inspectors' exam: nearest sitting not yet finished (as at the last site update)
November 2026
Exam window 3 to 5 November 2026, 8am to 8pm each day.
Registration
Window 7 September 2026 to 5 October 2026
The College deadline is 6pm on 5 October 2026. Your force may set an earlier date, so ask your force exams officer. Results for this sitting are expected by 26 November 2026.
What the inspectors' exam actually takes
These are the College of Policing's own published figures from the May 2026 sitting — not an estimate, and not the "around 55 to 65%" you'll see quoted elsewhere.
Cut score
65%
absolute, applied to every candidate
Pass rate
37%
644 of 1,739 passed
The paper
150
questions in 3 hours — 72s each
Exceptional
85%+
only 2.3% of candidates managed it
How the sergeants' exam compares
Both papers are the same shape — 150 multiple-choice questions in 3 hours, drawn from the same three areas of the Blackstone's Manuals. The syllabus is not identical: chapter 1.8 (weapons) is examined for sergeants only, the College says some rank-specific areas differ, and the balance of questions across the three areas differs by rank. The biggest difference is the standard. The sergeants' paper is marked at 55% rather than 65%, and 58.5% of candidates pass it — against 37% here.
Sergeants'
55% to pass
58.5% success rate, March 2026
Inspectors'
65% to pass
37% success rate, May 2026
A common assumption is that the inspectors' paper is shorter. It isn't — it's the same length, marked ten points higher, and roughly six in ten candidates fail it.
Pass rate by force — May 2026
The same exam window and the same cut score for every force. Yet Bedfordshire passed 100% of its candidates and Cumbria passed 16.7%. The College warns that force pass rates should be compared with caution because cohort sizes differ so much, and it does not publish the reasons for the gaps. Treat your force's figure as context, not a prediction.
The Met is the outlier worth noting. It entered 530 candidates — 30% of everyone sitting the paper — and passed 23.8%, against a national 37%. On these numbers a Met candidate is materially less likely to pass than a colleague doing the identical exam elsewhere.
| Force | Pass rate |
|---|---|
| Bedfordshire | 100.0% |
| City of London | 100.0% |
| Lincolnshire | 100.0% |
| North Wales | 75.0% |
| Northamptonshire | 66.7% |
| Wiltshire | 61.5% |
| Cheshire | 57.6% |
| Derbyshire | 56.0% |
| Lancashire | 55.3% |
| West Yorkshire | 53.4% |
| Staffordshire | 51.6% |
| Durham | 50.0% |
| Nottinghamshire | 50.0% |
| Suffolk | 50.0% |
| Surrey | 48.7% |
| British Transport Police | 47.8% |
| Leicestershire | 47.1% |
| Cambridgeshire | 45.5% |
| Cleveland | 45.5% |
| North Yorkshire | 45.0% |
| Norfolk | 42.9% |
| Thames Valley | 42.9% |
| Gloucestershire | 41.7% |
| Devon and Cornwall | 41.4% |
| West Midlands | 40.7% |
| Merseyside | 39.3% |
| Greater Manchester | 38.7% |
| Northumbria | 37.5% |
| South Wales | 37.5% |
| Humberside | 36.4% |
| Hertfordshire | 35.5% |
| Gwent | 35.3% |
| Sussex | 35.1% |
| Kent | 35.0% |
| West Mercia | 34.8% |
| Hampshire | 30.8% |
| Dyfed-Powys | 28.6% |
| Essex | 28.6% |
| South Yorkshire | 27.8% |
| Metropolitan Police | 23.8% |
| Cumbria | 16.7% |
| Warwickshire | 16.7% |
| Dorset | 38.5% |
Candidate counts are withheld by the College where a cohort is small enough that individuals could be identified; those forces show the published percentage only. 35 of 43 forces published full counts. Green means at or above the 37% national rate.
Who passed in May 2026
By sex
Women passed at 43.5%, men at 34.4% — a gap of 9.1 percentage points in women's favour.
By ethnicity
White candidates passed at 38.1%, candidates from an ethnic minority background at 29.7% — a 8.4 point gap.
Published by the College of Policing in its results and analysis overview. We report it because it is a real feature of the exam that candidates are rarely shown, not because it predicts anything about any individual.
What you're actually examined on
Three areas: crime, evidence and procedure, general police duties. Questions are drawn solely from the Blackstone's Police Manuals for your sitting (the 2026 edition for the October and November 2026 sittings, the 2027 edition from March 2027), not an earlier edition and not from anything else.
- The Manuals are endorsed. The Q&As are not. The College states plainly that it endorses only the Blackstone's Police Manuals, and that other products including the Blackstone's Q&As are not affiliated with it.
- There is a 30% discount on the Manuals for police officers and staff in England and Wales, via College Learn. A lot of candidates pay full price without realising.
