CELEBRATING SUCCESS Civil Issue 303 | February 2021 | www.civilserviceworld.com Service Award Shortlist

HMT’S PUBLIC FINANCE CHIEF ON A CA THECTIC YEAR

LITACE IN THE TLE PACK HOW BREXIT Inside government’s SHOOK WHITEHALL innovation engine the inside story

01 CSW303 cover.indd 1 17/02/2021 15:07:39 Championing Diversity, Accelerating Inclusion

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RED BOX 4 INBOX Whitehall refrom reflections and letters 6 NEWS HMRC unveils a three-year pay deal

OPINION 8 ALEX THOMAS A review could help the PM impose his grip on government 9 DAVE PENMAN HMRC’s pay deal is groundbreaking and other departments should catch up 10 PHILIP A. BERRY & JOE DEVANNY The PM’s aid cut shows what his vision for “Global Britain” means in practice

DIGITAL AND DATA 24 BATTLING COVID How the Singaporean government took on the coronavirus pandemic

FEATURES 12 BEHIND THE SCENES Inside a new project to record reflections on Brexit from those who watched it unfold up close 14 14 CAT THAT GOT THE DREAM Treasury DG and finance function head Cat Little on her dream job and run- ning a Spending Review from home 18 AMAZING ACE How the Accelerated Capability Unit helps government solve problems in innovative ways 28 STAND OUT Home Office assistant director Tom Ketteley on being recognised as an LGBT+ leader and role model

CIVIL SERVICE AWARDS 10 28 31 THE 2021 NOMINEES Full shortlist details

civilserviceworld.com | February 2021 | 3

03 CSW303 Contents.indd 3 17/02/2021 15:06:26 ❯ RED BOX EDITOR’S COLUMN Edited by ❯ RED BOX Sarah Astion FROM THE EDITOR

he war might be June 2020 when Brexit negotia- over. If the hard rain tions, being led by Frost, were Tpromised by Dominic lolling somewhat. “Get a move Cummings had been fail- on, our chap has a new job to ing on Whitehall, it seems get to in September,” seemed to have abated somewhat. to be the message to Brussels. Since his former aide’s Of course, this never came departure, Boris Johnson has to pass. Frost stayed put as made a number of appoint- Brexit negotiator until the deal ments that seem to indicate he was reached on Christmas Eve, has decided to move govern- long after the previous na- Treasury perm sec despite It might, though, be too ment on from Cummings’s tional security adviser, Sir Mark his reported appearance on a early to conclude that nothing often deliberately provoca- Sedwill, had departed. Then, No.10 hit list (with hit some- will change – but hopefully now tive style. If bringing in Dan with only days left until he was times being spelled with an civil service reforms will be Rosenfi eld, a former Treasury set to start the post, it was an- s), it looks like Cummings’s done in partnership with those civil servant, as the PM’s chief nounced that Lovegrove would hard rain might be over. working in government, not in of staff indicated a move away take it on instead. Frost would I’m reminded of comments strident, grenade-throwing op- from the previous regime’s not, in his new role as Johnson’s by Ciaran Martin, the former position to them. There is much siege mentality, then the revoca- representative on Brexit and head of the National Cyber Se- in Michael Gove’s Ditchley tion of Lord Frost’s appointment international policy, be leaving curity Centre, last month. “Now lecture (the closest thing we as national security adviser EU exit issues behind after all. that the government’s “war on have so far to a proper outline seemed to reassert the impor- Quite how much all this had Whitehall” seems to be over... of what ministers want reforms tance of civil service values – all been planned as a consid- it’s worth asking: what has this to achieve) that civil servants honesty, integrity, impartiality ered rejig of the civil service latest attempt, accompanied agree with, and many exam- and objectivity – in government. or a Brexit negotiating tactic is as it has been by ferocious (if ples of innovation in the civil The move to name Ministry something that we might need mostly anonymously briefed) service that a reform plan could of Defence permanent secre- to wait for memoirs to reveal. rhetoric, actually involved? highlight. In this issue, we go tary Sir Stephen Lovegrove to But Frost’s appointment was The answer is, by historical inside the Home Offi ce’s Accel- the post instead was a telling criticised by many, including standards, virtually nothing erated Capability Environment one. Frost’s appointment was, Johnson’s predecessor Theresa at all,” he wrote on Twitter. to take a look at one of them. it seems, intended to shake up May, for turning a civil ser- “Absolutely nothing has Now that the gloom of the advice given to Johnson, vice role into a political one. changed in the civil service, Dom has been lifted from putting someone who had the Stopping that change is apart from the identities the government, ministers PM’s trust in a key role. It was a good thing. Add in Tom of a few very senior of- should work with offi cials also initially announced in Scholar’s reappointment as fi ce holders,” he added. to unlock the future.

