In a first for UK policing, Londoners will now have the opportunity to join the Metropolitan Police Service directly as a detective constable, working in investigative policing immediately after initial training.

Creating a clearer, dedicated detective career pathway, the Met hopes to attract talented applicants from a range of backgrounds who can bring diversity, skills, knowledge and a wide variety of experiences to the organisation.

Detective Chief Superintendent Stephen Clayman, lead for the detective recruitment programme, said: “London continues to change and so do its criminals. Increasing complex crimes such as cyber-criminality and the pressing need to protect vulnerable people mean our investigators need to develop new expertise.
“To meet these challenges and to face future threats, the Met will need to equip its officers, present and future, with the right skills and capabilities. We will need to ensure we are even more innovative in the way we recruit, and that we look and feel like the Londoners we serve.”
In launching the detective recruitment campaign the Met hopes to attract a whole new group of applicants to a policing role, including those that may be thinking of a career change, and those who may not have been previously attracted to a uniform policing role.
DCS Clayman added: “Becoming a detective constable will be a rewarding and challenging experience. We are looking for people that will do a great job for London’s communities and in return we will offer good career opportunities and variety within the Met.”
Next year, all police forces in England and Wales will start to implement a new qualifications framework which will see all new officers requiring a degree or undertaking a degree level apprenticeship. Policing as a whole is becoming more complex but detectives in particular need a great eye for detail, be able to manage lots of information, be good logical decision makers and critical thinkers. As a result the Met has decided to require those applying for this new detective campaign to already have a degree.
Tory Ion, a Met detective working on Lambeth Borough, said: “Whatever the crime, whatever the situation, it is my job to be there for each victim. I can offer real support in a time of need, guide a victim sympathetically through the investigation process and in many cases provide a sense of closure.
“I would encourage anyone looking for an interesting career, where each day is different, to apply.”
The first of two recruitment opportunities will open on Wednesday, 31 May and is planned to last until Monday, 3 July.