Civil Service Numerical Reasoning Test Graph and Chart Analysis 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A clustered bar chart shows benefit claims by type across two years. In 2023, Universal Credit claims were 5.8 million and in 2024 they were 5.2 million. What was the percentage decrease?
- 8.4%
- 10.3% (Correct answer)
- 12.1%
- 9.7%
Correct answer: 10.3%
Decrease = 5.8m minus 5.2m = 0.6m. Percentage decrease = (0.6 / 5.8) x 100 = 10.34%, which rounds to 10.3%.
Question 2: A scatter plot shows a positive correlation between departmental training hours (x-axis) and staff satisfaction scores (y-axis). The line of best fit shows a score of 72 at 400 hours and 80 at 500 hours. What score would you estimate for a department with 450 training hours?
- 74
- 76 (Correct answer)
- 78
- 75
Correct answer: 76
The line increases by 8 points over 100 hours, so the rate is 0.08 points per hour. At 450 hours (50 hours above 400): 72 + (50 x 0.08) = 72 + 4 = 76.
Question 3: A waterfall chart shows a department's budget changes: Starting budget £12m, new projects +£3.2m, efficiency savings -£1.8m, staff costs +£2.1m, IT upgrade +£0.9m, contingency cut -£0.6m. What is the final budget?
- £15.8m (Correct answer)
- £16.2m
- £14.9m
- £15.4m
Correct answer: £15.8m
Final = £12m + £3.2m - £1.8m + £2.1m + £0.9m - £0.6m = £15.8m. Waterfall charts show cumulative additions and subtractions from a starting value.
Question 4: A horizontal bar chart ranks local authorities by recycling rates. The top three are: Oxfordshire 61.2%, Surrey 58.7%, East Riding 57.4%. The national average is shown as a vertical line at 44.1%. How many percentage points above the national average is the highest-performing authority?
- 14.6
- 17.1 (Correct answer)
- 15.8
- 16.3
Correct answer: 17.1
Difference = 61.2% minus 44.1% = 17.1 percentage points. Oxfordshire exceeds the national average by 17.1 percentage points.
Question 5: A 100% stacked bar chart shows transport mode shares for commuting civil servants: Car 45%, Train 28%, Bus 12%, Cycling 9%, Walking 6%. If 3,200 civil servants were surveyed, how many commute by train or bus combined?
- 1,152
- 1,280 (Correct answer)
- 1,344
- 1,216
Correct answer: 1,280
Train + Bus = 28% + 12% = 40%. Number of commuters = 40% of 3,200 = 0.40 x 3,200 = 1,280.
Question 6: An area chart shows cumulative spending across four programmes over 12 months. Programme C reaches £3.1m by month 12 and was at £1.5m at month 6. What fraction of Programme C's total spending occurred in the second half of the year?
- Approximately 48%
- Approximately 52% (Correct answer)
- Approximately 56%
- Approximately 44%
Correct answer: Approximately 52%
Programme C second half spending = £3.1m minus £1.5m = £1.6m. As a fraction of total: (£1.6m / £3.1m) x 100 = 51.6%, approximately 52%.
Civil Service Numerical Reasoning Test Graph and Chart Analysis 2
A clustered bar chart shows benefit claims by type across two years.
In 2023, Universal Credit claims were 5.8 million and in 2024 they were 5.2 million.
What was the percentage decrease?