1162 Senior police officers

In short

• ONS unit group 1162, in minor group 116 (Senior officers in protective services) and major group 1 (Managers, directors and senior officials).
• Appendix Skilled Occupations (figures as at 3 August 2026, re-checked 26 October 2026): On the list: Table 1, Table 2.
• Going rate as the tables print it:
  • Table 1, Going rate (SW – options A and D): £64,000 (£32.82 per hour)
  • Table 2, Going rate (SW – options F and I, GBM and SCU): £60,800 (£31.18 per hour)

What the ONS says

Description

Senior police officers plan, organise, direct and co-ordinate the resources and activities of a specific geographical or functional area of generalised or specialised police work. Senior officers of the British Transport Police direct the specialised police service for the railway network across Britain.

Typical entry routes

Promotion to the rank of inspector can be by qualifying examination and practical assessment. There are no qualifying examinations to ranks above inspector; promotion is by selection only. There are accelerated promotion schemes available as well as the Direct Entry scheme which recruits external entrants with relevant skills directly to senior positions in the police force. All police forces have age restrictions and medical requirements.

Tasks

• liaises with senior officers to determine staff, financial and other short- and long-term needs
• plans, directs and co-ordinates general policing for an area or functional unit
• directs and monitors the work of subordinate officers
• establishes contacts and sources of information concerning crimes planned or committed
• directs and co-ordinates the operation of record keeping systems and the preparation of reports

Related job titles

• Chief superintendent (police service)
• CID officer
• Detective inspector
• Police inspector

What the Appendix Skilled Occupations says

The Appendix lists this code in the tables below, with the tables’ own caption and the row as printed. Read the full table, and any condition in it, on GOV.UK.

Table 1: Eligible SOC 2020 occupation codes and related going rates based on median Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) data

SOC 2020 occupation code

1162 Senior police officers

Examples of related job titles (non-exclusive)

• Chief, deputy chief and assistant chief constables
• Chief inspectors
• Chief superintendents
• Senior police officers not elsewhere classified

Going rate (SW – options A and D)

£64,000 (£32.82 per hour)

90% of going rate (SW – option B)

£57,600 (£29.54 per hour)

80% of going rate (SW – option C)

£51,200 (£26.26 per hour)

70% of going rate (SW – option E)

£44,800 (£22.97 per hour)

Eligible for PhD points (SW)?

Yes

Table 2: Eligible SOC 2020 occupation codes and related going rates based on 25th percentile Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) data

SOC 2020 occupation code

1162 Senior police officers

Equivalent SOC 2010 occupation code(s)

1172

Examples of related job titles (non-exclusive)

• Chief, deputy chief and assistant chief constables
• Chief inspectors
• Chief superintendents
• Senior police officers not elsewhere classified

Going rate (SW – options F and I, GBM and SCU)

£60,800 (£31.18 per hour)

90% of going rate (SW – option G)

£54,700 (£28.05 per hour)

80% of going rate (SW – option H)

£48,700 (£24.97 per hour)

70% of going rate (SW – option J, GTR)

£42,600 (£21.85 per hour)

Eligible for PhD points (SW)?

Yes

Other unit groups in minor group 116

• 1161 Officers in armed forces
• 1163 Senior officers in fire, ambulance, prison and related services

Sources

Occupation text: Office for National Statistics, SOC 2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions of unit groups (file dated 27 August 2026, version V13). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Open Government Licence v3.0. Tables: Home Office, Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations on GOV.UK, page updated 3 August 2026; re-checked against the page updated 8 October 2026 on 26 October 2026, tables unchanged.

All 412 occupation codes

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