Police Scotland
Values Question
The values question is the 400-word answer on Police Scotland's police officer application form that asks for your own values and how you live them. This guide gives the exact wording, what each value looks like in everyday life, a five-step structure, two original example answers and a free builder with a live word counter.
Independent information, not advice · Sources checked 22 October 2026 · Scotland unless stated
Name two or three of your own values in your own words and say briefly where they come from. Then give two short, real examples of what you did that show fairness, integrity, respect and human rights. End with one or two sentences on why those values matter in policing. Stay under 400 words, write it yourself and make sure every word is true, because the rest of the process may test it.
The question wording, the word limits and the rules on AI and declarations come from Police Scotland's pages and its candidate portal, read on 22 October 2026. Police Scotland does not publish how the form is marked. Every example answer, weak answer, sentence, structure and checklist on this page is original PolicePay material, written for this guide. None of it is Police Scotland's.
The values question, word for word
Police Scotland's published application example shows the question exactly as it appears in part 2 of the police officer application form:
"Police Scotland values are Fairness, Integrity, Respect and Human Rights. What are your personal values and how do you practice these values in your own life?"
Maximum 400 words.
The question has two parts and a good answer covers both:
- "What are your personal values": your own values, in your own words. Not a list of Police Scotland's four, although yours should clearly connect to them.
- "How do you practice these values in your own life": evidence. What you actually do, shown through real examples, not what you believe or would do.
Police Scotland's wording uses "practice" as the verb. In your own answer, the usual British spelling of the verb is "practise" (and "practice" for the noun). It is a small thing, but a clean answer helps.
Notice the order Police Scotland uses here: fairness, integrity, respect and human rights. You do not need to follow that order. You do need each of the four to be visible somewhere in your answer, either through an example or a clear link.
Free values question builder
Build your answer in five short steps. Each step has a prompt, guidance and a weak and a stronger example. Then join the steps into one draft and edit it with a live 400-word counter that warns you as you get close and tells you how far over you are. A 8-point checklist and a list of 6 red flags help you check it before you paste it into the portal. It is free and needs no account. Your draft is saved in this browser only: we do not see or store it.
The free builder does not give feedback on your writing. AI feedback is in the Police Scotland Interview Pack (£24.99). The steps, examples and checklist are original PolicePay material, not Police Scotland's.
The question on the form (Police Scotland's wording, up to 400 words)
"Police Scotland values are Fairness, Integrity, Respect and Human Rights. What are your personal values and how do you practice these values in your own life?"
Build your answer in five short steps, then put it together and get feedback. Write it yourself. Police Scotland says you can use AI as a support tool, but applications that are entirely AI-generated are likely to be identified.
Which values really guide how you live? Use your own words first (for example honesty, looking out for people, treating everyone the same, keeping promises).
Guidance and a weak and strong example
The question asks for YOUR values, not a list of Police Scotland's. Pick two or three you can prove with real behaviour. Then link each one to the Police Scotland value it sits closest to.
Weak: "My values are fairness, integrity, respect and human rights, which are the same as Police Scotland's."
Stronger: "The values I try to live by are honesty, treating people as equals and standing up for people who cannot easily stand up for themselves."
Who or what shaped these values? A parent, a job, a team, a hard moment?
Guidance and a weak and strong example
Keep it short. One clear sentence of background makes the values believable. Do not tell your life story.
Weak: "I have always had strong values since I was young."
Stronger: "My gran ran the village shop for thirty years and never once short-changed a customer, even the ones who were rude to her. I learned from her that honesty is not something you switch on when people are watching."
Give a short real example of being honest when it cost you something, owning a mistake, or treating someone fairly when it would have been easier not to.
Guidance and a weak and strong example
Practising a value means doing something. One specific example with what you did is worth more than three general claims. Say what you did, not what you would do.
Weak: "I am always honest and fair with everyone."
Stronger: "Last year I noticed our team had been overpaid for a weekend shift. It would have been easy to say nothing, but I told my manager and helped work out who was owed what. Two colleagues were annoyed with me for a week. I would do it again."
Give a short example of treating someone with dignity, protecting someone vulnerable or respecting someone whose views or background differ from yours.
Guidance and a weak and strong example
Human rights can sound abstract. In everyday life it is about dignity, safety, privacy and being treated fairly. A real example from caring, volunteering, work or family is ideal.
Weak: "I believe everyone has human rights and should be respected."
Stronger: "I volunteer at a lunch club for older people. One man is profoundly deaf and others used to talk over him. I learned some basic signs and started writing notes so he could join in the quiz. It is a small thing, but it means he is part of the group rather than sitting at the edge of it."
Why do these values matter to you as a future police officer in Scotland?
Guidance and a weak and strong example
End by connecting your values to the job: people trusting you, treating everyone the same, protecting the vulnerable. Keep it personal and avoid repeating the question back.
Weak: "That is why I would make a good police officer."
