Civil service

Our research, events and commentary explain what the civil service is, and how to make it better. Our work on the state of the civil service explains what civil servants do to support ministers and oversee public services and how different parts of the civil service work, as well as analysing the latest data on pay, location, and functions in the civil service.

Our work on civil service reform develops ideas about how the civil service can work better, across the whole of the organisation and in individual departments. We look at the centre of government, the accountability of ministers and civil servants, the leadership role of the cabinet secretary and head of the civil service and the reform programmes that shape the effectiveness of the hundreds of thousands of civil servants across the UK.