Conclusion: How to reform the civil service fast stream

The fast stream has seen a lot of change in recent decades – much of it positive. But the confused purpose at the heart of the scheme, and the attempt to do too many things at once, mean that it is not working as well as it could. Fast streamers feel this too.

A reformed, smaller fast stream of the kind we propose – focused on developing future generations of senior civil servants embedded within the professions – would allow for greater control over the quality of fast streamers’ experiences and improved development support and mentorship. It would offer better training and increased pay. And, most importantly, it would help the civil service be more strategic and deliberate about creating a talent pool to draw future leaders from.

The fast stream is, and will remain, a key component of the civil service recruitment ecosystem. To ensure that it continues to be a success story, civil service leadership must decisively set out what the scheme is ‘for’. Doing so would secure the programme’s status as a powerful tool for maintaining – and improving – civil service capability well into the future.

_{Acknowledgments}

_{Thank you to all my colleagues in the civil service team at the IfG who supported the work underpinning this report – Jack Worlidge, Jordan Urban, Alex Thomas, Hannah Keenan and Heloise Dunlop. Many thanks to all IfG staff past and present that helped with this research – Seun Fabunmi, Maddie Messenger, Paddy McAlary, Shaina Sangha, Sarah Routley and Catherine Riachi. And special thanks also to all our research participants – in our survey, focus groups and interviews – for sharing their thoughts, insight and experiences.}