The Metropolitan Police is the first UK police force to test its senior leaders with a new ‘development centre’. Chief Inspector to Chief Superintendent ranks are shortly to undergo challenging formal assessments.
Whatever your rank, junior or senior, be warned: With the Leadership Review around the corner, such tests will be coming to a force near you! With many bemoaning the fairness of promotion, these new assessments could be what the future of police leadership selection, promotion and development will look like for all ranks.
Will a national assessment centre be the standard and gateway for aspiring leaders? Assessment tests seem to be on the rise again and not just for senior leaders. The Met is revising its approach to leadership assessment and scrutiny, with Detective Sergeant candidates also having recently undertaken assessment tests.
To aid you in your ambitions, whatever your rank, I’ve just published a new premium podcast (subscribe today!) guiding you through these new assessments with a three step approach. This follows on from my last premium episode on written assessments, but really takes it up a level. I share a sample below and you can read on for more insights…
Sample audio of Season 6 Episode 2:
New Met Senior Leaders for London…
“An offer you can’t refuse.” – The Godfather (1972)
The Met Police are being ruthless with their choice of future leaders, as it seeks to review its capacity and capability of leadership. You either need to fit in or… leave. Rumour has it that dozens have already taken up the supported voluntary exit route.
Senior leaders in the Met Police are scheduled to attend a bespoke assessment of their leadership skills, commitment, knowledge and abilities. This is to be measured via a new ‘development centre’.
The goal is in effect for the Met to filter out what it sees as the wheat from the chaff in its senior leadership.
There’s a serious schedule of scrutiny being applied to its Chief Inspectors, Superintendents and Chief Superintendent. What candidates will undergo is not for the faint-hearted…
- Several hours of interviews including on behaviours and values
- Situational judgement scenarios
- Critical thinking and reflection opportunity exercises
- Plus much more!
Is this a board? Is it a test? Or is it developmental support?
In this blog, I summarise some key points from my in-depth podcast. I share key reasons behind the introduction of this intensive scheme, the tests candidates will face and what they can expect. This is shared with intent to signpost, support, challenge and respectfully provoke your thinking around these kinds of activities.
In my dedicated podcast Season 6 Episode 2, I also provide insights on how attendees at development centres like this one can choose to prepare with a three step approach. I also include 12 specific practice questions to support your strategic thinking at this level.
Why the New Tests?
“We will be more direct in identifying and tackling those of you who are unwilling or unable to meet our performance standards or role model our values.” – Sir Mark Rowley QPM
The Met have stated they wish to seriously review the capacity and capability of its leadership going into the future. Like a kind of ‘health check’.
This is being done in response to the challenges this force faces in particular, but also national trends and challenges. And these challenges ranging from external scrutiny to internal culture are great.
On scrutiny, police leadership in the UK is under more scrutiny than ever before. The Home Office have appointed a Leadership Commission to review police leadership and assessment at all levels. The Commission is due to report in May 2026, with a blueprint for police leadership for “decades to come”. Strong stuff!
Whatever the Commission recommends, be warned assessment tests are becoming an increasing element of leadership selection and development.
There are numerous strategic leadership challenges that need addressing too…
- The Oscar Kilo National Wellbeing Survey conducted across police forces identified a massive disconnect between senior leaders and frontline staff.
- In the Met, the 2023 Casey Report highlighted widespread dissatisfaction with senior leadership,
- Staff surveys show confidence levels below 25%, particularly in questions such as inspiration, decision making, consultation and honesty.
Sir Mark Rowley has already written to the Met’s senior officers in late 2025, warning of concrete plans to remove those “sub-standard” or resistant to reforms. Either you fit in, or go now (with a voluntary exit pay off).
The overall ambition is for police leaders to fit in with the vision for ‘A New Met for London’. And at a time thousands of officers are leaving policing, the need for better police leadership is being voiced far and wide.
Some Key Notes on Casey…
“The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant.” – Max Depree
The Casey report was particularly damning. It identified significant systemic and fundamental problems in the Met’s leadership and management, describing a culture of hubris and defensiveness among leaders. External criticism is dismissed with a “we know best” attitude, and issues blamed on “bad apples” rather than acknowledged as institutional failures.