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4 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

04-05 CSW303 Editor.indd 4 17/02/2021 15:07:14 ❮ CORRESPONDENCE RED BOXEdited by ❯ RED BOX Winnie Agbonlahor

departments contributes to the vibrancy of the civil service and cross fertilisa- tion between departments,” he said. INBOX “In comparison, the military oper- [email protected] Currently I’d rather have the time than ate on rolling two-year postings which twitter.com/CSWNews money. I’m in another department and I’d facilitate gaining a wide range of experi- be a bit disappointed if I lost leave and ence but impact even more so on institu- had hours increased at my age and stage.” tional memory than relatively much less And Peter Royle wrote: “I don’t blame frequent churning in the civil service. DEAL OR NO DEAL members for voting for it but don’t believe I experienced a small civil service de- HMRC’s three-year pay offer and over- the unions should be recommending a partment where senior staff had been haul of its employment terms (see p.6) deal where some will lose existing rights.” in post for 15 to 40 years and it encour- prompted a mixed response. Some aged staleness of thinking and lack of readers were pleased to see staff offered FROSTY RECEPTION acceptance to new ideas and challenge a pay rise and welcomed the changes, In other pay news, readers did not from more broadly experienced staff.” including standardised contracts and agree with the finding of an im- the option of regular work from home... pact assessment that the freeze Ri- RINGS A BELL “Great news for all staff. Excel- shi Sunak announced last year for To many readers, the announce- lent job on the team getting this most civil servants is “justified”. ment of a new training programme through,” Jeanette Forder said. “Can you explain why – when all of the UK for civil servants, including plans “It would be good to see the same is in lockdown, your no. 1-voted best civil for a new campus and the possibil- scope and ambition across depart- service in the world has kept on work- ity of some military-style training ments. We are one civil service af- ing from home, keeping the wheels on in future, sounded oddly familiar. ter all,” Rachel McCann added. the government’s pandemic strategies, And Graham commented: “I left HMRC defence, Brexit, policies, not forgetting The Civil Savant @TheCivilSavant in 2017 when the Cambridge office was infrastructure and making sure protocols Ooh, centralised training facilities? We closed... because I didn’t want to commute in all aspects of governance are running could give it a name, like a national school to London or Peterborough five days a smoothly – you feel that a pay freeze for government or something like that… week. If I’d been offered two days a week is justified?” Peter Drummond said. working at home then I might still be there.” Roger Wardle asked: “Will it ap- peter harrison @4harrisons If only ply to the public-sector MPs?” there was something like a National School ...But others had qualms about the Stuart Rhodes Firth went further, say- of Government. Oh. Yes. The Conservatives downsides, including changes to work- ing: “Get MPs to start living on minimum closed that in 2012 and outsourced civil ing patterns and cuts to overtime pay. wage. And to give up the second houses.” service training. “It’s not just a pay deal... It’s a pay deal with strings that reward the new kids on CHURN BABY CHURN Clair Fisher @pashleyfisher Members the block and punish the dedicated, experi- The news that MPs on parliament’s of the senior military used to enjoy civil enced staff who quite frankly are the back- Public Administration and Consti- service style training at Sunningdale. bone of the civil service,” Sarah Clark said. tutional Affairs Committee are pre- Craig Worswick said if HMRC paring to scrutinise the issue of high Alison Titchener @alibops87 wanted to make conditions fairer, it was turnover in the civil service prompted Can we also train ministers? taking the wrong approach. “The unfair- some thoughtful reflections. ness comes about from previous attacks Robert Jackson wrote: “Institutional Glyn Rawlingson @rawlingson_g on terms and conditions. What thou- memory is important. But that is partly Think the politicians are in more need of sands of staff ought to know is that their what strong record keeping is for. some training. Bit of humility wouldn’t go contracts should resemble those of the “My bigger worry in the civil service amiss either long-serving members of staff but they is the prevalence of closed-loop teams: ar- have been repeatedly watered down, chaic, inefficient, and parochial hierarchies creating a multi-tiered workforce. This that are often (sometimes for good rea- is about ‘levelling down’ and the perma- sons!) skeptical of change and innovation. IN THE NEXT ISSUE nent secretary has decided to engage in a These are not the norm but they still exist. We profile some of the Civil Service Awards classic case of ‘divide and rule’,” he said. They are generally filled with well-mean- winners and look at how other countries Steve Ryan also said the changes ing, competent people who just happen have taken on Covid. Plus, Suzanne amounted to “levelling down, to make to have never worked anywhere else, and Heywood opens up about her book What people work longer at a time of pandemic thus lack a sense of perspective. Having does Jeremy think? and her life with the late when the concept if a shorter working new people with broader experience join cabinet secretary. week is commonly accepted. Moreover, such areas can breathe new life into them.” ON THE WEBSITE there seems to be absolutely no prov- Geoff Eales also said there was a silver Sign up at civilserviceworld.com to receive a able business need for the changes.” lining to civil service churn. “Looked at daily news bulletin with the latest news from David Read asked: “Is there scope in another way, the transfer of experience and across government. the deal for people to buy back leave? gaining different experience in different

