Practice and questions
Life in the UK test questions and answers
The list opens on a sample from all five chapters. Choose a chapter for its full set, each answer folded underneath, or show every answer at once.
1.What does the rule of law mean in the UK?
- · Only citizens have to obey the law
- · The police decide what the law is
- · Religious leaders can set aside the law
- ✓ Everyone, including the government, must obey the law
The rule of law means that no person or body is above the law. Ministers, officials, the police and ordinary residents are all bound by the same laws, and those laws are applied fairly by independent courts.
Where to check: The values and principles of the UK
2.An employer refuses to interview a candidate only because of the candidate's ethnic background. How is this treated in the UK?
- ✓ It is unlawful discrimination
- · It is acceptable for small firms
- · It is allowed if the employer is honest about it
- · It is a matter of personal choice
Freedom from unfair discrimination is a basic right in the UK. Treating someone less favourably at work because of race, ethnic origin, religion, sex, disability and other protected characteristics is against the law.
Where to check: The values and principles of the UK
3.At a citizenship ceremony, what can a person who does not wish to swear by God do instead of taking the oath?
- · Sign a contract with the council
- · Skip the ceremony entirely
- · Pay an extra fee
- ✓ Make a solemn affirmation
New citizens make either an oath of allegiance, which refers to God, or an affirmation, which has the same legal effect without religious words. Everyone then makes the citizenship pledge to the United Kingdom.
Where to check: The values and principles of the UK
4.Can newspapers in the UK publish articles criticising the government?
- · No, the government must approve every article
- ✓ Yes, the UK has a free press
- · Only during election campaigns
- · Only if the monarch agrees
The UK has a free press, so newspapers, broadcasters and websites can report on and criticise the government. Like everyone else, the media must still obey the law, for example on defamation and contempt of court.
Where to check: The values and principles of the UK
5.Looking after the area where you live and the environment is one of the responsibilities of residents. Which action matches it?
- · Parking on the pavement
- · Dumping rubbish in a park
- ✓ Recycling household waste
- · Playing loud music late at night
Recycling, keeping your street clean and respecting shared spaces are practical ways of looking after the area in which you live and the wider environment.
Where to check: The values and principles of the UK
6.What is the capital city of Wales?
- · Swansea
- · Newport
- ✓ Cardiff
- · Bangor
Cardiff is the capital city of Wales. It is the largest Welsh city and the home of the Senedd (Welsh Parliament), which makes laws for Wales on many devolved matters such as health and education.
Where to check: What is the UK?
7.How is the cross of St Patrick shown on the Union Flag?
- · A white diagonal cross on a blue background
- · A green upright cross
- · A gold harp on blue
- ✓ A red diagonal cross on a white background
The cross of St Patrick is a red diagonal cross on a white background. It was added to the Union Flag in 1801, when Great Britain and Ireland were united, and represents Ireland in the flag.
Where to check: What is the UK?
8.In which English county is Stonehenge, the prehistoric stone circle?
- · Yorkshire
- · Kent
- ✓ Wiltshire
- · Cumbria
Stonehenge stands on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, in the south of England. It was built in stages during the Stone Age and Bronze Age and is one of the most famous prehistoric monuments in the world.
Where to check: What is the UK?
9.Which country is linked to England by the Channel Tunnel?
- · Belgium
- · The Netherlands
- ✓ France
- · The Republic of Ireland
The Channel Tunnel runs under the English Channel between Kent in England and the Pas-de-Calais in France. It opened in 1994 and carries passenger trains and vehicle shuttles between the two countries.
Where to check: What is the UK?
10.Which country of the UK has the largest population?
- · Scotland
- · Wales
- · Northern Ireland
- ✓ England
England is by far the most populous of the four nations, with most of the UK's people. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have much smaller populations.
Where to check: What is the UK?
11.In which year was the Magna Carta agreed by King John?
- · 1066
- ✓ 1215
- · 1415
- · 1688
King John agreed to the Magna Carta in 1215 after pressure from his barons. It limited the power of the monarch, who had to respect the law like everyone else, and it is seen as one of the founding texts of the rule of law in England.
Where to check: A long and illustrious history
12.What does the Bayeux Tapestry show?
