Recommendation 23

To deliver its online safety work, Ofcom reported that it has increased its headcount, from around 950 people to what will probably be around 1,500, an increase of about 50%.52 Progress in meeting its staffing requirements has been broadly to schedule.53 Ofcom described such a major recruitment programme as both a challenge and an opportunity to improve the overall shape and make-up of the organisation. It had been able to grow its expertise in technology and data, and now had a workforce that was more spread across the country.54 Ofcom has, so far, recruited from a variety of relevant bodies, including civil society bodies such as the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) and Internet Watch Foundation, law enforcement agencies, such as the National Crime Agency, other regulators, and online service providers such as Google and Meta.55