Police Scotland
Group Task and SJE

Police Scotland's candidate portal sets out the assessment day in two halves. The morning holds an unassessed ice breaker, the group task and the Situational Judgement Exercise (SJE). The afternoon holds the interview, but only for candidates who are successful in the morning.

Police Scotland says: "All of the exercises are assessed against the Police Scotland Competencies and Values Framework (CVF). All of the Competencies and Values are assessed throughout the course of the assessment day." It also says the exercises need no policing, legal or procedural knowledge. For the whole day, including the interview and a day-before checklist, see our Police Scotland assessment day guide.

The two exercises are often lumped together, but they test you in opposite ways. The group task gives you time to read and plan and then rewards how you work with others. The SJE gives you no time at all and rewards how you think on your feet, alone, out loud.

Police Scotland's Competency and Values Framework has six competencies in three clusters and three levels. Level 1 applies to constables. The framework is underpinned by Police Scotland's values: integrity, fairness, respect and human rights. Police Scotland does not publish which competencies each exercise weights most, or how they are scored, so the table below is our reading of where each competency naturally shows. It is not an official marking guide.

The values matter in both exercises. Fairness shows when you treat every person in a scenario even-handedly. Respect shows in how you speak to and about people, including the other candidates. Integrity shows when a scenario tests whether you would do the right thing when no one is watching. Human rights shows when you think about vulnerable people, dignity and proportionate action. Our values and Code of Ethics guide explains each one.

10 minutes: read alone

You get "10-minutes independent reading and comprehension of a short, policing-related scenario (approx. 500-600 words)". 500 to 600 words in 10 minutes is a comfortable reading pace, which leaves time to plan. Use it. Read the task items first so you know what the briefing must answer, then read the scenario with those questions in mind.

30 minutes: discuss and brief

A "30-minute group discussion about the scenario and briefing to assessors to address task items". Two things happen inside the 30 minutes: the group discusses, then the group briefs the assessors. A group that discusses for the full 30 minutes and then has no time to brief has not completed the task. Agree early how long you will spend discussing.

10 minutes: answer the assessors

A "10-minute assessor Q&A". Expect questions that probe the group's recommendations, what was missed or what you would do differently. Honest answers that add to the briefing are better than defending a weak point.

What a group task rewards

• Answering the task items. The briefing has to address them. Keep them in front of the group.
• Contributing and including. Make your points and bring others in. Silent candidates give assessors nothing to assess; dominant ones crowd others out.
• Building on ideas. "To add to what Jamie said..." shows you listened and are working towards one answer.
• Prioritising. Most scenarios contain more problems than you can solve. Say which come first and why: usually safety and vulnerable people.
• Partners. Many community problems are not the police's alone. Naming the other organisations who should be involved shows critical thinking.

We wrote this scenario ourselves. It is not a Police Scotland scenario, the organisations are invented and it is shorter than the real 500 to 600 words. It shows the kind of thinking a group task rewards.

What a good group might notice

• There are several problems, not one: fear among older library users, possible damage to cars, young people with nowhere to go and a possible attempt to buy age-restricted products.
• There are vulnerable people on both sides: older people who have stopped coming and children aged 13 to 15 who may be at risk themselves.
• Closing the evening sessions would punish the wrong people and lose a service the community values.
• There are gaps in the information: who smashed the window is not known and it would be unfair to assume it was the group.
• Partners hold most of the answers: the library, the youth worker, the council, the shop and the parent volunteer.

A sample briefing plan

1. Priorities. First, the safety and confidence of library users, so the evening sessions can continue. Second, the welfare of the young people. Third, the criminal damage, which needs looking into fairly.
2. Partners. The library to keep sessions running and record incidents; the youth worker to talk with the young people about what they need; the council to see whether the lighting upgrade can come sooner; the shop to keep refusing sales and report requests; the parent volunteer to help meet people arriving for classes.
3. Next month. Visible community officer presence at session start times; a meeting between the youth worker and the young people to look at alternatives to the car park; contact with the two older people who stopped coming. Success looks like those users returning, fewer incidents recorded by staff and the young people engaging with the youth worker.

Notice the balance: the plan protects the older people without treating every young person as an offender. That is fairness and respect in action and it is the kind of judgement the CVF describes.

Likely assessor questions

• "Why did your group put the young people's welfare above the damage to the car?"
• "What would you do if the library manager still decided to close the sessions?"
• "Was there anything your group disagreed on and how did you resolve it?"

Police Scotland's description: "Within your assessment group you will all be verbally presented with an unfolding, hypothetical policing scenarios by assessors and asked individually about your considerations and intended course of action." And: "This is a reactive exercise with no reading or comprehension time."

Three phrases in that description tell you how to prepare:

• "Unfolding". The scenario changes as it goes. What was right at the first stage may be wrong at the next. Show that you notice the change.
• "Considerations and intended course of action". You are asked for both what you would think about and what you would do. Cover both, briefly.
• "Asked individually". Other candidates are in the room, but your answer is yours. Do not copy the previous candidate's answer and do not argue with it either.

