The police application process step by step

Applying to become a police constable in England and Wales follows the same broad order in every force. You check you are eligible, apply online to one force, sit the national online assessment, attend a force interview if the force uses one, pass the fitness test and medical, and then clear references and vetting before you are given a start date. Forces recruit in windows that open and close, and the whole process usually takes several months from application to first day.

Before you apply: eligibility

Every force applies national rules on age, nationality and immigration status, residence history, criminal records, finances and health, and adds some of its own. Read the eligibility page of the force you want to join before you start, because failing one of these can end an application at any stage.

Residence matters more than many applicants expect. Vetting needs a checkable history, so a long period living abroad in recent years can delay or prevent an application. Finances are checked too: debt you are managing is not a bar in itself, but county court judgments, defaults or bankruptcy have to be declared and are looked at closely. Visible tattoos are allowed in most forces unless they are offensive or could undermine your role.

A criminal record does not always rule you out, though some offences do. You must declare everything the form asks for, including cautions and matters you think are minor or spent, since the checks will find them and non-disclosure is treated as a matter of honesty. Applying for public sector jobs with a criminal record covers how disclosure works more generally.

The online application

The application form asks for your personal details, employment and address history, and answers to eligibility questions. Some forces add questions about why you want to join or ask for examples of how you have shown the qualities they look for. You also choose an entry route from those the force is running, such as the degree apprenticeship or the degree holder programme. How to become a police constable explains the routes.

The online assessment

If your application passes the eligibility check, you are invited to the national online assessment process. It is based on the Competency and Values Framework for policing, whose values are integrity, impartiality, public service and transparency. The exercises usually include a situational judgement test, a written exercise where you deal with a realistic policing task, and a video interview where you record answers to questions about how you have behaved in the past.

There is a pass mark. Practice materials are available through the force or the official assessment provider, and it is worth doing them, since the format is unfamiliar to most applicants.

The force interview

Many forces hold their own interview after the national assessment, in person or by video. Questions usually explore your motivation, your understanding of the job, and the competencies and values again. Prepare examples of times you dealt with conflict, made a decision under pressure, treated someone fairly when it was difficult and admitted a mistake.

Fitness test and medical

The job-related fitness test is a shuttle run to a set level, often called the bleep test. Forces publish the standard and advice on training for it, and you can usually retake it if you fail. Officers sit it again every year once in post, so you need to keep that level of fitness after you join.

The medical covers eyesight, hearing, general health and any conditions that could affect your ability to do the job safely. Many conditions are compatible with policing once assessed. Declare them honestly; Occupational health checks explains how this stage usually works.

Vetting and references

Police recruitment vetting goes further than most employers’ checks. It looks at your criminal record, intelligence records, finances and online presence, and in many cases at close family members and people you live with. Some applicants are surprised that a relative’s record can be relevant. It is not an automatic bar, but it is assessed.

Forces also take references covering several years of employment or education. Biometric vetting, where your fingerprints and a DNA sample are checked against national databases, is done before appointment. Any of these checks can take weeks, so delays at this stage are common.

Offer and start date

Once every check is cleared, you get a final offer and a start date for the next intake. From 1 September 2026, a constable appointed since 2013 starts on £32,255 a year, rising through the national scale to £52,015, before London weighting and allowances. Police pay scales covers the full picture.

Police Scotland and the Police Service of Northern Ireland run their own recruitment, with their own tests and timetables. If you are a graduate in England or Wales, Police Now runs a separate programme with partner forces, and becoming a special constable is a way to try the work first.