Stronger: "As a police officer I would meet people on their worst days. I want them to be able to trust that I will be honest with them and treat them fairly, whoever they are."
Check it before you submit
0 of 8 ticked
Red flags to remove
- Repeating the four values back as your own without any evidence
- Hypothetical answers ("I would always...") instead of what you have done
- Clichés such as "I have always wanted to help people" with nothing behind them
- Examples that cannot be checked or that you would struggle to talk about
- Going over 400 words, or padding a short answer with general statements
- An answer that reads as if a chatbot wrote it
AI feedback on your answer
How each value comes across, whether the values are your own, the quality of your examples, phrases that sound generic and a structure from your own examples. It never rewrites your answer for you: Police Scotland says applications written entirely by AI are likely to be identified.
Write at least 80 words first.
Where the values question sits on the form
You apply by registering on Police Scotland's job portal and filling in the application form. Police Scotland says its process is different for each person and that it is up to you how quickly you complete each step. If you fail the pre-screening, you can reapply when you meet the criteria.
The form comes in two parts. The values question is in part 2, the main form, alongside the personal statement and two shorter boxes:
| Section | What it asks for | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Part 1: eligibility assessment | Screening questions on age, driving licence, residency, right to work, tattoos, any previous application and previous police service. Reasonable adjustment requests go here and are reviewed before the main form. You also give three posting location preferences. | Short answers |
| Part 2: about you | Information on residency and right to work. | Short answers |
| Part 2: previous applications and service | Any earlier applications and previous service. | Short answers |
| Part 2: tattoos | A description of every tattoo plus photos of each one. | Description and photos |
| Part 2: business interests | Any business interest you have or are likely to acquire. | Details |
| Part 2: personal statement | Your longer written statement. | Police Scotland says aim for "800 words" |
| Part 2: values question | The question quoted above. | Maximum 400 words |
| Part 2: any other information | Anything else you want the reader to know. | Maximum 200 words |
| Part 2: previous-applicant question | Only if you have applied before (see below). | Maximum 200 words |
| Part 2: employment | Your employment for the last 5 years, with reference contacts. Character references if you have no employment history. | Dates and contacts |
| Part 2: qualifications and declaration | Qualifications you hold, then the declaration. | Short answers |
So you have three long written answers on the form (the personal statement, the values question and any other information) plus a fourth if you have applied before. Plan them together. Decide which examples go where before you write any of them, so you do not spend your best story twice.
The personal statement is the longer piece, where Police Scotland says aim for "800 words". Our Police Scotland hub has a suggested structure for it. This page is about the 400-word values answer only.
The four values and what they look like in everyday life
Police Scotland's Competency and Values Framework (CVF) is underpinned by its values and the Code of Ethics for Policing in Scotland. Each value has a definition and a set of behaviours. The middle column is our summary of the framework. The right column is ours: the kind of everyday behaviour that shows the value outside policing.
| Value | What Police Scotland's CVF says, in summary | What it can look like in your life |
|---|---|---|
| Fairness | Understanding the cultural and social needs of individuals and communities and approaching situations calmly and tolerantly; acting with self-control and impartiality. | Giving the awkward customer the same standard as the friendly one. Splitting game time evenly in a team you coach. Hearing both sides before you decide who is right. |
| Integrity | Balancing competing principles and delivering a service that builds trust; thinking about options before acting so decisions withstand scrutiny; taking personal responsibility; challenging colleagues whose conduct falls below standard. | Owning up to a mistake nobody saw. Handing back money you were overpaid. Telling a friend or colleague that something they did was not on. |
| Respect | Taking pride in policing and being considerate of others' needs while acting politely and professionally; treating all people, including people in custody, humanely and with dignity. | Knocking before you enter someone's room. Learning how a colleague prefers to be addressed. Staying polite with someone who is being rude to you. |
| Human rights | Police Scotland calls itself a rights-based organisation. Its framework links behaviours to rights protected by the Human Rights Act 1998, such as using force only where strictly necessary, never tolerating inhuman or degrading treatment and treating everyone under investigation as innocent until found guilty by a court. | Protecting someone's privacy and dignity. Reporting a safety risk at work. Making sure someone who is deaf, disabled or new to the language is not shut out. |
You do not need to quote the framework in your answer. The reader knows it. What they cannot know is how you live. That is the only thing the question asks for. Use the framework to check that your examples genuinely show the values, not as text to copy.
Two of the four are easier to write about than the others. Integrity and fairness turn up naturally in work stories (a mistake owned, a fair decision). Respect and human rights can feel abstract. In everyday terms they are about dignity, safety, privacy and making sure people are not shut out. A small, real act of dignity is a better example than a big statement about rights.
Human rights in plain terms
You do not need to know the law to write about human rights. Questions that help you spot an example in your own life (our prompts):
- When did you protect someone's dignity when it would have been easier not to?
- When did you keep someone's private information private?
