it may be that we can make some of these posts permanent without the need to run a second recruitment process, equally they could be ended sooner than the 12 months

Documents to Review: 

For the Police Staff Recruitment Vetting Handbook - Please Click here

For Application Guidance and Tips - Please Click Here

For the FIT Values of South Yorkshire Police - Please Click Here

For Secondment Approval - Please Click Here