Help!!!
I’ve been provisionally offered two permanent EO jobs in Cardiff — one with Companies House, the other with HMRC — I am hugely grateful however, I’m struggling to decide between them.
For context:
I live about 55 minutes away by train and don’t drive yet, so for the first few months I’d be relying entirely on the train to get to whichever job I choose. Once I pass my test, my plan is to move to Cardiff, so the commute would only be temporary — but reliability matters in the short term.
My long‑term career goal is to work within intelligence (cyber, threat analysis, or investigative roles). Both jobs sit within the fraud/security space but have very different day‑to‑day work:
Companies House (lower end pay: £30,064)
• Strengths: investigative work, reviewing evidence, decision‑making, structured processes, strong alignment with intelligence‑style skills.
• Weaknesses: slower-paced, more desk-based, less variety.
• Office attendance: hybrid; expected to attend Cardiff office at least once a week, with full-time office attendance for the first few weeks during training.
HMRC (lower end pay: £31,096)
• Strengths: dynamic, customer-facing, exposure to real-world threat patterns, lots of collaboration.
• Weaknesses: emotionally heavier (supporting victims), more reactive, less directly aligned with intelligence analysis.
• Office attendance: hybrid; attendance varies by team but generally flexible, with multiple office locations including Cardiff.
Both roles are permanent EO level and offer similar benefits.
If anyone has experience with Cardiff commuting, hybrid government roles, or progression in fraud/security departments, I’d really appreciate your insight. I’m trying to choose the role that best supports my long-term goal in intelligence while still being realistic about the commute and day-to-day work.