A huge diversity of people and roles make up the modern civil service. Here, some of them tell us their stories
The civil service is changing.
Over the last decade it has become more diverse on almost every front, so that by March 2021 the proportion of women, disabled people and those from minority ethnic backgrounds in the civil service matched, or nearly matched, the wider economically active population.
There is, of course, more to be done. Representation of minority groups at senior levels is still too low. Socio-economic diversity is a particular challenge and geographic diversity is still in its early stages.
Despite this, it’s true to say that the stereotype of faceless bureaucrats pushing pens in Whitehall has long gone. Civil servants come from all walks of life, and most of them work on the front line, delivering services to the public across the country in a range of important roles.
In this special report, CSW profiles officials from across the country to show the breadth of their work and diversity of their backgrounds.
This is the modern civil service.