- When did you make sure someone who is disabled, older, younger or new to the language could take part?
- When did you put someone's safety before speed, money or convenience?
- When did you treat someone as innocent, or give them the benefit of the doubt, when others had already decided?
Any one of these, told with what you did, shows the value better than a sentence about the Human Rights Act.
Why "your personal values" matters
The single biggest mistake in values answers is repeating the four values back. The question already tells you what Police Scotland's values are. It then asks what yours are. An answer that begins "My values are fairness, integrity, respect and human rights" has not answered the first half of the question.
Three reasons to lead with your own words:
- It shows you have thought about it. "Keeping my word" or "standing up for people who are being picked on" tells the reader something real about you.
- It makes the evidence believable. Values you actually hold come with stories attached. Values borrowed from a list usually do not.
- It is harder to fake. Police Scotland warns that applications that are entirely AI-generated are likely to be identified. Your own words and specific details are what make an answer yours.
Then link. Once you have named your own values, make the connection clear: "keeping my word is where integrity starts for me". That one sentence does two jobs. It answers the question in your words and shows the reader which Police Scotland value you are evidencing.
Cover the first paragraph of your answer and read the rest. If the examples still clearly show your values without you naming them, the answer is working. If the examples only make sense because you told the reader which value to look for, they need more detail about what you did.
A five-step structure
Police Scotland does not publish a required structure. This is the one our free builder uses. Each step is short; most of your words go on steps 3 and 4, the two real examples.
| Step | Guidance | A stronger example sentence |
|---|---|---|
| Name two or three of your own values | The question asks for YOUR values, not a list of Police Scotland's. Pick two or three you can prove with real behaviour. Then link each one to the Police Scotland value it sits closest to. | "The values I try to live by are honesty, treating people as equals and standing up for people who cannot easily stand up for themselves." |
| Say where they come from (one or two sentences) | Keep it short. One clear sentence of background makes the values believable. Do not tell your life story. | "My gran ran the village shop for thirty years and never once short-changed a customer, even the ones who were rude to her. I learned from her that honesty is not something you switch on when people are watching." |
| Show integrity and fairness in action | Practising a value means doing something. One specific example with what you did is worth more than three general claims. Say what you did, not what you would do. | "Last year I noticed our team had been overpaid for a weekend shift. It would have been easy to say nothing, but I told my manager and helped work out who was owed what. Two colleagues were annoyed with me for a week. I would do it again." |
| Show respect and human rights in action | Human rights can sound abstract. In everyday life it is about dignity, safety, privacy and being treated fairly. A real example from caring, volunteering, work or family is ideal. | "I volunteer at a lunch club for older people. One man is profoundly deaf and others used to talk over him. I learned some basic signs and started writing notes so he could join in the quiz. It is a small thing, but it means he is part of the group rather than sitting at the edge of it." |
| Link it to policing (one or two sentences) | End by connecting your values to the job: people trusting you, treating everyone the same, protecting the vulnerable. Keep it personal and avoid repeating the question back. | "As a police officer I would meet people on their worst days. I want them to be able to trust that I will be honest with them and treat them fairly, whoever they are." |
A word budget for 400 words
A rough budget stops you spending 150 words on background and running out of room for evidence. Our suggestion:
| Part | Words | What goes in it |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Your own values | 40 to 50 | Two or three values in your own words, each linked to the Police Scotland value it sits closest to. |
| 2. Where they come from | 30 to 40 | One or two sentences of background: a person, a job, a team, a hard moment. |
| 3. Integrity and fairness in action | 110 to 130 | One real example, told with what you did and what happened. |
| 4. Respect and human rights in action | 110 to 130 | A second real example from a different part of your life. |
| 5. Link to policing | 40 to 50 | Why these values matter to you as a future officer in Scotland. |
| Total | 330 to 400 | Leave yourself room. A tight 360 words reads better than a stretched 399. |
The opening matters because it is where most answers go wrong. Four ways to start that answer the first half of the question in your own words (patterns to adapt, not lines to copy):
| Approach | Example opening |
|---|---|
| Name the values, then the source | "The values I try to live by are honesty, treating people as equals and looking after people who cannot look after themselves. I learned them from..." |
| Start with the person who shaped you | "My gran ran the village shop for thirty years and never short-changed a customer. From her I learned..." |
| Start with a value in your own words | "Keeping my word matters more to me than almost anything. For me it is where integrity starts." |
| Start with what your job has taught you | "Six years in a busy call centre have taught me that fairness means giving the angry caller the same care as the polite one." |
Two examples are usually enough. Between them they need to show all four values. One example of owning a mistake or being honest (integrity) can also show fairness if you treated people evenly in it. One example of dignity or protecting someone (respect, human rights) can sit in a different part of your life, which shows the values are not just something you do at work.
Two original example answers
These are written for this page by PolicePay. They are not real candidates' answers, not Police Scotland material and not templates to copy. Their job is to show the structure working with two very different backgrounds. Your answer must be built from your own life. The word counts are worked out by the same rule as the builder's counter.
