Police Pay

Hertfordshire Constabulary Jobs

Whether Hertfordshire is recruiting, which entry routes are open, what the job pays once allowances, tax and pension are counted, and exactly where to apply.

Also searched as hertfordshire constabulary, hertfordshire police, herts police. Hertfordshire Constabulary covers Hertfordshire.

Is Hertfordshire Constabulary recruiting? The short answer

On 1 October 2026 the national joining the police website listed Hertfordshire Constabulary as recruiting police constables through Rejoiner. New constables start on £35,360 a year (£32,255 national pay point 1 plus £3,105 of allowances), rising to £55,120 at the top of the constable scale, on rates from 1 September 2026. To apply, use the force's own recruitment page below, not a job board.

Constable routes open

Rejoiner

National site, 1 October 2026

Starting salary

£35,360

Constable pay point 1, from 1 September 2026

Officers recruited

136 FTE

Year to 31 March 2026, excluding transfers (Home Office)

Job board reading

Can't verify

Our tracker, all role types

We are independent and do not recruit for any force. Recruitment windows open and close without notice, so check the force's own site for current vacancies and closing dates before you rely on anything here. The route list is a dated reading of joiningthepolice.co.uk (national police recruitment site); this page stops showing it 35 days after that date.

Hertfordshire's local rules: what to check on its site

We have not yet summarised Hertfordshire Constabulary's own recruitment pages, so this page does not state its local rules. These are the points that differ between forces; look for each one on the official recruitment page before you apply.

  • Whether constable applications are open now, and for which routes
  • How it runs the force interview that the regulations now require after the online assessment
  • Whether you need a full manual driving licence, and by which stage (national position)
  • How it applies the three-year UK residence rule to time abroad
  • How long it says the process takes, and when intakes start
  • How long you must wait to reapply after an unsuccessful application
Open Hertfordshire's recruitment page ↗

Hertfordshire vacancies we can see

Our tracker reads Hertfordshire's job board twice a day where the system allows it. Most adverts on a force job board are police staff roles, not constable intakes. Where the board blocks automated reading, the panel says so rather than guessing.

Can't verify

Hertfordshire vacancies right now

This force's recruitment system blocks automated checks, so we can't read it directly.

Open Hertfordshire careers →

We can't read Hertfordshire Constabulary's vacancy list directly, so there's no live advert list on this page. Their careers site is linked above, and you can ask us to alert you below.

What Hertfordshire actually pays

Officer pay is set nationally, so the advert figure is the same almost everywhere. What changes between forces is the allowance on top, and no force advert tells you what lands in your account after the 12.88% pension contribution.

Starting salary

£35,360

£32,255 base + £3,105 allowances

Take-home

£2,138

per month, after tax, NI and pension (estimate)

Top of scale

£55,120

constable pay point 7

Against all 43

#3

top payer is the Met at £42,334

Allowances Hertfordshire pays on top

  • South East Allowance +£3,105/yr Supplement for high-cost South East forces (2026/27 rate; Bedfordshire, Hampshire and Sussex pay a lower rate).

Constable pay scale at Hertfordshire

Rates from 1 September 2026. New recruits join at point 1 of the 7-point scale (constables appointed since April 2013) and move up each year, subject to satisfactory performance. Some forces start recruits at point 2.

Pay point National base At Hertfordshire
Point 1 (on appointment) £32,255 £35,360
Point 2 £33,609 £36,714
Point 3 £34,972 £38,077
Point 4 £36,335 £39,440
Point 5 £39,058 £42,163
Point 6 £44,544 £47,649
Point 7 £52,015 £55,120

Hertfordshire jobs are not only officer jobs

Searches for "hertfordshire police jobs" cover four quite different roles, each recruited on its own timetable. The figures are Hertfordshire Constabulary's own workforce at 31 March 2026 from the Home Office statistics.