You do not need to know police powers or procedures. Police Scotland says so. A scenario might take place in a policing setting, but what you are showing is judgement: safety, fairness, respect for the people involved and a sensible next step.

This unfolding scenario is our own and is not a Police Scotland scenario. In the real exercise an assessor reads each stage aloud and you answer without preparation time. Try answering each stage out loud before reading our notes.

Stage 1: what a strong answer considers

• It may be innocent: a relative or friend helping. It may not be. You do not know yet, so you do not assume.
• The man may be vulnerable and his money and personal details may be at risk.
• A calm, polite approach: introduce yourself and check the man is all right, without accusing anyone.
• Your own safety and that of people nearby.

Stage 2: what has changed

• "New friend", a large cash sum and pressure about "urgent" repairs together raise the possibility that he is being taken advantage of.
• Speak to the elderly man on his own if you can, in a way that respects his dignity and his right to make his own choices.
• Ask open questions: who the younger man is, who is doing the repairs, whether anyone else in his family knows.
• Note a description of the younger man.
• Stay respectful to the younger man as well: suspicion is not proof.

Stage 3: what has changed again

• The man's account now suggests a pattern of money being taken with nothing in return. He is a possible victim and he is distressed.
• His wellbeing comes first: reassure him, make sure he is safe and that his money and bank card are secure.
• Pass the description and direction of the younger man to colleagues straight away.
• Recognise you would involve colleagues and the right support, for example family if he wants that, rather than handle it alone.
• Think about evidence without needing to know procedure: the time of the withdrawal, the bank's CCTV, any paperwork for the earlier payments.

Look at what the answers have in common: they say what is noticed, what has changed, who is at risk and what the next step is and why. They are fair to both men. They admit what you do not know. None of them needs legal knowledge.

Forces in England and Wales use the College of Policing's national process, with an online situational judgement test in the National Sift and its own assessment stages. Police Scotland's morning exercises are different in kind: in person, in a group, spoken and reactive. Police Scotland's CVF keeps the same six competencies as the College's framework (it is modified with permission) but uses Police Scotland's values. Practice written for England and Wales will help with structure but not with the format. See Police Scotland vs England and Wales recruitment.

This one tests integrity and fairness more than safety. It is our own scenario, not Police Scotland's. Answer each stage aloud before reading the notes.

• Stage 1: you cannot sign for something you did not do. Offer to do the check now if there is time, or record honestly that it has not been done. Stay polite.
• Stage 2: pressure does not change the answer. Explain calmly why accurate records matter, without attacking the colleague. Recognise that you may need to speak to a supervisor.
• Stage 3: the risk to the public and colleagues comes first: make sure the equipment is taken out of use and reported. Be open about what happened and think about whether the wider practice needs to change.

Our assessment day guide has nine more practice scenarios and the SJE practice page has more.

Another scenario of our own, not Police Scotland's. Read it in 10 minutes, then plan as if you had 30 minutes to discuss and brief.

What a strong group notices

• The most urgent risk is children crossing in front of a stopped bus on a bend at school times.
• The older resident is also at risk and has become isolated. Her safety and wellbeing count too.
• The neighbour dispute is a different kind of problem. Notes the recipient finds threatening may need police attention in their own right, separate from the road plan.
• "Do something about speeding" is one answer, but the bus stop position and the lack of a crossing may matter as much.
• Most of the fixes belong to the council, the bus operator and the school, with the police supporting.

A sample briefing plan

Sample recommendations for task item 3: ask the council to bring the road survey forward and consider moving the bus stop; visible police presence on the bend at school times while that happens; the school and parents to agree a safer walking route and drop-off point; a visit to the older resident to understand what would help her walk safely; deal with the threatening notes separately. Measures: fewer near misses reported by the school, the survey date fixed and the older resident walking to the shop again.

Notice how splitting the briefing between four speakers keeps it short, lets everyone contribute and makes sure each task item has an owner. Police Scotland does not say how the briefing must be divided, so agree it as a group.

Police Scotland's CVF is underpinned by four values. Police Scotland says all the competencies and values are assessed across the day. This table is our reading of how each value can show in the two morning exercises.

Police Scotland says it makes reasonable adjustments for candidates whose circumstances would otherwise put them at a disadvantage. It names neurodivergent conditions such as dyslexia, dyspraxia, autism and ADHD. You ask for adjustments on the eligibility form, before the main application, with as much detail as you can about the support you need at each stage. You can contact the recruitment team if your circumstances change.

Police Scotland does not publish which specific adjustments it offers for the group task or the SJE. If reading a 500 to 600 word scenario in 10 minutes, or answering spoken scenarios with no preparation time, would be harder for you because of a condition, say so on the form and explain why.

This one tests how you communicate with someone who cannot easily make themselves understood, which the CVF names under "We are emotionally aware". Our scenario, not Police Scotland's.

• Stage 1: stay calm and patient; find a way to communicate (gestures, a translation app, someone who speaks her language); take her seriously from the start, because a photo of a child suggests a missing child.
• Stage 2: a missing six-year-old is urgent. Get a description and the photo to colleagues and station staff straight away; think about the train that left and the stations it stops at; search nearby areas; keep the mother safe and informed. Involve others rather than searching alone.