Civil Service Behaviour Scoring: How Statements and Behaviours Are Marked 1

Civil Service behaviour examples are often scored on a 1–7 scale. If you have ever received a score of 3, 4, 5 or 6 after a sift or interview and wondered what separated your answer from the next score up, this guide explains the common rating scale and how to use it.

The first thing to know is that the panel is not scoring how impressive your job title sounds. They are scoring the evidence you provided against the behaviour and the grade of the vacancy.

The Civil Service behaviour scoring scale

Score	Rating	Plain-English meaning
1	Not demonstrated	No positive evidence.
2	Minimal demonstration	Limited positive evidence.
3	Moderate demonstration	Some positive evidence, but not enough to meet the standard.
4	Acceptable demonstration	Adequate positive evidence at the required level.
5	Good demonstration	Substantial positive evidence.
6	Strong demonstration	Substantial evidence with some evidence of exceeding expectations.
7	Outstanding demonstration	Evidence wholly exceeds expectations at that level.

Civil Service Jobs guidance says a significant number of organisations use this scale and that, generally, a candidate should score at least 4 for each example to progress. Rating scales can vary across recruiting organisations, so the vacancy guidance always takes priority.

What does a score of 4 mean?

A 4 means the panel found adequate positive evidence of the behaviour. It is the “acceptable demonstration” point on the common scale. That is a pass-level answer in many campaigns, but it is not the same as a strong answer.

A 4 can therefore be both good news and frustrating news. You demonstrated the behaviour, but there may be several candidates who produced more substantial evidence and scored 5 or 6.

Why did my behaviour get a 3?

A 3 usually means the answer contained some relevant evidence but not enough to meet the standard expected for the grade. Common reasons include:

The example was relevant but too junior for the vacancy.
Too much of the word count was spent on the situation rather than your actions.
The answer described what “we” did without making your contribution clear.
The result was weak or missing.
The example demonstrated only part of the behaviour.
The answer did not explain why you chose your approach.
The story was pre-prepared but did not actually answer the question asked.

What moves an answer from 4 to 5?

The common scale describes 5 as “good demonstration” with substantial positive evidence. In practical terms, the panel needs more than proof that you did something vaguely relevant. It needs clear, specific evidence across the important parts of the behaviour.

For example, a Managing a Quality Service answer that says you monitored a service and solved customer issues may be acceptable. A stronger answer explains what standard you set, how you used performance information, what risk you identified, what you changed, why you chose that intervention and what measurable effect it had.

What moves an answer towards 6 or 7?

A 6 indicates strong evidence and some evidence of exceeding expectations at the level. A 7 means the evidence wholly exceeds expectations at that level.

That does not mean you should invent huge budgets or senior stakeholders. The example still needs to be credible and relevant. Stronger scores normally come from the quality, breadth and clarity of the evidence: difficult judgement, meaningful ownership, well-chosen actions, handling complexity and delivering a strong outcome.

The grade matters throughout. The Civil Service behaviour descriptions are specific to the grade or level of the role. An answer can contain excellent work and still undershoot if it demonstrates the behaviour at a lower level than the vacancy requires.

Are written statements and interview answers scored the same way?

They can use the same common rating language, but the assessment context is different. At sift, the panel can only score what is written in the application. At interview, you can give more detail and the panel may ask follow-up questions.

That is why a written 250-word statement must be ruthless about relevance. You do not have space for a long introduction. The majority of the statement should give scorable evidence of what you personally did and the result.

How should I structure a 250-word behaviour statement?

STAR is a useful starting point, but do not let the headings dictate the answer. In 250 words, a practical balance is to keep the situation and task short and give most of the space to actions and results.

A strong statement normally makes five things clear: what the challenge was, what you were responsible for, what you personally did, why those actions were appropriate and what happened as a result.

See our B-STAR guide for a structure that puts more emphasis on behaviour and reasoning.

How are the nine behaviours different?

Each behaviour has a different purpose. A strong example for Delivering at Pace is not automatically a strong example for Seeing the Big Picture, even if the same project could potentially demonstrate both.

Use the relevant behaviour guide before writing your example:

Can a pass mark be higher than 4?

Yes, a recruitment exercise can operate a higher progression threshold or take only the highest-scoring candidates forward in merit order. A score of 4 means acceptable evidence on the common scale; it does not guarantee an interview or an offer in every competition.

This is particularly important in heavily subscribed vacancies. The practical target should be the strongest truthful evidence you can provide, not the minimum wording needed to scrape an acceptable score.

How to review your own behaviour statement before submitting

Check the behaviour description for the exact grade.
Underline every sentence that contains something you personally did.
Remove background that does not help the assessor score you.
Check that your actions cover the important parts of the behaviour.
Add reasoning where a decision or trade-off matters.
Make the result specific and credible.
Read the question again and make sure your example actually answers it.

For an overview of the framework itself, see Civil Service Success Profiles: Complete Guide.