- You are not tested on recalling tables. The College says candidates will not be examined on information contained solely within the tables in the Manuals — but where the text cites a PACE Code paragraph, that provision is examinable.
- The question balance is not random. The College sets the balance from a nationwide survey of operational sergeants and inspectors, with input from the NPPF governance board, so each paper leans towards what officers at the target rank meet most often. Any part of the syllabus can still be examined.
Figures on this page come from the College of Policing candidate handbook (updated 10 September 2026) and its published results and analysis for the May 2026 sitting. Always check the handbook for the sitting you are entering — it supersedes everything else, including this page.
Inspector Exam
Explained (UK)
NPPF Step Two: what it tests, how it’s marked, and how to prepare properly
Next inspector sitting
Inspector exam: Tuesday 3 to Thursday 5 November 2026
Registration closed on 5 October 2026 at 6pm. If you are registered, you are in the final 3 weeks: practise under timed conditions and fix the areas you keep missing.
Results for this sitting are expected by about 26 November 2026 (the College's handbook date).
Dates as we last checked them against the College of Policing. Always confirm yours with the College.
Police Pay (UK) provides independent explanatory guidance. We are not affiliated with the College of Policing, any police force, or any staff association. This guide is educational and does not guarantee outcomes.
Executive Summary
The inspector exam (the NPPF step two legal knowledge examination for inspectors) is the national legal knowledge test for promotion from sergeant to inspector. It is one three-hour paper of 150 multiple-choice questions on crime, evidence and procedure, and general police duties, set only from the Blackstone's Police Manuals for your sitting. You need 65% of the 140 scored questions to pass.
The College of Policing says the exam is not aimed at testing pure factual recall of things you would look up at work, and it weights the paper towards areas serving inspectors told it are important and frequently encountered. The step two exam for sergeants has the same shape; the inspectors' version has a pass mark ten points higher and, at recent sittings, a much lower pass rate: 37.0% in May 2026 and 24.4% in November 2025.
Direct Answer
The inspector exam is the NPPF step two legal knowledge examination: 150 multiple-choice questions in three hours on crime, evidence and procedure, and general police duties, taken only from the Blackstone's Police Manuals for your sitting. The pass mark is 65% (91 of 140 scored questions). A pass lets you go on to step three, your force's assessment and matching to vacancies; it does not promote you by itself.
The Inspector
Exam Context
The National Police Promotion Framework (NPPF) has four steps, and they are the same for sergeant and inspector: step one, competence in your current rank (confirmed in force, not an exam); step two, the legal knowledge examination; step three, assessment against the rank-specific competencies and matching to vacancies; and step four, temporary promotion and a work-based assessment. The "inspector exam" is step two for inspectors. The College says it checks that candidates have "a sufficient level of knowledge and understanding of the syllabus". Forces in the College's SIPP test phase have run a separate legal test, so confirm with your force examinations officer which one you are entered for. Our NPPF step 2 exam explained guide covers the full process.
Only sergeants can sit it. OSPRE-qualified sergeants can enter from day one of their sergeant posting; NPPF-qualified sergeants can enter once they have completed step four and been made substantive. Everyone needs two years as a substantive sergeant before substantive promotion to inspector. The sitting on 3 to 5 November 2026 uses the 2026 Manuals; its registration closed at 6pm on 5 October 2026; in 2027 the sittings are 11 to 13 May and 2 to 4 November, using the 2027 Manuals. See NPPF exam dates 2027 and the registration checklist.
Who this is for
- Substantive sergeants preparing for the exam
- Temporary sergeants planning ahead (you must be substantive by the exam date)
- Sergeants who have sat it before and are resitting
- Promotion coaches and mentors
What this guide is not
- An assessment of character
- A guarantee of promotion
- A technical cheat-sheet
- Official force policy
Sergeants' vs
Inspectors' Exam
Both are NPPF step two. A common mistake is to call the sergeants' exam "step one" and the inspectors' exam "step two"; step one is not an exam for either rank. The two papers share a format and nearly all of the syllabus. What changes is the pass mark, a small part of the syllabus, the balance of questions and the dates.
Sergeants' exam (step two)
- 150 questions, 3 hours, 140 scored
- Pass mark 55% (77 of 140); exceptional 75%
- All three Manuals, including chapter 1.8 (weapons)
- Sat in March and October
- March 2026: 1,882 of 3,215 passed (58.5%)
Inspectors' exam (step two)
- 150 questions, 3 hours, 140 scored
- Pass mark 65% (91 of 140); exceptional 85%
- All three Manuals except chapter 1.8
- Sat in May and November
- May 2026: 644 of 1,739 passed (37.0%); November 2025: 413 of 1,693 (24.4%)
The College's handbook says some rank-specific areas are different, as indicated in the Manuals, and the question blueprint for each rank comes from what serving officers at that rank report as important and frequently encountered. It does not say the inspectors' questions are a different style. For a side-by-side, see sergeant vs inspector exam; for what 65% means in practice, see the pass mark explained.