Casey further identified senior leaders as being detached from frontline operations, lacking understanding of officers lived experiences. This fostered a strong “them and us” divide between ranks, between BCUs, specialist teams and headquarters.
Recommendations included hiring external expertise to overhaul management practices, reform organisational culture and develop a comprehensive workforce plan addressing inadequate management, including leadership weaknesses (e.g. elitism, absence of external challenge) and barriers to diverse progression.
The Met’s Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley certainly has his work cut out to implement Casey recommendations and ‘define reality’, as alluded to in Max Depree’s quote above.
Who’s Implementing the Assessments?
External consultants are administering the current development centre for senior leaders, but also for recent Detective Sergeant selection and promotions. Whilst some people question the expense of such consultants, others ask what would be the cost of not understanding the leadership capacity within the UK’s largest police organisation?
The Met have previously used psychometric tests for promoting officers in the federated ranks, including situational judgement tests for Constables and Sergeants and the Watson Glaser critical thinking test for Inspector to Chief Inspector promotions.
The Met is currently reconfiguring its capacity and capability. The ‘snapshot’ report resulting from all these development centre findings aim to help the Met:
- Succession Planning: Plan leadership changes and evaluate succession plans
- Talent: Recognise talent and identify staff with potential to succeed in challenging leadership roles
- Careers: Map career pathways intentionally to develop current and future leaders
What Can Senior Met Leaders Expect?
“Tests ain’t fair. Those that study have an unfair advantage. It’s always been that way.”- Allan Dare Pearce
The following are assessment activities individuals can expect to encounter. Some will be dreading this; others will see it as an opportunity and take it in their stride.
No one walks around in a state of preparation to excel in this kind of development centre. Hence this blog and dedicated podcast to support, challenge and respectfully provoke thinking.
The development centre is a stiff, 5+ hours challenge. Some prior thinking about assessment exercises generally, may pay dividends in terms of understanding, confidence with approach and contribute to overall performance.
External companies will have drawn from frameworks like the College of Policing’s Leadership Standards (particularly for senior leaders at Superintendent level), the Competency and Values Framework (CVF), and principles around ethical decision-making, public service prioritisation, and organisational culture.
Structured interviews for senior leaders are designed to methodically evaluate leadership behaviour, strategic thinking, and cultural fit using standardised, job-related questions.
So what do the assessment activities look like?
- A leadership behaviour and values interview (90 mins): A structured interview to explore your experiences and how you work in different situations.
- Situational judgement interview (60 mins): A structured interview that explores how you would respond to realistic, job relevant scenarios
- Scenario based interview (60 mins): Preparation and delivery of a 10 minute presentation on a work situation followed by questions
- A leadership commitment session (50 mins): Structured reflection on A New Met for London (NMfL) and what it means for you.
- A critical thinking session (60 mins): Exploring decision making and its knock on effects by working through a realistic, complex work scenario.
- Reflection Journey (30 mins): A structured opportunity interview to reflect on your decisions, learning patterns and longer term implications.
So, is it a board? Is it a test? Is it development? It’s all three!
Next Level Awareness for Candidates
If you’re invited into this assessment centre, you need to be aware of next-level strategic thinking. A big part of this is knowing about trade-offs.
I cover a great deal on these trade-offs in my premium podcast episode (S6E2). In this section I’ll share with you some snippets and examples to raise your awareness of this concept.
Many will already be doing the job or have made such decisions on trade-offs. These assessments will be trying to tease out why you make them, how, and your thinking behind it.
And for any forward-facing questions? Why not try my Rank Success ENAMEL© conversational response structure that has helped hundreds of aspiring officers already?
Emphasising Trade-Offs in Superintendent+ Level Assessments
At Superintendent and Chief Superintendent level, assessors will expect you to demonstrate nuanced awareness of trade-offs. This isn’t just about listing pros and cons but showing strategic foresight: How you weigh operational imperatives against ethical, resource, legal, and human factors, while maintaining public trust and organisational integrity.
Trade-offs often involve balancing short-term gains with long-term risks, or competing priorities like efficiency vs. equity. External assessors value evidence of reflective decision-making where you’ve anticipated second-order effects (e.g. impact on team morale or community relations) and adapted your leadership accordingly.