How to apply to Hertfordshire: the stages

Every force in England and Wales uses the College of Policing's national sift and online assessment, and appointment rules come from regulation 10 of the Police Regulations 2003; forces add their own steps in between. Each stage links to a free tool or guide for that step.

  1. Step 1

    Check you are eligible

    Age 17 to apply and 18 to be appointed, the right to live and work in the UK, and the qualification for your chosen route. Residency, tattoos, debt and past offences are checked at vetting.

    Eligibility reality check →
  2. Step 2

    Choose a route the force has open

    PCDA, PCEP, DHEP, the professional policing degree holder route, detective entry or rejoiner. Not every force runs every route at once.

    Entry routes compared →
  3. Step 3

    Application form and national sift

    A national application form, then a situational judgement test and a behavioural styles questionnaire.

    National sift guide →
  4. Step 4

    Online assessment process

    A competency-based interview, a written exercise and a briefing exercise, marked against the competency and values framework.

    OAC readiness check →
  5. Step 5

    Any force interview

    Constable candidates other than transferees must pass an in-person interview with the force (Police Regulations 2003, regulation 10(1)(eb)). Check Hertfordshire's recruitment page for the format it uses.

    Practise interview questions →
  6. Step 6

    Fitness, medical and vetting

    The job-related fitness test (15m multi-stage shuttle run), a medical and eyesight check, drugs test, and vetting of you and your close associates.

    Vetting stage checker →

Not sure how long all of this takes? The free timeline planner lays out each stage from application to start date, so you can plan notice at work and money around it.

Plan my timeline →

Ways to join Hertfordshire as an officer

These are the officer routes used across England and Wales. Hertfordshire decides which it runs and when; the official recruitment page above shows what is open now.

PCEP

Police Constable Entry Programme

A two-year, non-degree route to becoming a police constable, delivered by the force. Forces can choose to accredit it with a level 5 professional policing qualification.

Two years, with a two-year probation

PCDA

Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship

A three-year apprenticeship where you are paid as a constable while completing a degree in professional policing practice, delivered by the force with a university.

Three years, with a three-year probation

DHEP

Degree Holder Entry Programme

A two-year route for people who already hold a degree in any subject, leading to a graduate diploma in professional policing practice paid for by the force.

Two years, with a two-year probation

Detective

Detective Entry Routes

Detective pathways built on the constable entry routes: a detective degree holder entry programme for graduates and, in some forces, a detective police constable entry programme that usually needs no degree.

Two-year probation, plus the learning needed for PIP 2 accreditation

Transferee

Transferee (Serving Officers)

A move for officers already serving in another force, keeping rank, pay point and pension scheme membership.

Set by the receiving force; vetting and references are the usual waits

Rejoiner

Rejoiners (Former Officers)

A route back for former officers who completed constable probation and resigned or retired, appointed at a rank the chief officer decides.

Probation of 6 months if you rejoin within 12 months at your old rank, otherwise 12 months

Comparing routes? Read every police entry route compared, or compare Hertfordshire with other forces on pay and location.

Where you'd be policing

Hertfordshire Constabulary covers Hertfordshire, with headquarters at Welwyn Garden City. New officers are usually posted where the force needs them rather than to a station of their choosing, so it is worth being realistic about commuting across the whole force area.

Watford Hemel Hempstead Stevenage St Albans Hertford

Hertfordshire recruitment questions

Is Hertfordshire Constabulary recruiting in 2026? +

On 1 October 2026 the national joining the police website listed Hertfordshire Constabulary as recruiting police constables through Rejoiner. Our own tracker, which reads the force's job board twice a day, reported: This force's recruitment system blocks automated checks, so we can't read it directly. Police staff, PCSO and special constable roles are advertised separately on the force's careers site, so a force can be closed to new constables and still have other vacancies open.

