How assessors score Leadership statements at the sift
Sift assessors score your Leadership statement against the level descriptor for the grade, looking for positive indicators and marking down negative ones. This guide explains what those indicators are and what separates a middling score from a strong one.
How the sift actually works
At the sift, a trained assessor reads your statement against the level descriptor for the advertised grade. They are not asking whether you are a good leader in general. They are matching your evidence to a checklist of indicators and awarding a score, usually on the 1–7 scale.
That has a liberating consequence: the statement is scored, not you. A quiet, ordinary example told with specific personal actions and a clear result will outscore a dramatic story told in generalities, every time.
Most departments score behaviour statements on a 1–7 scale, where 4 is generally the benchmark and 7 is exceptional. Several assessors may read the same statement, and their scores are moderated, so consistency with the descriptor matters more than impressing one reader.
From the official guidance
GOV.UK's Success Profiles guidance explains the behaviour framework and how behaviours are assessed at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/success-profiles. Individual departments decide which behaviours to sift and what scores to require, so check the job advert.
Positive indicators assessors reward
Positive indicators are the concrete things the descriptor says someone at this level does. For Leadership, the reliable ones are:
- Visible direction: you set out a plan, priorities or standards people could follow.
- Personal ownership: your actions are in first person singular, and the key decisions were yours.
- Support for individuals: you noticed someone struggling and did something specific about it.
- Fairness and inclusion: you shared work and opportunity fairly and brought people into decisions.
- Enthusiasm that lifts others: recognition, encouragement and presence when pressure was highest.
- A clear result: something countable changed because of how you led.
For example, I rotated breaks fairly even on the busiest day is a positive indicator an assessor can tick. I am a natural leader gives them nothing to tick.
Negative indicators that cost you marks
Negative indicators work the other way: habits in the writing that suggest the behaviour was missing. The common ones are we-writing throughout, so your contribution is invisible; describing events without decisions; supporting nobody; and results you cannot count.
A subtler one at senior grades is the flawless story. If nothing was hard and nobody doubted the plan, assessors suspect you have edited out the very moments where leadership happened. Our guide to common Leadership mistakes covers these in detail.
What separates a 4 from a 5
On the usual 1–7 scale, a 4 means you demonstrated the behaviour at the level, with some gaps. A 5 means a clear, consistent demonstration. In practice the difference is rarely the story; it is the telling.
| A 4 often has | A 5 usually has |
|---|---|
| Some we-writing and vague verbs | First person actions throughout |
| Direction set but nobody supported | Direction plus named support for individuals |
| A result with no number | A result with at least one honest number |
| Actions listed, not sequenced | A chronological story with clear decisions |
| Generic claims about teamwork | Specific moments an assessor can tick |
Why this scores well
Statements that score 6 or 7 usually add two things: the writer changed their approach when the first plan was not working, and the result lasted, such as a system still in use or people promoted.
How to check your own statement
Before you submit, read your statement as an assessor would. Highlight every sentence that names a specific action you took, and every number in the result. If the highlighting is thin, the score will be too. Our guide to the 1–7 scoring scale explains the full scale, and the word counter helps you hit the limit exactly.
It also helps to compare your draft against a worked example at your grade, noting exactly which sentences carry the evidence.
Frequently asked questions
It varies by department and campaign. Many departments sift at 4, but competitive campaigns can set the bar higher, and some sift only the highest-scoring applicants. As of July 2026 there is no single pass mark, so check the job advert and simply aim to make your evidence as strong as possible.
Yes, at any grade where the descriptor fits your example. Assessors score indicators, not job titles. Organising volunteers through a community event, told with personal actions, support for individuals and a counted result, can score 5 or 6 at junior grades. The descriptor for the grade is the only standard that matters.
Usually they see only the statement text, and they are trained to score the evidence against the level descriptor, not to infer seniority from context. That is why naming your own actions and numbers matters so much. Never assume the reader will fill in what your role involved.
Next step
Get the free STAR template — the same structure used in every example on this site.
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