Example 1: a home carer (340 words)
The values I try to live by are honesty, treating people as equals and protecting people who cannot easily protect themselves. Most of them I learned in eight years as a home carer in Fife, visiting older people who rely on me for their dignity as much as their medication.
Honesty matters to me even when it is awkward. Last winter I gave a client her evening tablets an hour late because I had been held up at an earlier visit. Nobody would have known. I wrote the real time on her chart, phoned the duty nurse to check it was safe and told my supervisor before the end of my shift. She changed our rota so that visit is no longer squeezed. For me that is integrity: telling the truth when a small lie would be easier.
Fairness means giving everyone the same standard of care, whether they are kind to me or not. One client used to shout at carers and some colleagues rushed his visits. I took the time to find out that he was frightened of falling in the shower. Once a seat was fitted and I talked him through each step, the shouting stopped. He deserved the same patience as anyone else.
Respect and human rights can sound like big ideas. In my job they are small daily choices. I knock and wait before going in, even with a key. I ask before I help someone wash. When a client with dementia told me her son was taking money from her purse, I did not dismiss it as confusion. I wrote down exactly what she said and reported it through our adult protection procedure. It was looked into and she now has support with her money.
As a police officer in Scotland I would meet people when they are most vulnerable. I want them to trust that I will tell them the truth, treat them the same as anyone else and listen properly, as I have tried to do in every home I have visited.
340 words. Original PolicePay example.
- It opens with three values in the carer's own words, then shows where they come from in one sentence.
- The late tablets example is honest about a real mistake and says exactly what was done about it (integrity).
- The client who shouted gets the same patience as everyone else (fairness), with a specific cause and fix.
- Knocking, asking before helping and reporting possible financial abuse show respect and human rights as daily acts.
- The ending links to policing in one sentence and echoes the opening values without repeating them word for word.
| Paragraph | Words | What it does | Values it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Own values and where they come from | 50 | Three values in plain words; one sentence of background | Sets up all four |
| The late tablets | 88 | A real mistake, what was done about it and what changed | Integrity |
| The client who shouted | 69 | Same standard for everyone; finding the cause | Fairness, respect |
| Daily dignity and the report | 84 | Small acts of dignity; acting on a possible abuse disclosure | Respect, human rights |
| Link to policing | 49 | Why the values matter in the job, echoing the opening | All four |
Example 2: a joiner (310 words)
My own values are keeping my word, being straight with people and looking out for anyone who is being picked on. My dad was a joiner too. He used to say your name is only as good as your last job and twelve years on building sites in Aberdeenshire have shown me he was right.
Keeping my word is where integrity starts for me. Two years ago I quoted a retired couple for a new kitchen and then the price of timber jumped. I could have added the cost on. I had given them a price, so I kept it and took the loss on that job. Since then I explain up front how long a quote stands, so no customer is ever surprised.
Fairness and respect matter most to me on site. Last year an apprentice from Poland joined our squad. Some of the older lads mocked his English and kept giving him the worst jobs. I told them it was not on and spoke to the site manager when it carried on. I also started pairing with him on first fix work and teaching him the trade names for tools. He is now one of our best workers and the jokes have stopped.
To me, human rights means everyone being safe and treated with dignity. When I noticed scaffold ties missing on a job, I stopped work and reported it, even though we were behind and the foreman was not pleased. Nobody should risk their life to earn a wage. Outside work I coach an under-12s football team, where every child gets equal game time whatever their ability.
Policing in Scotland depends on people trusting officers to keep their word and treat everyone fairly. Those are the values I already try to live by. I want to bring them to a job where they matter every single day.
310 words. Original PolicePay example.
- "Keeping my word" is a value in the joiner's own language, linked straight to integrity.
- Holding a price when it cost money is honest, specific and shows what changed afterwards.
- Challenging the mocking of an apprentice, then helping him, shows fairness and respect through actions.
- Stopping work over a safety risk is a plain, everyday way of showing that people's safety comes first.
- A second setting (coaching) shows the values are not only about work.
| Paragraph | Words | What it does | Values it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Own values and where they come from | 55 | Three values in the joiner's own language; a line from his dad | Sets up all four |
| Holding the price | 69 | Keeping a promise when it cost money, then a change in practice | Integrity |
| The apprentice | 81 | Challenging unfair treatment, raising it, then helping | Fairness, respect |
| Safety and coaching | 65 | Putting people's safety first; equal treatment in a second setting | Human rights, fairness |
| Link to policing | 40 | Trust, keeping your word and treating everyone fairly | All four |
Compare the two tables with the word budget in the structure section. Both answers spend most of their words on the middle three paragraphs, where the evidence is. Neither spends more than a few sentences on background or on the link to policing.
