Civil Service Reform

In making bids for more powers, many councils have moved outside their comfort zone to craft plans that improve local services. Can the same be said of central government?

MPs highlight that workforce planning in Whitehall only gives “high-level view” of staffing requirements

BT has appointed a new senior executive, David Wallace, to head up its public sector business in Scotland and implement a new strategic direction to increase local focus nationwide

Watchdog warns demands of service pressures, major projects and Brexit are outpacing Whitehall’s capacity to deliver at a time of staffing restrictions and spending restraint

Implementing Theresa May’s flagship plan must become a Brexit priority, says report

Government will be in listening mode once new city region mayors are in place, says growth unit boss

BT outlines how SME innovations can power public services

PACAC chair tells CSW it is a promising moment for civil service reform, but ministers must play their part too

Auditor general says he has support for plan from Whitehall permanent secretaries

After a tumultuous first six months as director general of the Government Digital Service, Kevin Cunnington has finally got the long-awaited Transformation Strategy off his desk and is looking forward to an office move. Rebecca Hill meets him.

A “radical” drive to move departments out of London would help regions adapt following Brexit, say consultants

Fledgling ministry offers £90,000 a year for senior officer to deliver “single device” for international trade staff to work with

After decades of reviews aimed at driving down the civil service's running costs, Sir Michael Barber, former chief of Blair's delivery unit, is hailed by one Whitehall-watcher as "much less celebrity and much more focused on getting the job done"

Microsoft Surface has helped Cheshire Police reduce paperwork and free up time

Wide-ranging plan includes announcement of new "Digital Government Partnership" to encourage innovation in Whitehall – as Labour's Louise Haigh blasts "recycled announcements and meagre commitments"

Public Chairs Forum, Association of Chief Executives and the Institute for Government will track progress on the Cabinet Office's bid to improve relationships between departments and ALBs

Civil service's head of executive recruitment tells CSW that new online recruitment tool – Applied – will focus on increasing diversity and speeding up the sifting process

Lesley Ann Nash, the Cabinet Office's director for public bodies reform, explains how the government's new code is aiming to shift relationships between departments and arm’s-length bodies away from compliance and control towards a proportionate, risk-based partnership model

Retaining public trust “absolutely critical" to plans for data-drive government, says the civil service CEO

Tax collection agency beats target by 400,000 users months ahead of self-imposed deadline

Most of the challenges the Workforce Plan purports to tackle are ones that Whitehall has bumped up against for decades. Perhaps it's time to start interrogating the civil service's Victorian structures – rather than simply adding layers of reform on top, argues Andrew Greenway

Westminster City Council approves proposals for Whitehall landmark despite heritage concerns

Whitehall & Industry Group accolade lauds “exemplary leadership” driven by cross-sector learning