What the College
Says Is Examined
The syllabus is Appendix A of the College's 2027 candidate handbook, which lists every chapter and sub-heading of the three Blackstone's Police Manuals. All of it applies to the inspectors' exam except chapter 1.8. The Manuals are the definitive source; the summary below groups the chapters. For November 2026 use the 2026 edition; for 2027 sittings use the 2027 edition (see which Blackstone's edition).
Mens rea, actus reus, incomplete offences and general defences (chapter 1.4 includes use of force and human rights), homicide, drugs, firearms, non-fatal offences, deprivation of liberty, sexual offences, child protection (1.14), theft, fraud and criminal damage. Chapter 1.8, weapons, is for the sergeants' exam only.
Instituting proceedings, bail, court procedure and witnesses, exclusion of evidence, disclosure, and PACE Codes C, D, E and F: detention and treatment (including reviews and extensions of detention), identification, and interviews.
Stop and search, entry and seizure, arrest, mental health powers, processions, assemblies and protests (including Articles 10 and 11), public order, domestic abuse, harassment and stalking, terrorism, complaints and misconduct (3.17), unsatisfactory performance and attendance (3.18), and four road policing chapters.
The College builds each paper from a nationwide survey of serving sergeants and inspectors, so the mix reflects what officers at the target rank find important and meet often. Our count of the May 2026 inspectors' subject area breakdown is roughly 52 crime, 29 evidence and procedure and 55 general police duties of the 140 scored questions (approximate). Any part of the syllabus can still be examined.
The 2027 Appendix A has no chapter or sub-heading for the National Decision Model, civil law, leadership or 'safeguarding' as a stand-alone topic. Assessment against the rank-specific competencies happens at step three, not in this exam.
You will not be examined on recalling information found only in the Manuals' tables. Where the text refers directly to a paragraph of a PACE Code, you are expected to know that provision.
More detail: what comes up in the sergeants' and inspectors' exam and the College's subject area breakdowns for each sitting.
What the
Questions Test
Understanding, not pure recall
The handbook says the exam is not aimed at testing pure factual recall of matters you would look up at work, although some key areas need a high level of knowledge. In practice that means knowing the elements of an offence, power or procedure well enough to apply them to the facts in a question. The questions are written by trained question writers who have attended the College's multiple-choice question writing course.
The law as printed, for your year
The Manuals for your sitting are the definitive reference. The answer is what the Manual says, not local practice or what happens on shift. You are not examined on information found only in the Manuals' tables, but where the text refers directly to a paragraph of a PACE Code you are expected to know it. Several PACE provisions give specific roles to officers of inspector rank or above, such as reviews of detention before charge (chapter 2.6), so read those parts with your target rank in mind.
Why Strong
Sgts Struggle
The College does not publish reasons why candidates fail, so these are practical points drawn from the published format and syllabus rather than research findings. See also why good officers fail the inspector exam.
The higher bar
65% means 91 of 140 scored questions right, ten points above the sergeants' mark. Studying to the level that passed you as a sergeant may not be enough.
Revising from memory of the job
The exam tests the law as it appears in the Manuals for your sitting. Where force practice or habit differs from the text, the text wins.
Reading without practising
Because the exam is not pure recall, reading the Manuals once is rarely enough. Timed questions show whether you can apply what you have read.
Skipping unfamiliar chapters
Any part of the syllabus can be examined. Chapters outside your current role, such as road policing, terrorism or unsatisfactory performance (3.18), still count.
Readiness
Self-Check Tool
Readiness Diagnostic
Inspector Exam Check
Complete all checks for readiness band
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The Revision
Strategy Matrix
Work from Appendix A and the right Manuals. Rank chapters by weakness; start with what you avoid.
Convert law into 'If this, then that' patterns.
Timed blocks: move from 10 to 50+ questions.
Track why you miss marks. Not just the score.
The College's free practice questions and revision guidance are in its Candidate Online Examination Guidance group on Knowledge Hub. Officers and staff in England and Wales can buy the Manuals at a 30% discount through College Learn. The College endorses only the Blackstone's Police Manuals; the Blackstone's Q&As and every other question bank, including ours, are not affiliated with it.
For a week-by-week structure, see the inspector exam revision plan or build your own with the free exam study planner. To choose materials, see revision resources compared and are the Blackstone's Q&A and mock worth it.