Notice what neither answer does. Neither defines a value. Neither says "I would". Neither claims to be perfect: the carer was late and the joiner annoyed his foreman. Small, honest details like that make an answer more believable, not less.
Both examples are also things the writer could talk about for five minutes if asked. If a detail in your answer would fall apart under a follow-up question, take it out.
A weak answer, annotated
This weak answer is also our own invention. It is the kind of answer that is easy to write in ten minutes and says almost nothing. It is only 98 words long, yet most of those words could be cut.
My personal values are fairness, integrity, respect and human rights, the same as Police Scotland's. I have always been a very honest person and I treat everyone fairly no matter who they are. I believe respect is very important in today's society and everyone deserves to be treated with respect. Human rights are the foundation of a fair society. I would always challenge wrongdoing if I saw it. I have always wanted to help people and give back to my community, which is why I want to join Police Scotland. I am passionate, hard-working and a team player.
98 words. Invented weak example.
| Sentence | The problem |
|---|---|
| "My personal values are fairness, integrity, respect and human rights, the same as Police Scotland's." | Repeats the question back. The question asks for your values. This tells the reader nothing about you. |
| "I have always been a very honest person and I treat everyone fairly no matter who they are." | A claim with no evidence. Anyone can write it. One true example would do more than this whole sentence. |
| "I believe respect is very important in today's society..." | Says what you believe, not what you do. The question asks how you practise your values. |
| "Human rights are the foundation of a fair society." | A general statement that could sit in any essay. Nothing personal, nothing checkable. |
| "I would always challenge wrongdoing if I saw it." | Hypothetical. "I would" is not evidence. Replace it with a time you did challenge something. |
| "I have always wanted to help people and give back to my community..." | A cliché. It belongs, if anywhere, in the personal statement, with a real example behind it. |
| "I am passionate, hard-working and a team player." | Three labels and no proof. It also uses words the reader will have seen many times that day. |
The fix is not better adjectives. It is evidence. Pick one sentence, ask "when did I actually do that?" and replace it with the answer. Do that twice and you have the core of a strong values answer.
One rewrite, before and after
"I have always been a very honest person and I treat everyone fairly no matter who they are. I would always challenge wrongdoing if I saw it."
"Honesty matters to me most when it costs something. At the shop where I work, a regular customer was given too much change and I saw a colleague pocket the difference. I asked her to put it back and when she laughed it off, I told our manager. It was uncomfortable for a few weeks. I would still do the same again."
The rewrite is longer, but every word now does work. It names a value in plain words, gives a real situation in one sentence, says what the writer did (twice), admits it was uncomfortable and shows the writer would do it again. That is integrity shown, not claimed. It also replaces the hypothetical "I would always challenge wrongdoing" with a time the writer did.
Weak sentences and stronger versions
Each stronger sentence below swaps a claim for something the writer did. They are illustrations: use the pattern, not the words.
| Weak: a claim | Stronger: what you did |
|---|---|
| I am an honest person. | When my manager overpaid me for a shift, I told her the same day and it was taken off my next pay. |
| I treat everyone fairly. | I give every child in the team I coach the same game time, including the ones who struggle. |
| Respect is very important to me. | I learned some basic signs so a deaf man at our lunch club could join in the quiz. |
| I believe in human rights. | When a client told me her son was taking her money, I wrote down what she said and reported it. |
| I would challenge bad behaviour. | When older lads on site mocked a new apprentice, I told them it was not on and raised it with the site manager. |
| I always take responsibility. | I gave a client her tablets late, wrote the real time on her chart and told my supervisor before I went home. |
| My values make me suited to policing. | Officers meet people on their worst days. I want them to be able to trust me as the people I care for do. |
| I share Police Scotland's values. | The value I hold closest is keeping my word, which for me is where integrity starts. |
The pattern is the same every time: a real situation, what you did and, where it fits, what happened. The more specific the detail (a place, a person, a choice you made), the more the sentence sounds like you.
Finding your examples
Most people have more examples than they think. They just do not recognise everyday decent behaviour as evidence. The question says "in your own life", so you can draw on any part of it. Police Scotland also says you do not need any formal qualifications to apply: life experience counts.
| Part of your life | Situations to think about | Values they often show |
|---|---|---|
| Work | A mistake you owned. Money or stock you could have kept. A customer or client others avoided. A colleague you stood up for. A safety problem you reported. | Integrity, fairness, human rights |
| Caring and family | Looking after a parent, child or sibling. Speaking up for a relative with a doctor, school or council. Keeping a promise that cost you something. | Respect, human rights, integrity |
| Sport and clubs | Coaching or captaining. Fair selection. Handling a parent, player or official who lost their temper. Including someone new. | Fairness, respect |
| Volunteering and community | Food banks, lunch clubs, youth groups, faith groups, charity events. Helping someone who could not easily ask for help. | Respect, human rights, fairness |
| Education and training | A group project where you did the fair share or more. Supporting a classmate. Admitting you had not done something properly. | Integrity, fairness |
| Everyday life | Handing in something you found. Helping a stranger in difficulty. Challenging a joke that went too far. | Integrity, respect |
A 20-minute exercise
- Write the four values across the top of a page.
