Police custody officer jobs
pay, training and how to apply in each state

When police arrest someone, that person is taken to a watch house or custody centre. Custody officers run those facilities. In most Australian forces they're not sworn police officers: they're civilian or auxiliary staff trained specifically for custody, working alongside a sergeant or custody manager who makes the legal decisions about detention.

WA describes its custody role as supporting "the safe admission, custody and release of detainees", which is a good one-line summary. The welfare side matters most: many people in custody are intoxicated, unwell or distressed, and custody staff are often the first to notice when something is wrong.

There's no national custody officer job. Each force has made its own choice, and job titles vary. This table sums up what we could confirm on 9 October 2026.

If you're in NSW, Tasmania or the ACT, there isn't a published civilian custody role to apply for. Look at the Victoria PSO role or the AFP Protective Service Officer role if you want a non-police job in policing, or at sworn entry in your own state.

Victoria Police employs Police Custody Officers to manage people held at police custody centres. PCOs are Victorian Public Service employees, covered by the Victorian Public Service Enterprise Agreement 2024, not the police agreement. Victoria Police employed 292 PCOs at 30 June 2026, with more in training.

Unlike sworn officers and PSOs, PCOs aren't in the ESSS defined benefit scheme. They get 12% employer super into an accumulation fund. Victoria Police doesn't publish the VPS grade or the effective date of the PCO pay figures, so treat them as the current advertised range.

A PCO starts with an 8-week course; a Victoria Police recruit's academy is 25 weeks.

The advertised PCO salary is a base figure. On top of it, Victoria Police pays penalty rates for unsociable hours, set out under the VPS agreement.

A worked example

Take a PCO on $62,104 who, each fortnight, works two weekday night shifts, one Saturday and one Sunday, each of 8.06 hours. Using an hourly rate of about $31.34 (salary over a 38-hour week, our assumption), the penalties add about $12,480 a year. That takes gross pay to about $74,584 and take-home to about $2,315 a fortnight after 2026-27 tax, by our calculation.

Victoria Police runs PCO recruitment in eight stages. The assessment day, with a fitness test and an exam, usually comes 3 to 6 weeks after you apply.

1. 1

   Application

   Stage 1

   Online, with your work history and any prior offences or dealings with police.

2. 2

   Eligibility checks

   Stage 2

   Screening against the entry requirements, including driving and criminal history.

3. 3

   Assessment day

   Stage 3

   A fitness test and an exam, usually within 3 to 6 weeks of applying.

4. 4

   Psychological test

   Stage 4

   Allow 1.5 to 2 hours.

5. 5

   Medical

   Stage 5

   A health assessment against Victoria Police's PCO standards.

6. 6

   Comprehensive checks

   Stage 6

   Background, associations and integrity checks.

7. 7

   Panel interview

   Stage 7

   30 to 60 minutes of behavioural questions.

8. 8

   Offer

   Stage 8

   Four weeks' notice before training starts.

The training

The foundation course is eight weeks at the Victoria Police Academy in Glen Waverley, including a two-week workplace placement, running from 7:30am to 4:10pm. From week 9 to week 26 you train on the job at your custody centre. You're paid $60,164 during the foundation course.

The panel interview is behavioural, so prepare examples of staying calm under pressure, following procedure exactly, caring for someone vulnerable and dealing with aggression. The same STAR method used for police interviews works here.

WA Police recruits Police Auxiliary Officers into a Custody Support Officer role. They support the safe admission, custody and release of detainees at the Perth Watch House or station lock-ups.

The fixed-term contract is the main difference from Victoria's permanent PCO roles. Ask WA Police how often contracts are extended and whether custody experience helps with a later police application. Our guide to joining WA Police covers sworn entry.

The Queensland Police Service employs civilian Assistant Watchhouse Officers in watchhouses across the state. We couldn't load the QPS careers page for the role, and the Smartjobs adverts we found had closed, so treat the following as reported, not confirmed.

Search Smartjobs for "watchhouse officer" to see current adverts and the exact pay and classification. For sworn entry in Queensland, see how to become a police officer in Queensland.

NT: Police Public Safety Officers

The NT used to employ Watch House Auxiliaries. In 2025-26 that stream was merged into a new sworn role, the Police Public Safety Officer (PPSO), along with frontline auxiliaries, public housing safety officers and transit safety officers. NTPFES lists custody management and front counter duties among PPSO tasks.

PPSOs work in Darwin, Katherine, Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, with no remote postings. NTPFES says PPSOs get the same defensive tactics and firearms training as constables. One NTPFES news item describes the $74,069 figure as already including the territory's allowances, while our data treats it as base, so confirm the package with NTPFES. See how to join NT Police.

SA: Police Security Officers

SAPOL's sworn Police Security Officers reportedly include custodial work, such as conveying and guarding prisoners and cell guard duties at metropolitan custodial facilities. SAPOL's website blocked our reader, so we haven't confirmed the role, training length or pay. Check SAPOL's careers site directly.

In NSW, the custody manager role is held by police officers under NSW law; we couldn't confirm any civilian custody officer job on an official NSW Police page. In Tasmania we found no civilian custody or watch house role; the closest is a front-counter Station Support Officer, which isn't custody work. The AFP doesn't advertise a separate custody officer role in the sources we read.

Custody is a 24-hour environment where small lapses can have serious consequences. You'll deal with people who are intoxicated, aggressive or at risk of self-harm, often at night. The best custody officers are calm, consistent and meticulous about checks and records.

Background checks matter here too: custody staff have access to vulnerable people and sensitive information. Read our guide to police background and integrity checks before you apply.

Many custody staff later apply to become police officers. Custody work gives you daily experience of the procedures, legislation and people that police deal with, and strong examples for a police interview. But we found no force with a formal fast-track from custody officer to constable. You'll sit the full entry process, including the entrance exam and fitness test.

1. 1

   Build your examples

   On the job

   Keep a private note of incidents you handled well: de-escalation, welfare, teamwork. They become your STAR answers.

2. 2

   Check sworn eligibility

   Before applying

   Compare age, education, licence and citizenship rules in our eligibility guide.

3. 3

   Prepare for the tests

   3 months out

   Each force has its own entrance exam and fitness standard. Start with the entrance exam guide.

4. 4

   Choose your force

   Decision

   Custody experience is relevant everywhere, so pick the force that suits your life.