- · The coronation of Queen Victoria
- · The Battle of Waterloo
- ✓ The events of the Norman conquest of England
- · The signing of Magna Carta
The Bayeux Tapestry is a long embroidered cloth that tells the story of the Norman conquest of England, including the Battle of Hastings in 1066. It is kept in Bayeux, in Normandy, France.
Where to check: A long and illustrious history
13.Which Act of 1707 joined England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain?
- · The Bill of Rights
- · The Reform Act
- ✓ The Act of Union
- · The Magna Carta
The Act of Union of 1707 united the kingdoms of England and Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain with one parliament at Westminster. Scotland kept its own legal system, education system and Presbyterian church.
Where to check: A long and illustrious history
14.Which battle of 1916 saw the British army suffer its heaviest losses on a single day?
- ✓ The Battle of the Somme
- · The Battle of Britain
- · The Battle of Hastings
- · The Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of the Somme began on 1 July 1916 in northern France. On the first day alone the British army suffered nearly 60,000 casualties, the worst single day in its history, and the fighting lasted for months.
Where to check: A long and illustrious history
15.In which year did some women over 30 first gain the right to vote in the UK?
- · 1832
- · 1928
- · 1969
- ✓ 1918
In 1918 women over 30 who met certain conditions were given the vote. Ten years later, in 1928, women won the right to vote at 21, the same age as men.
Where to check: A long and illustrious history
16.On which date is St Andrew, patron saint of Scotland, celebrated?
- · 1 March
- · 17 March
- · 23 April
- ✓ 30 November
St Andrew's Day, 30 November, celebrates the patron saint of Scotland and is an official bank holiday there. The other patron saints' days are St David on 1 March, St Patrick on 17 March and St George on 23 April.
Where to check: A modern, thriving society
17.Wimbledon, held every summer in London, is the oldest tournament in the world in which sport?
- · Golf
- · Cricket
- · Badminton
- ✓ Tennis
The Wimbledon Championships, first held in 1877, are the oldest tennis tournament in the world. They are played on grass courts at the All England Club in south-west London and are one of the four Grand Slam events.
Where to check: A modern, thriving society
18.Which Scottish poet wrote 'Auld Lang Syne', often sung at New Year?
- · Walter Scott
- · Lord Byron
- ✓ Robert Burns
- · Dylan Thomas
Robert Burns, the eighteenth-century poet, wrote 'Auld Lang Syne', which is sung around the world at New Year. Scots celebrate his life each year on Burns Night, 25 January, with a supper of haggis and readings of his poems.
Where to check: A modern, thriving society
19.Which organisation runs the Chelsea Flower Show, held each May in London?
- · The National Trust
- · The Royal Society
- ✓ The Royal Horticultural Society
- · The Forestry Commission
The Chelsea Flower Show is organised every May by the Royal Horticultural Society in the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea. Gardening is a popular pastime in the UK, and the show displays new garden designs and plants.
Where to check: A modern, thriving society
20.Which music festival is held on a farm in Somerset most summers?
- · The Proms
- · The Eisteddfod
- · The Fringe
- ✓ Glastonbury
Glastonbury is one of the UK's best-known music festivals, held on a farm in Somerset. Festivals such as Glastonbury draw large crowds every summer.
Where to check: A modern, thriving society
21.How many members of Parliament (MPs) sit in the House of Commons?
- · 450
- · 600
- ✓ 650
- · 750
The House of Commons has 650 Members of Parliament. Each MP is elected to represent one area, called a constituency, and the candidate with the most votes in that constituency wins the seat under the first-past-the-post system.
Where to check: The UK government, the law and your role
22.What is the 'shadow cabinet'?
- ✓ Senior members of the main opposition party who each follow a government area
- · Ministers who work in secret
- · The monarch's private advisers
- · Retired Cabinet ministers
The leader of the largest party not in government is the Leader of the Opposition, who appoints senior MPs to form a shadow cabinet. Each shadow minister follows the work of a government department and proposes alternative policies.
Where to check: The UK government, the law and your role
23.What must you do before you can vote in a UK election?
- · Join a political party
- · Pass a citizenship test each time
- · Pay a voting fee
- ✓ Make sure your name is on the electoral register
To vote in the UK, an eligible person must be on the electoral register. Registering can be done online or through the local council, and voters receive a poll card telling them where their polling station is.