- Under each, list every real moment you can think of, however small. Do not judge them yet.
- Circle the two moments with the clearest action by you and an outcome you can describe.
- Check the two circled moments between them touch all four values. If not, swap one.
- Keep the rest of the list. Those moments are your bank for the personal statement and the interview.
A good values example does not need to be dramatic. Handing back an overpayment or making sure a deaf man can join a quiz is fine, as long as you tell it with what you did and why. Avoid examples that rely on other people's private details you would not be comfortable sharing. Avoid anything you could not explain if asked.
If you have little work experience
School leavers and people returning to work often worry they have nothing to write about. You do. The question asks about your own life, not your career. Good sources include:
- Looking after a younger brother or sister, a grandparent or a parent who is unwell.
- A part-time job, even a short one: a till that did not add up, a customer who needed extra help.
- Sport, cadets, Scouts, Guides, the Duke of Edinburgh's Award or a youth club.
- School or college: standing up for a classmate, owning a group project that went wrong.
- Volunteering, even a few hours a month.
Keep the examples real and in proportion. A small example told honestly beats a big one that has been stretched.
Interview Pack: AI feedback on your values answer
The Police Scotland Interview Pack (£24.99, 12 months of access, one payment, nothing renews) includes the same five-step builder with AI feedback on your answer. The feedback tells you how each of the four values comes across, whether the values read as your own or as Police Scotland's list, the quality of your examples, phrases that sound generic and a structure built from your own examples, with strengths and the improvements that matter most. It never rewrites your answer for you. Your draft is shared between the free builder and the pack's builder in this browser.
The pack also has the 20-minute interview simulator (four questions, four competencies, one clock), a question bank of 84 original questions with 252 follow-up probes in total and an answer bank for your own examples. Every question and example is original PolicePay practice material, not Police Scotland's. No product can promise a pass.
Linking it to your statement, the interview and vetting
Your values answer is not read in isolation. It sits next to your personal statement, your employment history and your declarations on the same form. The later stages look at the same person.
With the personal statement
- Plan both answers together. The statement (aim for about 800 words) and the values answer (400 at most) should not tell the same story twice.
- If one example is too good to leave out of either, use it once in full and refer to it lightly in the other.
- Make sure the values you name in one appear in how you describe yourself in the other. A values answer about honesty next to a statement full of vague claims reads oddly.
With the afternoon interview
If you pass the earlier stages and the morning of the assessment day, Police Scotland says the afternoon is a 20-minute competency-based interview with four questions, each linked to a named competency in its CVF. It also says all of its competencies and values are assessed across the assessment day. Police Scotland does not say whether interviewers see your form. Either way, the examples in your values answer belong in your bank of interview stories. Anything you say in person should fit with what you wrote. Our interview questions guide and interview practice page cover that stage.
With references and vetting
The same form asks for your employment over the last 5 years, with contacts for references. Police Scotland says that, for declared convictions and tattoos, checks will be made by the vetting unit at the pre-appointment stage. A work example in your values answer should be one your employer would recognise. Nothing in it should sit awkwardly next to what vetting or a reference later shows.
Honesty and declarations
A values question about integrity is a strange place to stretch the truth. Everything in it should be accurate and something you are happy to discuss. The same goes for the rest of the form, where Police Scotland asks you to declare things that matter for eligibility and vetting:
- Criminal convictions. Police Scotland says you must declare them and that "Each case will be considered on its own merits and checks will be made by the vetting unit at the pre-appointment stage." Some offences mean automatic rejection; its list is on the offences page.
- Tattoos. Declared, described and photographed on the form.
- Business interests. Any you have or are likely to acquire.
- Driving and finances. Police Scotland rejects applicants with more than 6 points on their licence and anyone currently in a trust deed (or less than 12 months since discharge), sequestrated or bankrupt less than 3 years ago, or with defaulted accounts totalling 1,000 pounds or more.
If you have a past mistake that you must declare, do not leave it off because it seems to clash with what you wrote about honesty. Declare it. A declared, explained mistake is consistent with integrity. An undeclared one that vetting finds is not. If the mistake shaped your values, you may even choose to mention briefly what you learned, as long as it is true and fits.
Our Police Scotland hub sets out the full list of automatic rejections and eligibility rules.
Police Scotland's rules on using AI
Police Scotland publishes AI guidance for applicants. In short:
- AI is allowed as a support tool. You can use it to help you prepare.
- Entirely AI-generated applications are likely to be identified. Police Scotland says so directly.
- AI does not make the decision. Police Scotland says "we do not use AI to make selection decisions".
- No AI tools in virtual interviews. That rule is about interviews, but it shows where the line is.
