Source · Select Committees · Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee
Recommendation 11
11
Accepted
Paragraph: 75
Issue guidance on London recruitment for appropriate roles and monitor regional staff engagement
Recommendation
The Cabinet Office should issue guidance to departments that London should not be ruled out as location for new recruitment, where it is more appropriate for certain posts to be based in the capital. It should also use the Civil Service People Survey to monitor and address evidence of a perception among regionally-based staff that they 50 Where Civil Servants Work: Planning for the future of the Government’s estates have lower engagement scores or views on career prospects. Equally, should the Civil Service People Survey reveal engagement to be higher in regional offices, the Cabinet Office should conduct research into what departments running Whitehall offices may be able to learn from them.
Government Response Summary
The government says that it is for departments to determine which roles should be recruited in London and that departmental workforce planning ensures that the right roles are being recruited for in the right locations. They say the Civil Service tracks People Survey results closely and that data is publicly accessible, and they will continue to monitor this data as more roles are relocated.
Paragraph Reference:
75
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
Within the context of Places for Growth targets to relocate roles from London, it is for departments to determine which roles should be recruited in London to support a vibrant talent pool in London for the effective delivery of government priorities, support to Ministers and parliament. Departments review carefully the roles that can be relocated to UK Government offices across the UK at all grades with strong bias towards moving more senior roles out. It is a matter for individual departments to establish their workforce requirements for London taking into account any workforce efficiencies and Places for Growth relocations agreed in their SR21 settlement. Departmental workforce planning ensures that the right roles are being recruited for in the right locations, reflecting both business need and local labour markets. Departments are expected to maximise opportunities to relocate roles to locations across the United Kingdom, but will also recruit into roles in London where there is a strong basis to do so. The Civil Service tracks People Survey results closely and data is publicly accessible through Gov.uk. It is important to the Civil Service that all staff, regardless of location, feel they have strong career prospects. Equally, we strive to ensure our People Survey engagement scores are as high as possible and are keen to learn lessons from all areas of the business to ensure this remains the case. The People Survey asks respondents to select a region as part of their response. All aspects of the survey, including engagement scores, can therefore be analysed by region to identify whether there are statistically relevant differences between London and the regions. We will continue to monitor this data as more roles are relocated to ensure the appropriate lessons are being shared between regions where necessary.