Head of National Rural Crime Unit

Salary: Band 13, £73,194 - £82,293

Location: There is a requirement for national travel in support of this portfolio.

Hours/Contract: 37 hours per week, fixed term / secondment until End of 2028 (align with unit funding)

Foreword from Deputy Chief Constable Nigel Harrison, National Rural and Wildlife Crime Lead:

Thank you for your interest in the role of Head of the National Rural Crime Unit, a challenging, important, and extremely rewarding role.

The National Rural Crime Unit (NRCU) was established to support police forces in England and Wales with rural crime matters, and to lead on these specific issues from a national position. The unit is hosted by Northumbria Police and offers the benefit of direct force support twinned with leading a team with national responsibility.

The Head of NRCU role is crucial for advancing our efforts to lead in this space, which comes under political scrutiny and is characterised by cross-border, often serious and organised criminality.

Thank you for your interest in this role, and I wish you success with your application.

Working for the Team

Although this is a national role, you will be supported by Northumbria Police.

Our purpose at Team NP is simple: to keep people safe and to fight crime. But it takes more than officers alone to do the job – and that’s where our 2,000-strong team of police staff and 200 volunteers come in.

As one of the largest police forces in England we have a huge variety of departments and specialisms offering you endless opportunities. From mentoring and coaching schemes and online soft skills courses to leadership development programmes; we’ll give you the support, training and time to carve out the career you always wanted.

As one of the top 50 UK inclusive employers and a disability confident employer, we promote a culture of respect in the workplace so everyone can feel seen, heard and valued.

Whether you’re a member of staff or a volunteer, you can also expect first-rate support to manage your health and wellbeing. With year-round events, a 24/7 welfare support hotline and a leading approach to neurodiversity, our initiatives enable you to be at your best.

Above all else, here at Team NP, we can offer you a career that is so much more than just a job, it’s a chance to be part of something that really matters.

Learn about our full benefits package

The role

As the Head of National Rural Crime Unit, you will be the sole senior manager for this national unit, the individual is responsible for strategic and operational business delivery supporting all 43 forces and ROCUs.

You will lead in sourcing, obtaining, and managing external funding and budgets for the unit. Additionally, you will be responsible for the implementation of the NPCC rural crime strategy, including machinery theft, in collaboration with all 43 forces.

You will work directly with government departments, ministerial leads, Police and Crime Commissioners, and various partners to achieve NPCC strategic objectives, share best practices, and introduce new legislation. You will also have overall responsibility and active involvement in the unit's investigations, including the annual seizure of over £10M in stolen equipment, financial cases, and POCA cases.

What you’ll do

Provide strategic business oversight, leadership, and direction on all matters related to Finance, Procurement, Resourcing, and Fleet, ensuring alignment with NRCU and NPCC strategic objectives.
Lead financial planning, bid writing, budgeting, and procurement to secure high standards of public and private finance, upholding principles of regularity, propriety, and value for money across all budget provisions.
Provide strategic ownership and accountability for designing and delivering an effective and efficient national operational and strategic support function to UK police forces.
Act as the strategic lead for national rural crime policing operations that span multiple forces and regions, chairing national tasking meetings and liaising with force leads.
Serve as the strategic lead for NRCU financial investigations, responsible for liaison and agreement with ROCUs and police forces, including SMT oversight of the NRCU ARIS account with the Home Office.
Influence and implement the national strategic direction for rural crime, supporting regional and local forces and Police and Crime Commissioners in setting their strategic priorities and policing plans.

Sound interesting? For further information, and to support your application, please view the job description

What you’ll bring

Educated to Degree Level or equivalent experience.
Senior Leadership Policing Experience.
Understanding and competence across SOC threats and operating with across the UK and Europe and North America.
Understanding and aptitude for wide array of tracking technologies both police and public, digital investigation tools and techniques and crucially forensic marking of machinery).
National, Regional and Local Project Board and/or project steering groups responsibilities.
Strategic planning of specialist resource aligned to anticipated demand and support to NPCC Exec Lead to inform budget/investment decisions.
Strategic responsibility for distinctly different policing functions. Responsible for ensuring that capabilities anticipate and identify threats and opportunities to create solutions to the varied threats. Prioritise investigative opportunity and provide resource to police forces so they can provide an effective policing response.
Deputising for the NPCC lead at national and Government level when needed.

We know it's important for you to feel that you're not only part of a great team, but part of a community. We welcome applications from suitably qualified people from all sections of the community, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

Harnessing these differences creates a productive environment in which everyone feels valued, and their talents are fully utilised. Appointments are based on merit alone.

Interested to learn more? For further information about the role please contact Vicky Wallace, People Partnering and Wellbeing Lead by email at vicky.wallace@northumbria.police.uk

What we offer

26 days’ leave (increasing to 30 days for 5 years+ service) plus 8 bank holidays
NHS Fleet Solutions Car Lease Scheme
Enhanced maternity, shared parental and adoption leave
Flexible working (we are happy to discuss options such as compressed hours)
Agile working – option to work from home, your team zone, and spaces across the force
Fantastic market-leading public sector pension scheme with up to 16% employer contribution
Corporate travel schemes – local rail, bus services and metro discounts
Access to private healthcare and eye test vouchers
Discounts on shopping and eating out thanks to the Blue Light Card and Blue Light Tickets
We’ve invested in extensive paid sick leave, trained mental health first aiders on-site, an employee advice service for the times you need that additional support
Access to gyms in some stations
Sports & Social Club – join our thriving sports scene at Team NP and enjoy further exclusive discounts on days out and travel
Cycle to work scheme
Opportunity to volunteer in local community

Just so you know

Our application form will help us understand how your work, education and life experience has prepared you for the role of a Head of National Rural Crime Unit with #TeamNP. To help support your application research what makes us tick here at Northumbria, the role you’re applying for and the values and behaviours that contribute.

The recruitment process will consist of the initial application form followed by ‘a face to face interview. Just so you know, you can save your application and come back to it any time prior to the closing date on the advert.

We are proud members of the Business Disability Forum, with whom we collaborate with to improve the lives of disabled employees. We are also a Disability Confident Employer, therefore if you demonstrate that you meet the minimum criteria for this role as stated in the advert, we will progress your application and offer you an interview.

If you tell us that you have a disability, we can make adjustments to support you through the recruitment process (for example we can arrange extra time for tests or provide a sign language interpreter) You can get in touch with us via careers@northumbria.police.uk for any support regarding the application process. Please provide us with plenty of notice so we can ensure your visit goes smoothly.

If your application is successful, we’ll ask you to complete a Management Vetting (MV)/ Security Clearance (SC) form, therefore you must be a resident of the UK for a minimum period of 5 years to ensure vetting checks can be successfully performed. A job offer will be dependent upon vetting clearance, medical information, and references.

Terms of appointment

This is a fixed term role subject to a six-month probationary period.

If you are successful in your application, you will have a six-month probation period with us where you will be unable to apply for any other post advertised internally or externally.

Please note if you are interested in applying for this secondment opportunity, please discuss this with your Line Manager and gain agreement prior to applying.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.