SPS Prison Officer Recruitment: Tests, Exercises and Intakes

If you want to be a prison officer in Scotland, you apply to the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), not HMPPS. The two services recruit separately and their selection processes are different. SPS uses a group exercise, has its own fitness test standards and takes officers in planned intakes through the year.

This guide sets out what the SPS says about each stage, then gives practical advice for preparing.

Two kinds of prison officer in the SPS

The SPS careers pages describe two entry routes:

• Operations Officer: part of a busy team that keeps the establishment running smoothly, with an emphasis on security support.
• Residential Officer: works directly with people in custody from the accommodation areas, acting as a main point of contact and helping them desist from re-offending through day-to-day support and longer-term case management.

The rest of this guide focuses on the Residential Officer route, because that is where the SPS publishes the most detail. If you are applying for an Operations Officer post, check that advert for its own process.

You don't need prior prison experience. The SPS says the essentials are a commitment to its values and a belief in making a difference to those in custody.

Pay

The SPS says Residential Officers joining from 1 April 2026 start on £37,682, rising to £44,248 within 3 years, subject to pay progression. Shifts rotate between day, night and back shifts according to each establishment's roster.

For context, an older Residential Officer advert for HMP Grampian (published October 2025, now closed) listed £36,268 to £42,587 for a 35-hour week. Pay has moved on since, so always check the current advert for both salary and hours.

The SPS selection stages

The SPS lists the Residential Officer process in this order:

1. Submit your application
2. Situational judgement test
3. Cognitive ability test
4. Group exercise and written exercise
5. Interview
6. Pre-employment checks, including a mandatory fitness test
7. Assignment to an establishment

Each stage has to be passed before you move on. The SPS doesn't publish timings or pass marks for the tests on the pages we checked, so read each invitation carefully.

Intake dates

The SPS plans training start dates for external candidates. The ones listed on its Residential Officer page are:

• 11 May 2026
• 17 August 2026
• 19 October 2026
• 11 January 2027
• 22 March 2027

Internal staff applying for promotion have different dates. These intakes shape when vacancies open, so if you miss one window, keep an eye out for the next advert.

The SPS fitness test

The fitness test sits within the pre-employment checks and has four parts:

Test	Standard
Aerobic run	600 metres on a treadmill at 6.4 mph (10.3 km/h) in 3 minutes 45 seconds, including 15 seconds to get up to speed
Grip strength	Dynamometer: 32 kgf with your dominant hand, 30 kgf with your non-dominant hand
Dyno seated push and pull	Seated bench press and bench pull, 34 kg each
Shield hold	Hold a 120 cm shield with both hands for one minute

If you fail at the first attempt, the SPS gives you one further opportunity.

These standards are different from the HMPPS fitness test in England and Wales. That uses a 15-metre bleep test, not a treadmill run. Train for the test you will actually sit:

• Treadmill run: practise running at 10.3 km/h on a treadmill for 4 minutes, then build to 6 or 7 minutes so the test feels comfortable.
• Grip: dead hangs, farmer's carries and towel hangs, two or three times a week. Train both hands, because the non-dominant standard is close to the dominant one.
• Push and pull: press-ups, seated cable rows or band rows, and dumbbell presses.
• Shield hold: hold a weight plate or similar at chest to shoulder height for 30 to 60 seconds, building up over several weeks.

Pre-employment checks

The SPS lists these checks for new entrants:

• right to work in the UK and the Civil Service;
• photo ID showing name, address and date of birth;
• three years' employment history, with employer references and HMRC checks;
• a Level 2 Disclosure Scotland check;
• two character references;
• extra checks (overseas employment references, proof of residence and overseas criminal record certificates) if you have lived abroad for more than six months in the past three years;
• an occupational health referral before you start.

The SPS notes its standards may be higher than in other sectors and offers can't be confirmed until all checks are satisfactory. Gather your documents and referee details early.

How to prepare for each stage

Situational judgement test

You will be given prison-based situations and asked to judge the best responses. Strong answers usually:

• keep everyone safe first;
• treat people in custody with respect and fairness;
• follow procedure and involve the right colleagues;
• deal with problems at the right level rather than ignoring or over-escalating them.

Read every option before deciding, and think about what a calm, fair officer would actually do on a residential hall.

Cognitive ability test

The SPS calls this a cognitive ability test but doesn't say on its role page which question types it includes. Cognitive ability tests commonly use numerical and verbal reasoning, so prepare for both, and check your invitation for the exact format:

• Numerical: percentages, ratios, times, simple tables and charts.
• Verbal: reading a short passage and deciding what follows from it.

Little and often works best. Twenty minutes a day for three weeks beats one long cram.

Group exercise

The SPS doesn't publish the task. Group exercises generally reward people who:

• listen and build on others' ideas;
• bring in quieter members;
• keep the group to the time and the brief;
• make a reasoned point without dominating.

Talking the most is not the same as contributing the most.

Written exercise

Expect to write clearly under time pressure. Use short paragraphs, plain English and a logical order, and leave a couple of minutes to check spelling and grammar. Practising factual, time-ordered accounts of incidents is good preparation even though the exact SPS task may differ.

Interview

Prepare four or five real examples from work, study or volunteering that show you:

• dealing calmly with someone who was upset or angry;
• supporting someone vulnerable;
• following rules when it was inconvenient;
• working as part of a team under pressure;
• learning from a mistake.

Structure each one clearly: the situation, what you did, and the result. Connect your answers to the Residential Officer role, especially supporting people towards change.

Can HMPPS-style practice help?

Our practice material is built around the HMPPS process in England and Wales, not the SPS, and we won't pretend otherwise. That said, the core skills overlap. Judging prison scenarios, writing clear incident accounts and giving structured interview answers transfer well to the SPS situational judgement test, written exercise and interview. Our free practice questions are a no-cost way to see whether that style of practice suits you.

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prisonofficertest.co.uk is an independent practice site. It is not affiliated with HMPPS, the Ministry of Justice, the Scottish Prison Service, the Northern Ireland Prison Service or any prison operator. Always check your own invitation and the recruiter's current guidance.