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NHS healthcare numeracy and literacy tests are screening assessments used by many NHS trusts and training providers when recruiting healthcare assistants (HCAs), healthcare support workers, clinical support workers, nursing assistants and related apprenticeship support roles. Tests are commonly employer-specific or vacancy-specific. Not every vacancy includes a written test. There is no single universal HCA exam. Confirm calculator permission, pass mark and whether the sitting is paper, computer or mixed in your invitation.

According to Health Careers: healthcare assistant, there are no set national entry requirements for HCA roles, but employers expect good literacy and numeracy and may ask for GCSEs (or equivalent) in English and maths, plus care experience. Training commonly includes working towards the Care Certificate during induction. The Care Certificate is not a pre-employment aptitude test; it is workplace training and assessment after appointment in many settings.

This page focuses on workplace patient-admin style numeracy and reading. It is not a nursing-degree or midwifery admissions guide and not a clinical dosing manual. For degree-route screens see Nursing Numeracy and Literacy and Midwifery Numeracy and Literacy.

The 30 questions below are original educational exercises with an HCA / healthcare-support flavour. They are not official NHS, Skills for Health, Care Certificate or JobTestPrep items, and they do not reproduce confidential live employer tests.

Key Takeaways

  • HCA and support-worker testing is usually Trust- or vacancy-specific.
  • Not every vacancy includes a numeracy or literacy test.
  • Qualification and experience requirements vary by employer.
  • Functional-skills checks may be separate from job-specific scenario tasks.
  • The Care Certificate is induction training, not a national pre-employment aptitude exam.

Quick facts

HCA and support-worker screening snapshot (Trust vacancy controls)
Item Detail
Typical roles Healthcare assistant, healthcare support worker, clinical support worker and similar
Official careers note Good literacy and numeracy expected; GCSEs often requested
Common training Care Certificate and on-the-job induction (Health Careers)
What controls your test Trust vacancy and assessment invitation
Related progression Senior HCA, nursing associate, professional training routes
Not the same as Nursing or midwifery university admissions screens

What Health Careers says about HCAs

Use primary sources before commercial prep:

  1. Healthcare assistant role - duties, entry expectations, Care Certificate, progression.
  2. Healthcare support worker - wider settings and titles.
  3. NHS Health Careers - vacancies, apprenticeships and benefits overview.
  4. Your trust’s assessment day instructions for literacy and numeracy logistics.

Health Careers also notes that NHS applications often ask how NHS values apply in everyday work. Literacy passages on local values or patient-experience policies are therefore common preparation themes, even when the exact text is unique to your trust.

For leadership graduate selection rather than HCA screens, see the NHS Graduate Scheme guide.

How to prepare

  1. Read the vacancy and Health Careers HCA guidance first.
  2. Practise percentages, averages, stock diffs and time arithmetic without inventing clinical rules.
  3. Practise reading short workplace instructions and answering only from the text.
  4. Rebuild mental arithmetic if your sitting bans calculators.
  5. Use paid PrepPacks only as supplemental drills.

Optional third-party practice

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If you want extra timed workplace-style drills after reading your vacancy pack, an independent UK NHS healthcare numeracy and literacy practice pack can help candidates practise comparable formats.

JobTestPrep UK is an independent third-party preparation provider. It is not NHS England, a trust or an official recruitment administrator. Check the current UK price and access period before purchase. Preparation cannot guarantee a pass, interview invitation or job offer. Your Trust vacancy controls whether a test is used and what it covers.

Practice questions

Educational exercises only. Not official NHS or JobTestPrep items.

Numeracy (ward and clinic admin)

1. A day room records meal choices for lunch:

Choice Count
Fish 14
Vegetarian 9
Chicken 17

What percentage chose chicken?

A. 35% B. 40% C. 42.5% D. 45%

Correct answer: C

Total = 14 + 9 + 17 = 40. Chicken = 17 / 40 = 0.425 = 42.5%.

2. Linen deliveries arrive Monday to Thursday as 60, 55, 70 and 65 bags. What is the mean daily delivery?

A. 60 B. 62.5 C. 65 D. 67.5

Correct answer: B

Sum = 60 + 55 + 70 + 65 = 250. Mean = 250 / 4 = 62.5.