civilserviceworld.com | February 2021 | 5

04-05 CSW303 Editor.indd 5 17/02/2021 15:07:14 ❯ RED BOX NEWS Edited by ❯ RED BOX Sarah Astion

The freeze means most civil serv- ants’ pay will not increase in 2021-22, but allows for some exceptions. HMRC busts freeze with pay deal “We were able to demonstrate that we All staff under SCS will get a pay rise for the next three are furthering the reform of public services here,” Harra said. “As well as doing some- years, starting with a 3% average award. By Beckie Smith thing for our people in terms of improving M Revenue and Cus- some “personal disadvantages”, such as their pay and the fairness of their pay sys- toms staff are in line for a decrease in annual leave or changes tem, we’re also doing something for public a wage rise this year and to their working patterns, Harra said. services by furthering reforms and working for each of the next two “But it is important that we’re able arrangements so that we are more custom- years under a pay offer to do that for two reasons,” he said. er focused. And that’s obviously something Hthat comes alongside major reforms to “One, to give the customer service that that ministers are keenly interested in.” the department’s working conditions. we want, but also to be fair between all Some of the contract changes have been Under a pay deal that was 15 months colleagues. Some colleagues are probably informed by the department’s response to in the making, HMRC is offering its having to do more evening and weekend the coronavirus crisis, which has seen the 60,000 staff in grades AA to G6 an shifts at the moment than average pay increase of 3% this year, they’re going to end up doing 5% for 2021-22 and 5% for 2022-23. Sen- because others are doing fewer. ior civil service pay is set separately. So to achieve that fairness, it The tax agency is also standardising does mean that some peo- contracts for staff to eliminate what its per- ple are going to experience manent secretary Jim Harra has called “in- some change that they may herent unfairness” in working conditions. not personally welcome.” The changes will mean working hours He added that the changes and annual leave entitlements are stand- will also enable HMRC to fund ardised, all staff are entitled to regular the pay increases, which will remote working, and disparities in pay be- be weighted towards those tween staff doing the same job are reduced. at the lower end of their pay The package is intended to address ranges, or on lower salaries. what Harra has called a “crisis” of pay The department has not and working conditions. In October 2019, been given extra funding soon after being appointed perm sec, from the Treasury for the Harra told MPs that staff were “very, very pay bump, and is instead dissatisfied” with pay, while reform was using the reforms to create needed to tackle structural problems. “efficiencies” that it is recy- Among other things, he promised to cling into staff pay, he said. tackle differing terms of employment that Those efficiencies include mean some staff are being paid different changing the standard work- amounts for doing the same job, depend- ing day from 7am to 8pm to ing on when they were hired or promoted. match HMRC’s “We’ve got a bewildering array of customer service majority of staff working different contracts – thousands and opening hours. The “We want to be fair from home over the last thousands of different contractual terms department will no between all colleagues. year. “I think we have – and we’ll be moving all colleagues longer pay overtime Some colleagues shown ourselves that we onto a standard contract,” Harra