Cheshire Constabulary tops the national exam chart for wannabe Inspectors

Cheshire Constabulary’s officers have proven themselves to be pass masters, by taking the force to the top of the Inspectors NPPF Step Two Legal Examination chart.

The Constabulary achieved an impressive 82.9 per cent pass rate in the 2022 exam for officers endeavouring to progress to the rank of Inspector via the four-step National Police Promotion Framework (NPPF).

That is nearly 30 per cent higher than the average pass rate of 54 per cent.

Officers from all 43 police forces in England and Wales took the exam, as did British Transport Police (BTP) officers.

Twenty-nine out of 35 entrants from Cheshire passed the exam – with three of them achieving an exceptional pass mark – and will now be assessed against rank specific competencies and matched to Inspector vacancies.

The top five performing forces were:

Organisation	Number of candidates	Number of successful candidates	Success rate
Cheshire	35	29	82.9 per cent
Gwent	XX	XX	82.6 per cent
Norfolk	XX	XX	78.9 per cent
Lancashire	43	33	76.7 per cent
Lincolnshire	XX	XX	73.7 per cent

Please note that where candidate numbers are low, these have been removed to ensure that no candidates can be identified from the data.

Cheshire Constabulary’s Deputy Chief Constable Chris Armitt said: “It is fantastic to see the force at the top of the charts and for our officers’ hard work and determination to be rewarded in this way.

“The Inspectors NPPF Step Two Legal Examination tests officers’ knowledge and understanding of a wide range of laws and procedures.

“The fact that so many of our officers took and passed the exam is indicative of the high level of ambition and talent within the force.

“My congratulations go to all those who passed. You have done yourselves and the Constabulary proud.”

The exam consists of 150 multiple choice questions answered over a three-hour period.

The questions are written by trained writers who have extensive policing experience and knowledge of the relevant legislation.

All the questions are extensively quality-assured by a team of internal and independent experts.

The four NPPF steps that officers need to complete to become an Inspector are:

• Step One: Competence in current rank
• Step Two: Legal knowledge examination
• Step Three: Assessment against rank specific competencies and matching to vacancies
• Step Four: Temporary promotion and work-based assessment