Maddy Bishop

December 2022

The Institute for Government published analysis assessing the civil service’s diversity and inclusion strategy, concluding that government departments need more guidance and targets to improve diversity and inclusion.

They said: “The civil service’s latest diversity and inclusion (D&I) strategy lacks specific objectives, targets and guidance needed to improve representation based on characteristics such as ethnicity, disability and gender.”

IfG analysis of government data shows that, on measures of sex, ethnicity and disability, the civil service is becoming more representative of the public:

• 55% of civil servants are female, including 47% of senior civil servants, compared with 48% of the economically active population
• 15% of civil servants come from a minority ethnic background, including 10% of senior civil servants, compared with 14% of the economically active population
• 14% of civil servants have a disability, including 9% of senior civil servants, compared with 16% of the economically active population.

However, the report finds that officials from a range of different backgrounds feel they have faced barriers to progression at work based on their class, ethnicity or other demographic factors, with many civil servants feeling that their backgrounds and experiences are not valued in government.

The report’s recommendations for the Cabinet Office include:

• Explicitly setting out government departments’ role in developing their own practical plans and targets within the framework of the new D&I strategy
• Recognising where work still needs to be done on protected characteristics such as ethnicity, disability and gender
• Building on existing plans to improve socio-economic diversity in the civil service by supporting lower grade staff working in delivery to gain policy experience
• Setting out specific measures for improving inclusion at work that will be researched and trialled within the civil service.