said. for shifts worked can successfully work The contract will include a 37-hour within those hours. are probably having more flexibly than per- working week for full-time employees, Previously, to do more evening haps we believed that and a standard allowance of 25 days’ an- the department and weekend shifts we could,” Harra said. nual leave a year – increasing incremen- has relied on staff He said other tally with time up to a cap of 30 days. choosing to over- at the moment” working practices the Customer service staff will be required time for customer- Jim Harra department has adopted to work a maximum of one evening shift a service lines to in that time will have week and six Saturdays a year as required. stay open. The change will “enable us to a lasting effect on the way HMRC works. The contracts will also en- fit our resources into the working day in “In implementing the Covid support title every official to work from a more cost-efficient way”, Harra said. schemes, we developed an incredibly fast home at least two days a week. This reallocation of resources helped and effective way for policy advisers, pro- Officials who have been recruited HMRC make the case to the Treasury ject leads and operational groups to work more recently are likely to benefit most, and Cabinet Office to approve the pay together so that we could implement huge while those who have worked for the increase, despite the freeze announced schemes really, really fast. We’ll definitely department for a long time may see by the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, last year. want to learn from that. And ministers,

6 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

06-07 CSW303 HMRC pay.indd 6 17/02/2021 15:08:32 ❮ NEWS RED BOXEdited by ❯ RED BOX Winnie Agbonlahor

I expect, will demand that we replicate pay bump staff will get while lessening major low-pay problem in HMRC”. Pay for that speed of response in the future.” proposed changes to terms and condi- the lowest-earning officials in the depart- Included in the reforms is a com- tions, “especially in the current con- ment – those at administrative assistant mitment that HMRC will work with text of public sector pay restraint”. grade – was so low that the department had trade unions on any changes to peo- FDA national officer Jawad Raza said been forced to raise it slightly each year in ple’s working arrangements. its HMRC members had done “incred- line with national minimum wage increases. Both PCS, the civil service’s biggest ible” work on the coronavirus pandemic. However, support for the deal is not trade union, and ARC, the FDA union’s “Thousands of staff will now be get- unanimous, with some union members HMRC branch, have urged their mem- ting a pay rise significantly above inflation, and groups opposing it on the grounds bers to vote through the pay deal. which they well and truly deserve,” he said. that it comes at too high a cost to employ- ARC’s committee said it was recom- Lorna Merry, PCS revenue and customs ment terms. While some CSW readers mending that members accept the deal “be- group president, said it was a “positive deal” have welcomed the pay rise and reforms, cause we believe it delivers real benefits to that “goes some way to addressing HMRC’s others have described the changes as members in the immediate and long term”. major low pay and progression issues”. “regressive” and accused HMRC of “lev- It said it was “confident” that it had PCS said that during the negotiations, elling down” and adopting a “divide achieved its goal of maximising the it had been “determined to address the and rule” approach (see Inbox, p.5).