To prepare effectively, integrate trade-off discussions into your self-reflection and mock answers. When mapping supporting evidence you have, you could explicitly note trade-offs in each example. In practicing verbal responses ensure each response articulates at least one trade-off with reasoning and leadership implications. This shows maturity and that you are not just identifying risks but navigating them pragmatically.
You can listen to my podcast for more powerful examples of Superintendent and Chief Superintendent trade-offs, as well as 12 potential interview and presentation questions to help you prepare for these assessments. But here’s one example trade-off consideration for free…
- Context (realistic situation): Managing officer wellbeing during prolonged major investigations (e.g., a complex murder case) or major incidents (e.g. protests).
- Trade-Off (the core tension): Pushing for investigative momentum to secure justice vs. enforcing rest periods to prevent burnout and errors.
- Expected Awareness (what assessors look for, linking to issues/risks, reasoning, constraints and leading others): Spot risks like increased sickness or decision fatigue; reason with wellbeing policies (e.g. Met’s People Strategy). Acknowledge trade-offs in timelines vs. health. Lead by modelling self-care and delegating to others, while communicating transparently to maintain team motivation.
- Preparation Tip: Quantify impacts (e.g. “Extended shifts led to X% higher error rates in similar cases”) to demonstrate evidence-based reasoning.
As a Superintendent preparing for assessment and potential progression, understanding the distinct challenges at Chief Superintendent level is also crucial.
This rank represents a step up to executive/senior leadership, where you lead multiple large/complex command areas, contribute to chief officer team decisions, shape organisational culture, manage significant budgets and resources, and drive strategic change across areas.
Ongoing cultural and misconduct/vetting issues, major national reform proposals, and complex pressures (e.g. AI, workforce turnover, complex demand) are three current examples. At this level, try thinking about the trade-off between the need for cultural transformations while maintaining operational delivery.
I’ll leave you with great line to demonstrate wider awareness for your interview preparation:
“At Chief Inspector / Superintendent / Chief Superintendent level, the challenge escalates BECAUSE…”
Will This Be Coming to Your Force?
“Sometimes we think we’re a little too gifted to show up. But none of us truly is… By avoiding risk we really risk what’s most important in life – reaching toward growth, our potential, and a true contribution to a common good.” – Max Depree
I cover bespoke practice questions in the podcast, including more to support structured thinking around context, trade-offs and expectations at senior leadership levels.
To further support thinking and preparation, here’s a final sample question tailored to a structured opportunity interview, drawing on behavioural reflection and CVF (Level 3) elements.
Reflect on a complex decision you made involving ethical considerations or resource constraints. What factors influenced your thinking, what did you learn about balancing short-term needs with long-term goals, and how did it impact stakeholders over time? (Assesses integrity, impartiality, and visionary leadership.)
You might choose to structure verbal responses using my bespoke ENAMEL© conversational model, which suits both forward- and rear-facing interview questions (see my Interview guide for more info).
“Always remember the future comes one day at a time.” – Dean Acheson
What will leadership assessments, promotion and selection processes look like in your force? How might technology or artificial intelligence help?
- Will development centres like this knock on down the ranks?
- Are they a good idea?
- Will a national development centre be used to standardise future leadership selection and promotion processes?
- Is SIPP as the ultimate intensive promotion assessment process be doomed to succeed?
- Will any of it be perceived by aspiring officers as a fair way of assessing leadership skills and ability, or will assessments be seen as simply introducing new or different barriers?
What are your thoughts?
If you are one of the senior leadership pioneers taking part in the current assessment of your leadership via the Met Development Centre, I hope you have found this insightful and I wish you all the best on the day.
Wherever you are on your promotion journey, you can find help and support with your approach to achieving promotion at ranksuccess.co.uk.
Kind Regards, Steve
Seeking police promotion? Want a MASSIVE head start right now and a focus on what matters? Hit the ground running with my great value digital promotion toolkits, and/or my market-leading Police Promotion Masterclass and CVF explainers. There’s nothing else like it to effectively prepare you for success and level the playing field of promotion. Any questions? Get in touch for a free call or to arrange more personal coaching support. Tune in to my extensive podcast for regular powerful leadership CPD and promotion insights.
