Number of successful direct entry applicants less than expected

Only 13 prospective superintendents have made it through the national assessment centre to embark on the direct entry programme, the College of Policing has confirmed.

Of the 46 candidates put forward, 40 completed the assessment and of these, 13 were recommended to police forces.

The successful candidates come from a wide range of professions, including finance, the media and creative industry, the Armed Forces and the civil service. They include four women and two people from black and minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds.

The success rate for women on the programme was 22 per cent, while for men it was 41 per cent. Thirty-three per cent of white candidates were successful and for BME candidates the figure was 29 per cent.

The 13 recommended candidates were put forward by four of the seven forces participating in the scheme, ten from the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and one each from Avon and Somerset Constabulary, Sussex Police and North Yorkshire Police.

Candidates put forward by the City of London Police and British Transport Police did not meet the required standard, while West Yorkshire Police did not support any of its applicants to attend the national assessment centre.

Forces will now make their final decisions on appointment and candidates who accept a position will start their role in November.

Director of Police National Assessment Centres, Chief Constable Sara Thornton, said while the number of applicants that passed the assessment was lower than hoped, she was confident that all of the candidates have the potential to make a tangible impact on policing.

“The process was deliberately demanding so that we could find the candidates with both leadership qualities and the ability to make a positive impact on the culture in policing,” she said.

Chief executive of the College of Policing, Alex Marshall, added: “We have always maintained that this would be a tough programme to be accepted onto because the superintendent role is so demanding. The assessment centres have identified some exceptional performers who we believe will be able to rise to that challenge over the course of their 18 months training.”

Policing Minister Mike Penning said the future success of the police was dependent on attracting the brightest and best to careers in the service.

“The Government introduced direct entry to open up the senior ranks of the police to people with new perspectives and expertise,” he said.

“Direct entry is a demanding challenge and it is right that applicants should go through a robust selection process to make sure only those who can meet the high standards required to complete the training programme and become excellent police leaders are appointed.”

Robin Wilkinson, MPS director of human resources, said: “We are pleased with the level of interest we have achieved in this first recruitment campaign for direct entry superintendents. The College of Policing’s assessment centre really put the candidates through their paces across a range of challenging exercises and we are pleased with the quality of those that were successful.

“The ten MPS candidates will proceed to an interview with the commissioner and other management board members before we determine whether they will be appointed.”