The Civil Service Commission has appointed four new commissioners, including a former Office for Students chief executive and the clerk of the House of Commons.
The new civil service commissioners have been recommended by the prime minister and approved by the King following an open competition. Three have joined the CSC immediately while a fourth will take up the role in November.
Susan Lapworth, who led the OfS from 2018 to 2026, started in the role on Wednesday 1 July.
She was joined by Patricia Gallan, a former senior police officer who retired from her last role as Metropolitan Police assistant commissioner in 2018. She joins the commission having previously served two terms as a non-executive member of the HM Revenue and Customs board. Gallan has also been appointed as the commission’s link commissioner for Scotland – a role which will see her work with the Scottish Government.
Ruth Hunt, a crossbench peer and co-founder of the consultancy Deeds + Words, is the third commissioner who started her term on Wednesday.
Tom Goldsmith, the clerk of the House of Commons will also join the Civil Service Commission as a commissioner, but will not take up post until 1 November when he leaves the clerk role.
The Civil Service Commission is an independent statutory body, which oversees appointments to the civil service, ensuring that they are made on merit on the basis of fair and open competition. Commissioners also promote and hear appeals brought under the civil service code. They work part-time, typically between four and eight days a month.
Baroness Gisela Stuart, the first civil service commissioner, said: “Patricia, Ruth, Susan, and Tom bring a wealth of leadership experience from a range of sectors to our work as the independent regulator for civil service recruitment.
“Their experience and expertise will benefit our work across the entire civil service career lifecycle; from ensuring fair, merit based entry, to providing assurance that exit maintains the integrity of government via the business appointment rules.
“I look forward to them joining our board of commissioners. Together, we will work to maintain a civil service appointed on merit, with the skills needed to deliver public services across the country.”