1163 Senior officers in fire, ambulance, prison and related services

In short

• ONS unit group 1163, 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): £61,600 (£31.59 per hour)
  • Table 2, Going rate (SW – options F and I, GBM and SCU): £50,000 (£25.64 per hour)

What the ONS says

Description

Fire officers plan, organise, direct and co-ordinate the activities and resources of a specific physical or functional area of a statutory or private fire brigade/service and the resources necessary for the protection of property at fires within a salvage corps area. Ambulance officers plan, organise, direct and co-ordinate the resources necessary for the provision of ambulance services. Prison officers (principal officer and above) plan, organise, direct, and co-ordinate the activities and resources necessary for the running of a prison, remand or detention centre. Customs officers plan and direct the work of customs, excise and immigration staff in the monitoring and inspection of goods and persons crossing national borders.

Typical entry routes

The position of senior fire officer is achieved by internal promotion. Entry to senior positions within the prison service and revenue and customs is either by internal promotion or by open competition; both organisations operate accelerated promotion schemes available to internal and external applicants. Entry to the prison and fire services are subject to age restrictions, and both the prison service and revenue and customs impose nationality conditions. Entry to senior positions within the ambulance service is largely by internal promotion from supervisory roles.

Tasks

• liaises with other senior officials and/or government departments to determine staffing, financial and other short- and long-term needs
• prepares reports for insurance companies, the Home Office, Scottish Home and Health Department, and other bodies as necessary
• advises on the recruitment, training and monitoring of staff
• fire officers plan, direct and co-ordinate an operational plan for one or more fire stations, attend fires and other emergencies to minimise danger to property and people, arrange for the salvaging of goods, immediate temporary repairs and security measures for fire damaged premises as necessary
• ambulance officers plan, organise, direct and co-ordinate the activities of ambulance personnel and control room assistants, for the provision of ambulance services for emergency and non-emergency cases
• prison officers interview prisoners on arrival and discharge/departure, receive reports on disciplinary problems and decide on appropriate action, make periodic checks on internal and external security, and provide care and support to prisoners in custody
• revenue and customs, excise and immigration officers advise on the interpretation of regulations concerning taxes, duties and immigration requirements and enforce these regulations through monitoring of premises, examining goods entering the country to ensure correct duty is paid and establishing that passengers have the necessary authorisation for crossing national borders

Related job titles

• Chief immigration officer (HM Revenue and Customs)
• Fire service officer (government)
• Prison governor
• Station officer (ambulance service)

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

1163 Senior officers in fire, ambulance, prison and related services

Examples of related job titles (non-exclusive)

• Senior officers in ambulance services
• Senior officers in fire services
• Senior officers in immigration services
• Senior officers in prison services
• Senior officers in revenue and customs

Going rate (SW – options A and D)

£61,600 (£31.59 per hour)

90% of going rate (SW – option B)

£55,400 (£28.41 per hour)

80% of going rate (SW – option C)

£49,200 (£25.23 per hour)

70% of going rate (SW – option E)

£43,100 (£22.10 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

1163 Senior officers in fire, ambulance, prison and related services

Equivalent SOC 2010 occupation code(s)

1173

Examples of related job titles (non-exclusive)

• Senior officers in ambulance services
• Senior officers in fire services
• Senior officers in immigration services
• Senior officers in prison services
• Senior officers in revenue and customs

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

£50,000 (£25.64 per hour)

90% of going rate (SW – option G)

£45,000 (£23.08 per hour)

80% of going rate (SW – option H)

£40,000 (£20.51 per hour)

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

£35,000 (£17.95 per hour)

Eligible for PhD points (SW)?

Yes

Other unit groups in minor group 116

• 1161 Officers in armed forces
• 1162 Senior police officers

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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