presume that the board closing date for entries was before the sgt exams results were being published - sure could have been rectified much earlier and therefore reduced anxiety?

Not quite sure what the issue is here, in that what's wrong with having a larger pool of talent from which to choose a person for promotion. Sounds a reasonable response/decision by the Chief Constable who is at least trying to play fairly. On the plus side the successful candidates can at least feel they were the best of a wider selection, guess it depends how one looks at it.

Maybe the CVF needs amending to show competence in reading a calendar? - oh wait that means being practically competent