Marine scientist, psychologist, engineer and park ranger – what do they all have in common? They all work for the civil service.
Gone are the days (if they ever existed) when all civil servants worked in Whitehall, wore pinstripe suits and drafted policy. Of course that’s still a vital role for civil servants, but these days we deliver much more than policy advice. However, ask the man or woman on the street about the civil service and they will still conjure up an image of Sir Humphrey.
The reality is that 80% of civil servants now work outside London, a quarter work part time and more than 7 in 10 work in roles delivering services direct to the public.
I am really proud of the wide range of jobs done by civil servants. They often involve delivering a great service to the public, often in quite tough conditions. That’s why this summer I, and I hope you, plan to bust some myths about the civil service through #csuncovered, which you can find on twitter.
For example, a few weeks ago I visited the London Bridge Jobcentre where they’re delivering a really modern service to the public – gone are reams of paper and traditional offices, and instead people browse for jobs on touch screen computers in a modern open plan workplace. The civil servants who work there like it, the people they help love it, and they’re delivering results.
Meanwhile, at FERA (The Food, Environment and Research Agency at DEFRA) in York I met scientists who are working tirelessly to conserve our bee population. Bees are vital to the sustainability of our food chain. This team of scientists are delivering an important contribution to our agricultural sector, and the thousands of people employed in it across the country.
As you head off on your holidays this summer, you may benefit from the work done by civil servants at the Borders Agency, the Highways Agency or the FCO. When your children go back to school in September they will benefit from the work done by the Department for Education of course, but civil servants from Departments for Transport, Health, and Culture, Media and Sport will ensure they arrive safely, eat healthy food and take part in sport and music activities.
Please join me on Twitter to celebrate and promote the diversity and expertise of the civil service over the coming weeks. Why not tweet about your work, share a photo of a visit you’ve been on or celebrate some great service you’ve received from the civil servants. Don’t forget to use the hashtag #CSUncovered.