Spelling and numeracy tests dropped for prospective SAPOL officers

SA’s Police Minister confirms SAPOL has dropped key cadet tests “to not knock back” as many young applicants and boost recruitment. Vote in the poll.

Police Minister Stephen Mullighan on Thursday told state parliament spelling and numeracy testing had been abolished so more young people could be accepted into the Police Academy. Picture: Dean Martin

Prospective police cadets will no longer be required to pass spelling and numeracy tests to get into the force after SA Police scrapped the assessments in order to get more people through the door.

Police Minister Stephen Mullighan on Thursday told state parliament the testing had been abolished so more young people could be accepted into the Police Academy.

“I’m advised that the spelling and numeracy requirements that have previously been imposed by SAPOL have been changed in order to not knock back as many particularly young applicants,” he said.

“SAPOL is a bit of an outlier in requiring spelling and numeracy testing or minimum standards before coming into the workforce – It’s not even something that applies to doctors, I’m advised.”

Applicants who completed cadet testing after January 1, 2024 and passed the reading and writing component of the application but failed the spelling and numeracy section will be contacted by SAPOL’s recruitment section and invited to reactivate their application or progress through to the next stage.

Mr Mullighan said he was not concerned with the removal of the assessments.

“There are still written comprehension and other similar tests and thresholds and benchmarks that have to be achieved,” he said.

“The focus … is on the cadet’s capacity for written comprehension and the capacity to not only understand and be familiar with the laws that they have to enforce but also ensuring the paperwork requirements and so on are able to be achieved and that they can demonstrate sufficient problem-solving and decision making in the course of their training at the academy.”

Opposition Police spokesman Jack Batty said the revelation laid bare the extent of SAPOL’s recruitment and retention crisis.

“These are extraordinary measures in a frantic attempt to paper over Labor’s hopeless under resourcing of South Australia Police,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Mullighan also confirmed that SA Police remained 109 full-time equivalent officers short of the amount of officers for which it is funded.

He said SA Police was not going to achieve its target of having a full complement of FTE officers by its deadline of June 30.

Mr Mullighan said no further deadline had been set because the force was seeking to recruit officers as soon as possible.

Originally published as Spelling and numeracy tests dropped for prospective SAPOL officers