For the values answer, the safe reading is simple: the values and the examples must be yours and the words should be yours too. Using a tool to check spelling, or to ask "is this example clear?", is support. Asking a chatbot to write 400 words about fairness is not. It would probably read like it, too.
Our free builder gives you steps, prompts and a checklist; it writes nothing for you. The Interview Pack's AI feedback points out what is working, what is missing and which phrases sound generic, then leaves the rewriting to you. It is designed that way because of Police Scotland's guidance.
If you applied before
Previous applicants get an extra question on the form, with a maximum of 200 words. Police Scotland's wording:
"As you have made a previous application to us, please explain what you have done to prepare for this new application. Please include details of how you have used the feedback provided."
Maximum 200 words.
How this affects your values answer:
- Do not resubmit your old values answer unchanged if it was weak. Rewrite it with the five steps.
- If you have done something new since (volunteering, a new job, caring for someone), it may give you a fresher example.
- Keep the two answers consistent. If your feedback mentioned evidence of values, say in the 200 words what you changed and let the values answer show it.
- Be specific in the 200 words: what you did, when and how it used the feedback. Vague answers such as "I have prepared more" waste the space.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Why it costs you |
|---|---|
| Defining the four values | The reader knows what fairness means. Show what you did. |
| Only using Police Scotland's words | The question says "your personal values". Lead with your own words, then link. |
| Writing what you would do | "I would" is a promise, not evidence. The question asks how you practise your values now. |
| Four thin examples instead of two good ones | Two well-told examples that between them show all four values usually read better than four one-line mentions. |
| Copying your personal statement | Use different examples, or a different angle on the same one, so each answer earns its words. |
| Exaggerating | Anything on the form may come up later. If you could not talk about it for five minutes, cut it. |
| Writing it with AI | Police Scotland says applications that are entirely AI-generated are likely to be identified. |
| Writing it in the portal on the day | Draft it offline, leave it for a day, then edit. Your first draft is rarely your best. |
| Going over 400 words | The limit is part of the question. Cut until every sentence earns its place. |
| Leaving out the link to policing | End by saying why these values matter in the job. Keep it to one or two sentences. |
Editing checklist: getting under 400 words
Most first drafts come in either far too short (a list of claims) or well over the limit (long background, several thin examples). If you are over, work down this list. The word savings are rough guides for a typical draft.
| Edit | How | Typical saving (words) |
|---|---|---|
| Cut the warm-up | Delete opening lines such as "Values are very important to me". Start with your values. | 10 to 30 |
| Cut definitions | Remove any sentence that explains what fairness, respect or human rights mean in general. | 20 to 60 |
| Cut repeated values | If you say "honesty" three times, keep the one with the example. | 10 to 20 |
| Shorten the set-up | Give the situation in one sentence. Spend the words on what you did. | 20 to 50 |
| Drop qualifiers | "Very", "really", "extremely", "I feel that", "I believe that" rarely add anything. | 10 to 20 |
| Merge the ending | One or two sentences linking to policing is enough. Do not summarise the whole answer. | 20 to 40 |
| Prefer short words | "Help" not "assist", "use" not "utilise", "about" not "in relation to". | 5 to 15 |
| Read it aloud | Anything you stumble over or would not say out loud, rewrite or delete. | Varies |
A one-week plan
You do not need a week, but the answer improves a lot when you leave time between drafting and editing. A simple plan (our suggestion):
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | Do the 20-minute exercise in the finding your examples section. List every real moment you can think of under the four values. |
| Day 2 | Pick your two examples. Work through the five steps of the builder, a few sentences each. |
| Day 3 | Join the steps into one draft. Do not worry about length yet. |
| Day 4 | Edit with the checklist on this page. Get under 400 words. |
| Day 5 | Leave it alone. Coming back fresh shows you what is unclear. |
| Day 6 | Read it aloud. Ask someone who knows you whether it sounds like you and whether every detail is right. |
| Day 7 | Final check against the checklist at the end of this page, then paste it into the form. |
Final checks before you paste it in
- It names my own values in my own words, not just Police Scotland's list.
- Fairness, integrity, respect and human rights are each visible, through what I did or through clear links.
- It has at least two real examples of what I actually did ("I..."), not only what I believe.
- The examples are specific: a place, a person, what happened and what I did.
- Everything in it is true and I could talk about any part of it if asked.
- It ends by linking my values to policing in Scotland.
- It is under 400 words and every sentence earns its place.
- It sounds like me, not like a template or a chatbot.
Draft it outside the portal, leave it for a day and read it aloud before you submit. If you are short, do not pad. Add one more concrete detail to an example instead: who was there, what you said, what changed.
What we could not verify
- How the form is marked. Police Scotland does not publish how the values answer or the rest of the application is assessed.
- Any pass mark or minimum length. Only the 400-word maximum is published. We found no minimum and no score.
- Who reads it. Police Scotland does not say who assesses the form, or whether interviewers or vetting staff see your values answer.
