Overview of the armed forces and emergency services in the UK

When you think of the armed forces or the emergency services, certain jobs will spring to mind. But there is a lot more to this sector than meets the eye…

What areas of the forces or emergency services can I work in?

Opportunities for work in the armed forces and emergency services filter down into three key spheres:

• Local public sector - the police force, the fire service and the ambulance service. These services operate locally but comply with central government guidelines.
• National public sector - the army, the Royal Air Force (RAF), the Royal Navy and the intelligence services. The UK armed forces employ more than 165,000 trained personnel.
• Private sector - companies support the forces and emergency services with catering, medical equipment and the production of vehicles and weaponry. This industry employs over 300,000 people and generates more than £35billion per year for the UK economy.

Who are the main graduate employers?

Public bodies include:

• ambulance services;
• Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ);
• fire services;
• MI5/MI6;
• police forces;
• army;
• Cabinet Office;
• Civil Service, particularly the Ministry of Defence (MOD);
• navy;
• Royal Air Force (RAF).

Private sector organisations include:

• AMEC;
• Atkins;
• BAE Systems;
• Boeing;
• DLA Piper;
• EADS;
• Lockheed Martin;
• Qinetiq Group;
• Rolls Royce;
• SELEX Galileo.

What's it like working in the sector?

Graduates entering the armed forces or emergency services should prepare for:

• varied working conditions - either fast-paced office work, working overseas in arduous physical conditions with the armed forces, or in a stressful/dangerous environment with the emergency services;
• differing hours of work - those working in intelligence may have regular 9am-5pm office hours; those in active military service are likely to be abroad for several months participating in 24-hour shift-work; and emergency services can be on-call 24 hours a day, also working public holidays;
• a typical starting salary for the protective services in the region of £22,000 - £26,000. A graduate officer (second lieutenant) in the army will start on £24,000, rising to nearly £38,000 after five years. Graduate trainee roles in the Civil Service will pay £25,000 - £27,000, with potential to rise to around the £45,000 mark after five years.

What are the key issues in the armed forces and emergency services?

Although recruitment to the armed forces increased between 2007 and 2010, it is likely that this trend will be reversed between now and 2020.

By 2015, the army is expected to cut personnel levels by around 7,000 to a total of 95,000, and amongst civilian roles, it is anticipated that the Ministry of Defence will make 25,000 cuts to leave around 60,000 staff.

The cutbacks come after a government review of its strategic defence and security priorities, conducted in 2010, which stated that services must reduce in size and work more efficiently.

The government review coincides with its 'Future Force 2020' plans, comprising of three main elements:

• the deployed force, which will engage in military operations;
• the high readiness force, which could respond quickly in the event of a threat to security;
• the lower readiness force, whose members have returned from combat or are in training to support the deployed forces.

It is also worth noting that in this sector there are strict entry regulations regarding UK residency. Entrance to the army typically requires UK residency of a minimum of five years, the police force requires around three years and applicants to the Civil Service Fast Stream must usually be UK citizens.