Address
Form of work
SalaryBorder Force is a Law Enforcement arm of the Home Office. We are responsible for handling the UK border control by implementing immigration and customs regulations and working with the wider Home Office on counter terrorism, organised crime, modern slavery and trafficking. Learn more on the Border Force careers page.
Preventing small boat crossings of the Channel remains a top priority for the Home Office. All levers and capabilities across HMG are being drawn upon to reduce the number of people successfully crossing from France and to manage humanely and efficiently those that are intercepted and brought to the UK.
A key part of the department’s response is driven by the Small Boats Operational Command (SBOC), an operational directorate within Border Force. SBOC delivers this through implementing world-leading surveillance technology on air, land and sea, developing operational initiatives with France and other near-neighbour partners, and by providing capabilities and resources to support the interception and initial processing of people arriving by small boat in the UK.
The Small Boats Operational Command (SBOC) exists to make irregular migration in Small Boats across the English Channel unviable. All stages of the operation, from detecting Small Boats at sea and migrants on land, to the full spectrum of interdiction options, involves technology. Implementing a strategy that promotes the capability enhancements that technology can deliver is an integral part of moving the current operational response from reactive to proactive. Ministers have a keen interest in innovative methodologies and, as a new command, there are substantial opportunities to improve ways of working and apply lessons learned from previously employed strategies.
The primary purpose of the Office of the Chief Technology Officer (CTO), in which this role sits, is to rapidly understand the operational environment and identify areas where technology could provide genuine enhancements to capabilities, before commissioning the testing and evaluation (where necessary), procurement, and deployment of equipment. This is achieved by developing a technology strategy that closely aligns with the wider strategic objectives of the Command and by providing ad hoc advice on issues and opportunities as they arise.
As a Senior Scientific Officer, you will identify, develop and implement technologies to aid the fight against illicit immigration. We want people who can help us build our capabilities and join us in leading others into this exciting future.
Much of the detail of what we do is classified. We can promise you will see and work with technologies that very few get to see. We work with many partners meaning our work is varied and on any given day you might be solving problems in the laboratory, or with like-minded engineers and scientists from across UK government departments.
Please note that this role is available full time only due to the necessity for dynamic delivery based upon the ebbs and flows of the Small Boats migrant threat.
