Security Clearance
For ONS the requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for 3 consecutive years immediately prior to applying and the department will consider eligibility by exception on a case-by-case basis. You will be asked to provide information regarding your UK residency during your application, and failure to provide this will result in your application being rejected.
At the point of SC application, you will need to provide or give access to the following evidence:
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Departmental or company records (personnel files, staff reports, sick leave reports and security records)
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UK criminal records covering both spent and unspent criminal records
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Your credit and financial history with a credit reference agency
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Security Services records
Visa Sponsorship
ONS are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role. Applicants are expected to hold a valid right to work in the UK when employment commences. If you are applying on a time-limited visa, this will need to be valid for at least 18 months at point of application.
To work at the ONS, candidates must meet both UK right to work and security clearance requirements (where applicable).
If you are unsure whether you meet the appropriate right to work or security clearance eligibility criteria, please refer to the guidance on Gov.uk or contact the recruitment email provided in the advert before applying. Failure to meet these requirements will result in your application being rejected and employment offers being withdrawn.
Number of Stages: 3 stage process
Stage 1: Eligibility pre-sift
Stage 2: Application
Stage 3: Interview
Stage 1 Eligibility pre-sift
A pre-sift will be conducted on location and eligibility criteria set out in the advert. Ineligible candidates will be removed from the selection process and will not proceed to the application stage.
Stage 2 Application
The assessment process at the application stage will be based on your work history, CV, skills, experience, and personal statement. It is important that your application is tailored to highlight the skills, knowledge, and experience relevant to the role.
A personal statement is required at application stage, the maximum wordcount allowed is 1250, which should not be exceeded. You should provide evidence for each essential skill criterion listed in the person specification. As these criteria are scored, it is advisable to give clear examples for each one, including the impact of your actions, ideally utilising the STAR technique (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
Please note that Success Profiles Behaviour examples are not required at this stage of the application process.
In instances where a high number of applications are received, the sift pass mark may be adjusted, and candidates will be invited to interview based on merit order, i.e., those with the highest scores.
Stage 3 Interview
If invited to interview, you will be assessed using techniques aligned with the Civil Service Success Profiles framework, covering all behaviours listed in the job advert and any required technical skills.
You will be required to provide a 5 minute presentation at interview. The presentation topic will be emailed to candidates who have passed the initial online application stage, 1 week prior to interview. This presentation will assess candidates against the Technical elements.
Interviews will be conducted via Microsoft Teams.
A reserve list may be held for a period up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made.
Important Dates:
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The Sift will be conducted from w/c 10/08/2026
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Interviews will be conducted from w/c 17/08/2026
Dates are subject to change.
For the full terms and conditions of the post, please see attachment.
Please note that all campaigns may be subject to withdrawal at any stage if the internal resource position changes.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