3. Two HCAs share hydration prompt checks in the ratio 4 : 5. They complete 72 checks together. How many does the first HCA complete?

A. 28 B. 32 C. 36 D. 40

Correct answer: B

Parts = 4 + 5 = 9. One part = 72 / 9 = 8. First HCA = 4 × 8 = 32.

4. A duty runs for 8 hours on the clock from 07:00, including a 30-minute unpaid break taken inside that window. At what time does the duty end?

A. 14:30 B. 15:00 C. 15:30 D. 16:00

Correct answer: B

07:00 plus 8 hours = 15:00.

5. Glove box stock falls from 48 boxes to 36 boxes. What is the percentage decrease?

A. 20% B. 25% C. 30% D. 33%

Correct answer: B

Decrease = 12. Percentage = 12 / 48 = 25%.

6. Observation practice board shows pulse readings (educational): 72, 68, 80, 76, 74. What is the median?

A. 72 B. 74 C. 76 D. 80

Correct answer: B

Ordered: 68, 72, 74, 76, 80. Median = 74.

7. A cupboard holds 2.5 litres of hand-wash solution refill. How many 250 ml bottles can be filled completely?

A. 8 B. 9 C. 10 D. 12

Correct answer: C

2,500 ml / 250 ml = 10 bottles.

8. Portering requests for one morning: 6 bed moves, 4 sample runs, 5 equipment transfers. A supervisor claims sample runs are exactly 50% of the rest of the requests combined. Is that claim true?

A. True B. False

Correct answer: B

Rest of the requests = bed moves + equipment transfers = 6 + 5 = 11. Half of 11 is 5.5, not 4. The claim is false.

9. Temperature observation drills (educational °C labels): 36.4, 36.8, 37.1, 36.6. What is the mean to one decimal place?

A. 36.6 B. 36.7 C. 36.8 D. 36.9

Correct answer: B

Sum = 36.4 + 36.8 + 37.1 + 36.6 = 146.9. Mean = 146.9 / 4 = 36.725 → 36.7 to one decimal place.

10. A training day budgets £180 for refreshments for 24 learners. What is the cost per learner?

A. £6.50 B. £7.00 C. £7.50 D. £8.00

Correct answer: C

£180 / 24 = £7.50.

11. Weighing chair educational readings over four weeks: 62 kg, 64 kg, 63 kg, 67 kg. What is the range?

A. 3 kg B. 4 kg C. 5 kg D. 6 kg

Correct answer: C

67 - 62 = 5 kg.

12. Stock audit: 15 packs of wipes at £2.40 and 10 packs of tissues at £1.80. What is the total cost?

A. £52.00 B. £54.00 C. £55.00 D. £56.00

Correct answer: B

Wipes = 15 × £2.40 = £36.00. Tissues = 10 × £1.80 = £18.00. Total = £54.00.

13. Three bays need pillowstock in the ratio 1 : 2 : 3. Altogether 36 pillows. How many for the largest bay?

A. 12 B. 15 C. 18 D. 20

Correct answer: C

Parts = 6. One part = 6. Largest = 3 × 6 = 18.

14. A clerk processes 9 admission packs in 45 minutes at constant pace. How many packs in 2 hours?

A. 18 B. 20 C. 24 D. 27

Correct answer: C

Rate = 9 / 45 = 0.2 packs per minute. In 120 minutes: 0.2 × 120 = 24.

15. Comfort-round compliance rises from 70% to 84%. What is the percentage increase relative to the original 70%?

A. 14% B. 18% C. 20% D. 24%

Correct answer: C

Increase = 14 percentage points. Relative increase = 14 / 70 = 0.2 = 20%.

16. Convert 3 hours 20 minutes into minutes for a supervision log.

A. 180 B. 190 C. 200 D. 210

Correct answer: C

3 × 60 + 20 = 200 minutes.

17. Hand-gel bottles used this week: 8, 11, 9, 12, 10. What is the mean use?

A. 9 B. 10 C. 11 D. 12

Correct answer: B

Sum = 50. Mean = 50 / 5 = 10.

18. A 1 : 5 juice concentrate education mix for a hydration station display uses 40 ml concentrate. How much water is needed?

A. 160 ml B. 180 ml C. 200 ml D. 240 ml

Correct answer: C

Water = 5 × 40 = 200 ml. Non-clinical refreshment maths only.