How do I apply to Hertfordshire Constabulary? +

Apply directly to Hertfordshire Constabulary through its own careers site. For police constable roles the national stages are an application form, the national sift (a situational judgement test and a behavioural styles questionnaire) and the College of Policing online assessment (a competency-based interview, a written exercise and a briefing exercise), followed by fitness, medical and vetting checks. Since 17 March 2026 the Police Regulations 2003 (regulation 10(1)(eb)) also require constable candidates, other than transferees, to pass an in-person interview with the force they apply to. Check Hertfordshire's recruitment page for how it runs that stage. The force decides which entry routes it opens and when.

Where are Hertfordshire Constabulary vacancies advertised? +

On Hertfordshire Constabulary's own careers and vacancies pages, which is the only place an application can be made. Constable entry routes also appear on the national joining the police website's "which forces are recruiting" list. Job boards sometimes repost police staff adverts, but the force's own advert is the one with the current closing date.

How much do Hertfordshire Constabulary officers get paid? +

New constables start on £35,360 a year (£32,255 national pay point 1 plus £3,105 of allowances), rising to £55,120 at the top of the constable scale, on rates from 1 September 2026. After income tax, National Insurance and the 12.88% pension contribution, the starting figure is roughly £2,138 a month. Increments move you up the scale each year, subject to satisfactory performance.

Which entry routes does Hertfordshire Constabulary use? +

On 1 October 2026 the national site listed Rejoiner as open at Hertfordshire Constabulary. Routes open and close separately, so a route missing from that list may simply be between intakes.

Can I join Hertfordshire Constabulary without a degree? +

Nationally, yes: the PCDA and PCEP are open to people without a degree. The Home Office list in Annex BA lets a chief officer accept a level 3 qualification (such as two A levels), or equivalent experience, including service as a special constable or PCSO. Whether Hertfordshire Constabulary is running either route at the moment is a matter for the force; on 1 October 2026 the national site listed neither as open there.

How many officers does Hertfordshire Constabulary have? +

2,384 full-time equivalent officers (2,409 people) at 31 March 2026, according to the Home Office police workforce statistics published on 22 July 2026. In the year to 31 March 2026 the force took on 136 officers (FTE, excluding transfers) and 36 transferred in from other forces.

How long does Hertfordshire Constabulary recruitment take? +

There is no published national timescale, and it varies by force, intake date and how quickly vetting and medical checks clear. The College of Policing's guide to joining describes the stages but does not give a fixed length. Our recruitment timeline planner lays out the stages so you can see where the waits usually fall.

Where would I be posted with Hertfordshire Constabulary? +

Hertfordshire Constabulary covers Hertfordshire, with headquarters at Welwyn Garden City. The main population centres include Watford, Hemel Hempstead, Stevenage. New officers are usually posted where the force needs them rather than to a station of their choosing, so it is worth being realistic about travelling across the whole force area.

Does Hertfordshire Constabulary take transferees? +

Transfers between forces are decided by both chief officers and advertised by the receiving force when it has vacancies, so check Hertfordshire Constabulary's careers site. Our guide to transferring between forces explains what happens to your pay point, pension and probation.

Moving from another force? See how to transfer between police forces. Left the police and thinking of coming back? See rejoining the police.

What candidates say about applying to Hertfordshire Constabulary

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Where these figures come from

  1. Home Office:Police workforce, England and Wales: 31 March 2026 (published 22 July 2026) — officer, staff, PCSO and special constable numbers and officer joiners for this force
  2. joiningthepolice.co.uk: which forces are recruiting (read 1 October 2026) — constable entry routes listed as open, by force
  3. College of Policing: joining the police as a new PC — the four constable entry routes and the national application stages
  4. Home Office Circular 002/2024, Annex BA: policing qualifications and experience — level 3 or equivalent for PCDA and PCEP; a degree for DHEP
  5. PolicePay: police pay scales 2026 — the constable scale and allowances used on this page

Take-home figures are estimates using 2026/27 tax and National Insurance and the police pension contribution rate for the salary band; your payslip will differ with tax code, overtime, allowances and student loan. PolicePay is independent and not affiliated with Hertfordshire Constabulary, the College of Policing or the Home Office.

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