The think tank Re:State is launching its Alternative People Survey 2026, in partnership with Civil Service World and Public First.
The anonymous survey, which takes less than ten minutes to complete, aims to capture civil servants' opinions on questions not covered by the government's own annual People Survey, and to give a picture of what really matters to officials across the country.
Last year's inaugural Alternative People Survey drew 1,265 responses. Among the findings, 30% of respondents said they were using AI tools in their work, with 78% of those believing it helped them do their job better.
Some 70% agreed that processes often got in the way of doing their job well, while just 8% felt the civil service manages poor performance effectively – 79% disagreed.
This year's survey adds questions on issues that have grown in importance over the past twelve months, including how departments' voluntary exit schemes are working in practice, how civil service AI use is evolving, and awareness of the civil service code – as well as officials' ideas for changing it.
As before, Re:State will publish the results in full.
Civil servants can complete the survey here