Exam Day
Battle Tactics
- 01Read like a report, not a story
Don't invent missing details or operational assumptions. Stick to the facts given in the question and apply the law as the Manual states it. Three hours for 150 questions is 72 seconds a question, so do not let one question eat your time.
- 02Plan the 12-hour window
You can start at any time within the 12-hour window on your exam day, at home or at work; there is no national test-centre requirement, but the environment is your responsibility. The exam must be done in one sitting and the clock keeps running during comfort breaks.
- 03Know the rules
Using AI tools, getting help from anyone, or copying, photographing or searching question text are rule breaches. The College can remove a result and ban a candidate for two years or more. Full detail: online exam rules and exam day.
Results and your feedback report arrive through AIMS within three weeks of the exam. The report gives your overall percentage and a breakdown by subject area; there is no certificate. A pass is valid for five years (less one day). See results, validity and resits.
Exam FAQS
Is the inspector exam the same as NPPF step two?
Yes. The inspectors' exam is the NPPF step two legal knowledge examination for promotion to inspector. The sergeants' exam is also step two: both ranks sit a step two legal exam. Step one is confirmation that you are competent in your current rank, and it is not an exam. Forces testing the College's newer SIPP promotion process have run a separate SIPP legal knowledge test, so check with your force examinations officer which one applies to you.
Does passing step two guarantee promotion?
No. A pass lets you move to step three, assessment against the rank-specific competencies and matching to vacancies, which your force runs. Step four is temporary promotion and a work-based assessment. A pass is valid for five years (less one day) from the exam date.
How does the inspectors' exam compare with the sergeants' exam?
The format is the same: 150 multiple-choice questions in three hours, 140 of them scored, across crime, evidence and procedure, and general police duties, all from the Blackstone's Police Manuals for your sitting. The syllabus is the same except chapter 1.8 (weapons), which is examined for sergeants only, and the balance of questions differs. The pass mark is 65% (91 of 140) against 55% (77 of 140). In May 2026, 37.0% of 1,739 inspector candidates passed; in March 2026, 58.5% of 3,215 sergeant candidates passed.
What is the pass mark for the inspectors' exam?
65%, which is 91 correct answers out of the 140 scored questions. The ten least-performing questions are removed after the sitting. 85% or more is an exceptional grade and below 35% is a low-band fail. The College's results overview for May 2026 states that an absolute cut score of 65% was applied to all candidates. The debrief panel can alter the pass mark only in exceptional circumstances.
What should I revise first?
Start from the College's syllabus list (Appendix A of the candidate handbook) and the Manuals for your sitting: the 2026 edition for November 2026, the 2027 edition for the 2027 sittings. Use timed practice to find your weakest of the three areas, then work through it chapter by chapter. The College weights questions towards areas serving inspectors say are important and frequently encountered, but any part of the syllabus can be examined.
What if I fail the inspectors' exam?
There is no national limit on resits, although your force may set one. There are two inspector sittings a year, in May and November. Your feedback report gives your percentage score broken down by subject area, which is the best guide to where to focus next time.
Can I sit the inspectors' exam at home?
Yes. It is sat online at any time within a 12-hour window on an exam day, and there is no national requirement to sit it at a test centre or under supervision, although your force may offer a room. You are responsible for a suitable testing environment. Using AI tools, or copying or searching question text, is a breach of the rules.
Results day: what to do next
Leave your email and we will email you ourselves around results day with what to do next, whether you passed or not: the resit plan and dates if you need them, the next steps if you passed. Also exam dates and rule changes as they happen. No automatic emails.
Knowledge Web
Exam Cluster: What's Next?
Sources & Methodology
Checked on 4 October 2026 against the College of Policing's own documents. This is an independent guide: PolicePay is not affiliated with or endorsed by the College of Policing or the publisher of the Blackstone's Police Manuals. The handbook for your sitting overrides anything here, and force processes for steps one, three and four vary, so confirm local rules with your force examinations officer.
- NPPF step two legal examinations candidate handbook 2027 (updated 10 September 2026): the four steps, eligibility, format, syllabus and Appendix A, chapter 1.8, question blueprint, tables and PACE Codes, pass marks, debrief panel, exam rules, results, validity and resits.
- NPPF step two exam hub: 2026 and 2027 dates and registration windows, results and analysis overviews, and subject area breakdowns.
- Inspectors' results and analysis overviews: May 2026 (1,739 sat, 644 passed, 37.0%) and November 2025 (1,693 sat, 413 passed, 24.4%). Both state that an absolute 65% cut score was applied to all candidates.
- The inspectors' question balance (about 52 / 29 / 55) is our own count from the College's May 2026 subject area breakdown and is approximate. Past balance does not predict a future paper.
All guides on this platform undergo periodic review to ensure alignment with current NPPF standards. However, passing the legal exam is subject to individual performance and candidate preparation depth.