The police entrance fitness test in England & Wales has been standardised in recent years and is less onerous than previous fitness tests.
The job-related fitness test (JRFT) is an aerobic test based on the physiological demands of personal safety training (PST). The core rationale for the JRFT is to ensure that prospective police officers have a minimum level of fitness to be able to undertake PST training.
There is no obstacle course or upper strength testing as part of this test.
The 15m MSFT involves running up and down (a shuttle run) a 15-metre track. It is timed against a series of audio beeps and the participant must ‘beat the bleep’ and complete the shuttle before they hear the sound.
At the end of each level, the time between beeps gets shorter, meaning the participant has to run faster.
The standard needed for an officer who requires PST as part of their role is 5.4 which means running at least in time with the bleeps for four shuttles at level 5. The whole test takes 3 minutes and 35 seconds and covers 525m.
| Level | Time per shuttle (seconds) | Number of shuttles required |
|---|---|---|
| LEVEL 1 | 6.9 | 7 |
| LEVEL 2 | 6.4 | 8 |
| LEVEL 3 | 6.1 | 8 |
| LEVEL 4 | 5.6 | 8 |
| LEVEL 5 | 5.5 | 4 |
An alternative test was introduced in 2016 – the Chester treadmill police walking and run test. Both the CPTWT and CTPRT are treadmill tests designed for officers with lower limb injuries which prevent them from completing the 15m MSFT because of the turning at the end of each shuttle. It is for individual forces to decide when to offer the alternative test to officers.
This test takes place on a treadmill. After a suitable warm up the subject is required to walk at a brisk pace (6km/hr) on the treadmill. Every two minutes the gradient is raised by 3% for a specific amount of time. The length of time an individual must continue depends on the kind of policing role.
| Role | Time (minutes and seconds) |
|---|---|
| Police officer | 10 |
| CBRN police | 10 |
| Dog handler | 10 and 20 seconds |
| Mounted branch | 10 and 20 seconds |
| Police cyclist | 10 and 20 seconds |
| Police support unit | 10 and 40 seconds |
| Air support unit | 10 and 40 seconds |
| Police drivers | 11 and 20 seconds |
| Marine police | 11 and 40 seconds |
| Authorised firearms officer | 12 |
The CTPRT treadmill protocol is the same test but conducted at a greater speed (10.4km/hr) to reflect the higher aerobic demand.
| Level | Treadmill gradient | Time (mins) |
|---|---|---|
| LEVEL 1 | 0% | 0-2 |
| LEVEL 2 | 2% | 2-4 |
| LEVEL 3 | 4% | 4-6 |
| LEVEL 4 | 5% | 6-8 |
| LEVEL 5 | 8% | 8-10 |