Literacy (workplace procedure extracts)

Passage A (questions 19-22)

Comfort Round Checklist (educational extract) HCAs complete comfort rounds every two hours unless a named nurse redirects the schedule. Each round must include offering a drink, checking the call bell is in reach, and asking about pain or discomfort using the wording on the local card. Findings that need a clinical decision must be reported immediately to the registered nurse. Food charts are updated only when the patient actually eats or refuses; do not guess.

19. How often are comfort rounds completed by default?

A. Every hour B. Every two hours unless redirected C. Once per shift only D. Only after visitors leave

Correct answer: B

Default every two hours unless a named nurse redirects.

20. When must clinical-decision findings be reported?

A. At the end of the week B. Immediately to the registered nurse C. Only if the patient asks D. Via social media to the ward group

Correct answer: B

Immediate report to the registered nurse.

21. Food charts should be updated:

A. From guessed intake B. Only when the patient actually eats or refuses C. Once a month D. By relatives without staff

Correct answer: B

No guessing according to the extract.

22. Which task is part of each round according to the extract?

A. Changing prescriptions B. Offering a drink and checking the call bell is in reach C. Discharging patients D. Booking transport alone

Correct answer: B

Those tasks are listed.

Passage B (questions 23-26)

Specimen Bag Label Rule (educational extract) Support staff may prepare specimen bags and request forms only after identity details have been checked against the wristband and the request. Labels must be attached before leaving the bedside area. Unlabelled specimens must never be left in the collection box. If details do not match, stop and ask the registered practitioner. Specimens travel in the sealed pouch provided.

23. When may support staff prepare specimen bags?

A. Before checking identity B. Only after identity details match the wristband and request C. Whenever the trolley is empty D. Overnight without checks

Correct answer: B

Identity checks come first.

24. Unlabelled specimens may be left in the collection box:

A. Yes, briefly B. Never C. Yes if urgent D. Yes if another staff member knows

Correct answer: B

Never, according to the extract.

25. If details do not match, staff must:

A. Cross out and guess B. Stop and ask the registered practitioner C. Send the specimen anyway D. Ask the patient to rewrite everything alone

Correct answer: B

Stop and ask.

26. Labels must be attached:

A. In the laboratory only B. Before leaving the bedside area C. After the porter collects D. The next day

Correct answer: B

Before leaving the bedside area.

Passage C (questions 27-30)

Moving and Handling Buddy Rule (educational extract) For any assisted stand listed as two-person on the care plan, HCA staff must not attempt the move alone. Equipment settings must match the care plan numbers. Students may observe but must not take the lead unless the mentor says so in the moment. Near misses must be entered in the incident system before the end of the shift.

27. May an HCA complete a two-person assisted stand alone?

A. Yes if the patient is calm B. No C. Yes after visitors leave D. Yes if busy

Correct answer: B

Must not attempt alone.

28. Equipment settings must:

A. Match the care plan numbers B. Be chosen by guesswork C. Copy another bay’s settings D. Be set by patients

Correct answer: A

Match the care plan.

29. When must near misses be entered?

A. Next month B. Before the end of the shift C. Only if injury occurs D. Never for students

Correct answer: B

Before end of shift.

30. Students may take the lead on the move:

A. Always B. Never under any circumstances C. Only if the mentor says so in the moment D. If they have watched once

Correct answer: C

Only with mentor direction in the moment.

Official resources

FAQ

Is there one national HCA numeracy exam?

No. Tests are commonly Trust- or vacancy-specific. Some vacancies do not include a written test at all.

Is the Care Certificate a pre-employment aptitude test?

No. Health Careers describes the Care Certificate as training commonly completed during induction after appointment. It is not a universal national entrance exam.

Are HCA screens the same as nursing admissions tests?

No. Nursing and midwifery university screens are separate pathway tools. This page covers healthcare assistant and support-worker recruitment contexts.

Can I assume a national pass mark or time limit?

No. Follow the vacancy assessment invitation for scores, timing and calculator rules.

Can paid prep guarantee an HCA job?

No. Independent PrepPacks support familiarisation only.

Next steps

Return to the UK Assessment Tests hub for more NHS and public-service guides.