Where to check: The UK government, the law and your role
24.What is the minimum age for driving a car on public roads in the UK?
- · 15
- · 16
- ✓ 17
- · 21
In the UK you must normally be at least 17 to drive a car on public roads. Learners need a provisional licence and must pass both a theory test and a practical driving test before they can drive alone.
Where to check: The UK government, the law and your role
25.Which court hears small claims about money, such as a dispute over a faulty product, in England and Wales?
- · The Supreme Court
- · The Crown Court
- · The Youth Court
- ✓ The County Court, under the small claims procedure
In England and Wales the small claims procedure in the County Court is an informal way to settle disputes over smaller amounts of money without needing a lawyer.
Where to check: The UK government, the law and your role
Sample from all five chapters
25
questions shown, 300 in the whole bank
Open a question to see the four options, the right answer and the fact behind it.
This page holds our whole bank of 300 Life in the UK practice questions, each with its answer and a short explanation, sorted into the five chapters of the handbook Life in the United Kingdom: A Guide for New Residents: values and principles, what the UK is, history, modern society, and government and law. Every chapter has 60 questions, so a chapter is about 20% of the bank and contributes roughly 5 questions to each of our 24-question mocks. Radif Partners wrote every question from a fact the handbook states; none of its text is reproduced, and none of these is a question from a test centre, because those are not published. The real test, booked on gov.uk for £50, asks 24 questions in 45 minutes and needs 18 right. Reading the answers here is the fastest way to find what you do not know yet; drilling them in the chapter practice is what makes them stick.
How much of a mock comes from one chapter?
Questions in this chapter
60
| Share of our bank | 20% |
| Expected in a 24-question mock | about 5 |
| Whole bank | 300 |
Our mocks draw from each chapter in proportion to our bank. The official spread by chapter is not published.
Questions, dates and fees by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
The five chapter pages
Each chapter has its own page with the same bank opened on it and advice specific to that part of the handbook: what kind of facts it asks, where candidates slip, and how to revise it.
| Chapter | Our questions | What it asks about |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The values and principles of the UK | 60 | principles, rights and duties, the test and the ceremony |
| 2. What is the UK? | 60 | nations, capitals, flags, emblems, landmarks |
| 3. A long and illustrious history | 60 | events, people and dates from prehistory to the late twentieth century |
| 4. A modern, thriving society | 60 | festivals, sport, arts, inventions, religion |
| 5. The UK government, the law and your role | 60 | Parliament, elections, courts, tax, driving, emergencies |
How a question is written
We start from one fact the handbook states and build a question that can only be answered by knowing it. The three wrong options are chosen to be plausible to someone who half-remembers: neighbouring dates, a person from the same period, a city in the same nation. For instance, the bank asks "What is the capital city of Scotland?" and offers Glasgow among the options, because it is Scotland's largest city and a frequent wrong guess. The explanation then gives the context in a few lines so that the right answer has something to hang on.
A handful of questions are statements to mark true or false, and a few use a reversed form ("Which of these is NOT..."). Those reversed questions catch more people than any hard date, simply because they read too fast. When you see the word NOT, slow down and test each option against the question before choosing.
Three ways to use the bank
As a reading list. Leave the answers open and read one chapter in a sitting, the way you would read a summary. Useful in the first days, when most facts are new.
As flashcards. Hide every answer and work down the page, opening each one only after you have committed to an option. Mark the ones you missed and start the next session with them.
As a source of corrections. After a mock test, come back here to the chapter that cost you points and read every question in it, not only the ones you missed: wrong answers usually come in clusters around a theme.
How much weight each chapter carries
gov.uk does not say how many questions on the day come from each chapter, and we do not guess. In our own mocks each chapter supplies a share proportional to its size in the bank, which with equal chapters means about the same number from each. The tool below shows the share for any chapter. The practical lesson is that no chapter can be skipped: with 6 mistakes allowed, a chapter you have not revised can cost you the test on its own.
What the bank is not
It is not a copy of the handbook, which is Crown copyright and sold by its publisher, and it does not replace reading it. Our explanations are short by design. If a fact surprises you, the handbook gives the fuller account. Nor is any question here a promise of what you will meet: the gov.uk test page says only that you will be tested on the handbook's content. Our handbook page explains its editions and formats.