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06-07 CSW303 HMRC pay.indd 7 17/02/2021 15:08:35 ❯ OPINION ALEX THOMAS MAKE THE CENTRE HOLD A REVIEW OF GOVERNMENT able to co-ordinate activity across departments. Fixing these problems does not necessarily need ma- OPERATIONS IS A CHANCE jor surgery, and heeding the regular call for a new “prime TO STRENGTHEN NO.10 minister’s department” would be – like so many machin- AND THE CABINET OFFICE, ery of government organisational changes – a distrac- tion. Instead the prime minister should learn from the ARGUES ALEX THOMAS successes and failures of previous administrations and ne of the off-the-record briefings that adapt the current structures in the centre of government. caught the Westminster Village’s imagina- First, the prime minister should strengthen the Cabi- tion last year was the moment Boris John- net Office’s role in agreeing the government’s plans. son was reported to have asked who was He should set out the government’s objectives clearly responsible for the government’s coronavi- and seek explicit and public cabinet agreement to a Orus lockdown exit strategy. Sir Mark (now Lord) Sedwill, policy programme. The cabinet secretary in turn can then cabinet secretary, supposedly replied “you are”. then hold permanent secretaries to account for their The former civil servant has since suggested that this part in the implementation of that programme. was good-spirited banter between the two men. But the ac- Secondly, as part of that sign-off the cabinet should count of this particular meeting seemed to encapsulate the agree a small number of top cross-cutting priorities, the frustration of a prime minister who thought he was giving delivery of which is then led by teams based in the Cabi- direction from No.10 but net Office working under found that his commands the direct authority of the provoked no response. prime minister. Whether on This frustration has social care, climate change prompted Johnson to ask Sir or levelling up, these in- Michael Barber, known as tractable problems need an expert in “deliverology” leadership from the centre. – identifying government Next – learning from priorities and getting things Barber’s personal experi- done – to review his opera- ence – the prime minister tion to help make things work should set up a new central better. Barber has an opportu- delivery unit in the Cabi- nity to introduce significant net Office which has a far improvements to how the stronger remit and capacity centre of government works. than the existing teams hold- One of the problems ing departments to account. Barber will be consider- Finally, the cabinet ing is the effectiveness of No.10 and “Coronavirus and – secretary and government chief oper- the Cabinet Office. Both are good at ating officer should have more re- brokering between departments and to some extent – the sponsibility for directly running the co-ordinating activity, but the Cabi- government’s Brexit civil service, including authority over net Office in particular is less able to response have exposed cross-cutting services within govern- raise decisions above a lowest com- ment departments such as its finance, mon denominator compromise. the weaknesses digital and commercial functions. The prime minister’s top civil of the centre” These improvements will help the servant, the cabinet secretary, also prime minister impose his grip on the has limited powers to make things happen across gov- government. They are sensible administrative changes to ernment. While he can shape the hiring and firing of sharpen up the Cabinet Office – already staffed by some of his permanent secretary colleagues, much of his influ- the most talented people in government. But bureaucratic ence is in practice reliant on his status and personal tweaking cannot substitute for the sustained attention and leadership skills. He – alongside the government’s skills of the prime minister himself. The success of Boris chief operating officer also based in the Cabinet Of- Johnson’s government ultimately depends on the man fice – need to persuade other heads of department to co- himself giving ministers clear priorities and holding them operate on the functional running of the civil service. to account. No departmental reforms can substitute for Coronavirus and – to some extent – the govern- personal attention and focus from the figure at the top. ment’s Brexit response have exposed these weak- nesses. The government has found it hard to take Alex Thomas is a programme director at the Institute for timely decisions, too often failed to anticipate the con- Government, leading its work on policymaking and the civil sequences of its actions (or inactions) and been un- service. This article first appeared on the IfG website

