Catterick Garrison Dog Section
RAF Leeming
Gatenby
Northallerton
DL7 9NJ
Job Summary
Do you want a career where you can make a real difference? Join the Ministry of Defence Guard Service (MGS) to protect Defence from threats such as crime, terrorism, espionage, and sabotage by providing the highest quality of security services through professionalism, excellence, and trust.
We are looking for a Dog Handler to join our Gold Standard security service and play a crucial role to the business requiring animal handling and training skills, patience, resilience, and alertness. Due to the nature of the role and its high-profile locations, it is essential our Dog Handlers have strong problem-solving and decision-making abilities, excellent communication and inter-personal skills, and the ability to remain calm and composed in high-pressure situations. Our Dog Handlers must also be comfortable working with dogs in a hands-on capacity and willing to go above and beyond to support security operations across the Defence estate. If you can demonstrate this from past or current experiences, we want to hear from you and see this detailed in your CV.
This is a shift working position at 48 hours per week including breaks. The successful candidate will be expected to work nights, weekends, bank holidays etc as stipulated by the shift pattern agreed at the Unit depending on site requirements. This will include being rostered in a flexible manner (termed a flexible week) within the shift roster. During the flexible week, the working days and shifts will routinely be stipulated in advance but may be changed at short notice, (this should be no less than 48 hours). The exact shift pattern will be explained in full during the interview.
Job Description
The Ministry of Defence Guard Service (MGS) provides high quality security services at over 170 MOD sites across the United Kingdom. The MGS has guarded the Defence Estate for over 30 years including high profile locations such as MOD Main Building in London, Whitehall and His Majesty’s Naval Bases at Portsmouth, Devonport, and the Clyde. We provide access control, military working dogs, control room operations and other security services. We play a vital role supporting the Defence Mission and work to protect the Defence estate and personnel from crime, terrorism, espionage, and sabotage threats.
The MGS has over 2,700 employees. MGS Security Officers are often the first point of contact for employees, visitors and contractors on sites and we pride ourselves on our professional, customer-focused culture. Behind our operational workforce is a range of head office roles which support our security professionals to develop and execute the organisations strategy, managing its budget and resources, leading, and developing our staff, maintaining relationships with stakeholders, monitoring and evaluating our performance and identifying new opportunities.
Key Duties:
* Responsible for the overall welfare of all Military Working Dogs on site, training and caring for them.
* Handling dogs during exercises and tasks.
* Observing and assessing behavioural patterns in dogs.
* Exercising dogs as needed.
* Utilising various dog-training techniques to correct problematic behaviour and rewarding positive behaviour.
* Daily upkeep of kennels and all play and exercise equipment.
* Continuation of training and annual licensing alongside the upkeep of paperwork.
* Collaborate closely with Dog Evaluation Officers and Kennel Supervisors.
* Assume overall responsibility for the safety and security of designated areas.
* Patrol on foot and in MOD vehicles, designated areas in accordance with outlined security procedures.
* Identify potential security risks and respond accordingly.
* Control vehicular and pedestrian access to site ensuring all have the correct credentials, issuing passes and escorting visitors where appropriate.
* Searching of vehicles, baggage, personnel, buildings, and open areas.
* Complete incident reports on breaches of security or defects and maintaining daily logs.
* Respond to emergencies and incidents within designated areas promptly and according to policy.
* Assist employees and visitors with any concerns they may have.
* Escalate emergency situations to law enforcement as required.
* Operating and monitoring security systems; CCTV and alarms.
* Operating and communicating effectively over the telephone and/or radio.
All new starters will participate in a mandatory two-week residential Foundation Course, followed by on-the-job training. Additionally, we offer an annual programme of mandatory online training, along with a dedicated Workforce Development Team to support you with your training needs.
Licences
Full UK Driving Licence
Evidence of qualification will be required at interview.
All qualifications/licences declared must be held at point of application and if applicable be in date. Equivalent Qualifications will not be accepted.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
* Working Together
* Managing a Quality Service
* Communicating and Influencing
Alongside your salary of £31,500, Ministry of Defence contributes £9,125 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
We enable our people to work at the right place, with the right people, at the right time. We believe that if we look after our people, they will be passionate about delivering great things for our customers.
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.
At application stage you will be assessed against the following:
Experience:
* CV including Job History and Previous Skills. A background qualification or interest in the delivery of site security and / or can demonstrate experience in delivering customer service.
Behaviours:
At interview you will be assessed against the following:
* Working Together
* Managing a Quality Service
* Communicating and Influencing
When choosing your Behaviour examples, please make sure you use real life scenarios that relate to your own experiences. Whilst technology may help to enhance your written submission, presenting the ideas of others or those generated by technology, could result in your application being rejected.
This vacancy will be assessed at AA grade.
Application sifting is scheduled to take place on week commencing 21/04/2025.
Interviews are due to take place via Microsoft Teams and will be conducted week commencing 05/05/2025.
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).
Nationality requirements
* UK nationals
* nationals of the Republic of Ireland
* nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
* nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
* nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
* individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
* Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)
Contact point for applicants
Job Contact :
* Name : MGS Recruitment Hub
* Email : mgs-rh@mod.gov.uk
Recruitment team
* Email : DBSCivPers-ResourcingTeam1@mod.gov.uk
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