- How the limit is enforced. We do not know whether the portal blocks answers over 400 words or how it counts words. Stay comfortably under.
- The candidate portal sits behind a bot check. The form details and the question wording are from our reading in a browser on 22 October 2026. Check the live form when you apply in case the wording has changed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Police Scotland values question?
It is a question on the main part of Police Scotland's police officer application form. It reads: "Police Scotland values are Fairness, Integrity, Respect and Human Rights. What are your personal values and how do you practice these values in your own life?" You have up to 400 words.
How many words is the Police Scotland values question?
Up to 400 words, according to Police Scotland's published application example. Police Scotland does not publish a minimum. Most strong answers use most of the space without padding: around 330 to 400 words gives you room for two real examples.
What are Police Scotland's values?
Fairness, integrity, respect and human rights. They come from Police Scotland's Competency and Values Framework, which is underpinned by its values and the Code of Ethics for Policing in Scotland.
Should I just write about fairness, integrity, respect and human rights?
No. The question asks for your personal values and how you practise them. Name two or three of your own values in your own words, prove them with real examples of what you did, then show how they link to Police Scotland's four values.
Can I use examples from outside work?
Yes. The question asks how you practise your values in your own life, so caring for family, sport, volunteering, education and everyday situations are all fair game. Police Scotland also says you do not need any formal qualifications to apply. What matters is that each example is real and shows what you did.
Is the values question different from the personal statement?
Yes. They are separate boxes in part 2 of the form. Police Scotland says aim for 800 words in the personal statement and gives a maximum of 400 words for the values question. Use different examples, or a different angle on the same one, so the two answers do not repeat each other.
Can I use AI to write my Police Scotland values answer?
Police Scotland's AI guidance allows AI as a support tool but warns that applications that are entirely AI-generated are likely to be identified. It also says it does not use AI to make selection decisions. Write the answer yourself, from your own experiences. Our free builder helps you structure it without writing it for you.
How is the values question marked?
Police Scotland does not publish how the application form is marked, whether there is a pass mark or who reads it. Treat it as a chance to show real evidence of your values in your own words.
Will I be asked about my values answer at interview?
Police Scotland does not say whether interviewers see your application form. The afternoon interview is a 20-minute competency-based interview with four questions and Police Scotland says all its competencies and values are assessed across the assessment day. Keep your answer true and consistent with what you would say in person.
Can I use the same example in the values answer and the personal statement?
You can, but it wastes space. The two answers sit in the same part of the form and together give you about 1,200 words to show who you are. Use different examples where you can. If one example really belongs in both, tell it in full once and mention it briefly in the other from a different angle.
How many examples should my values answer include?
Two well-told real examples are usually enough in 400 words, as long as between them they show fairness, integrity, respect and human rights. Four one-line mentions usually read as claims rather than evidence. Police Scotland does not set a number: this is our suggestion.
I applied before. Do I need to change my values answer?
Police Scotland's form has a separate question for previous applicants, up to 200 words, asking what you have done to prepare and how you used the feedback. If your earlier values answer was weak, rewrite it. Draw on anything new you have done since.
Sources and how we checked them
Every factual claim on this page was written from the sources below, read on 22 October 2026. Rules and figures change, so check the source for the date you are reading this. Where we could not confirm something from an official or independent source, the page says so rather than guessing. Spotted something out of date? See our corrections policy.
- Police Scotland candidate portal: Police officer application example : the two parts of the form; the values question wording and 400-word limit; the personal statement (aim for 800 words); any other information and the previous-applicant question (200 words each); employment and references (read in a browser on 22 October 2026; the portal sits behind a bot check) (accessed 22 October 2026)
- Police Scotland: Our recruitment process (police officer) : registering and applying online; declaring convictions and tattoos; checks by the vetting unit at the pre-appointment stage; the assessment day and CVF (accessed 22 October 2026)
- Police Scotland: AI guidance for applicants : AI as a support tool; entirely AI-generated applications likely to be identified; AI not used to make selection decisions; no AI tools in virtual interviews (accessed 22 October 2026)
- Police Scotland: Competency and Values Framework (PDF) : the values of fairness, integrity, respect and human rights and the behaviours linked to each (accessed 22 October 2026)
- Police Scotland: Apply to become a police officer : eligibility; no formal qualifications needed (accessed 22 October 2026)
- Police Scotland: Offences that mean you'll be rejected : automatic rejection for some offences, penalty points and financial history (accessed 22 October 2026)
On this topic elsewhere
More in this guide series
More for applicants and Scottish officers
Disclaimer
PolicePay.co.uk is an independent guide. It is not affiliated with Police Scotland, the Scottish Police Authority or the College of Policing. It does not recruit, test or assess applicants. Our practice questions are original PolicePay material, not official Police Scotland questions. Police Scotland sets and changes its own selection process, so check its recruitment pages and your candidate account before relying on anything here. Details are as checked on 22 October 2026.