8 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

08 CSW303 IFG Opinion.indd 8 17/02/2021 15:08:20 ❯ OPINION COLUMNIST ❮ OPINION DAVE PENMANLESSONS FROM A PACE SETTING PAY DEAL THE NEW PAY PACKAGE FROM handful of pay settlements that have set the pace across the service. HM Revenue and Customs’s pay o er for 2020-23 (see page HMRC SHOWS A DEPARTMENT 6), in this context, is truly groundbreaking. It follows a path that THAT IS SETTING THE PACE IN the Department for Work and Pensions trod a couple of years ago PAY AND REWARD FOR CIVIL and, driven by changing business needs, seeks fl exibility over hours of operation in exchange for a higher pay award. It also SERVANTS. OTHER DEPARTMENTS harmonises a number of terms and conditions as well as helping SHOULD HURRY TO CATCH UP to signifi cantly improve progression times to the max of the range. n many ways I probably wouldn’t be here writing this if John No deal can be all things to all people, certainly not in an organisa- Major’s Conservative government hadn’t developed its pay tion the size of HMRC. There are quid pro quos on annual leave delegation strategy in the early 90s. I got my fi rst step up and working patterns, but the scope and ambition of the deal is the union ladder when I was selected for a role in support- a testament to the drive, commitment and skill of negotiators on ing the unions (fi ve at that time) in the Department of Social both sides of the table and was almost two years in the making. ISecurity as they prepared for the introduction of pay delegation. With most of the civil service su ering in a pay freeze, I left my role as counter manager at Cumbernauld Ben- many will be looking at the pay rises on o er over the efi ts Agency, one I absolutely loved, for my fi rst full-time three years of this deal, which includes 2021. The truly trade union role on secondment. I was soon immersed groundbreaking elements, however, lie elsewhere. in job evaluation, progression arrangements (or lack of For the fi rst time, grade 6s and 7s in HMRC will have them) and reviews of every pay element you can think of a contractual right to fl exitime, and to take up to 28 days from London weighting to shift premia. When, two years fl exi-leave a year. Long working hours have blighted the civil later, I got my fi rst job working for a union, in what service for decades. For too long it has been accepted by is now PCS, it was dealing with the impact employers that the culture of excessive hours is just of full pay delegation on the agencies and a by-product of being at a senior grade. Our latest non-departmental public bodies in Scotland. survey, conducted at the end of last year, showed Oh, the joys of job evaluating Royal Parks that over 40% of respondents were working at least Constabulary o cers whilst trying to protect an extra six hours, every week, unpaid, and three- allowances for having a shotgun at home for quarters reported it a ecting their wellbeing. our members in Scottish Natural Heritage. The deal also embeds what we’ve learned A few years later I moved to London from the last 12 months on remote working. and started work at the FDA. Twenty- Many departments will be similarly looking one years later and it’s fair to say I’ve at hard-wiring greater fl exibility, and HMRC’s seen almost everything pay delegation signal of intent will help pave the way. has had to throw at civil servants. Del- Whether 2021 is simply a pay pause or egation was intended to provide fl ex- the start of a pay freeze, employers across the ibility for employers to tailor their pay civil service should be looking to see how arrangements to their very di erent needs. they can improve the total package available to sta . The lockdown has, for many, reignited “The scope and ambition of the demand for a greater work-life balance. There should be nothing to stop civil service employ- the deal is a testament to the ers understanding the value of this to employees drive, commitment and skill and delivering practical and meaningful com- of negotiators on both sides mitments when cash reward is restrained. Many of these will already be in the gift of of the table and was almost departments without the need for Treasury/ two years in the making” Cabinet O ce approval. What would be truly groundbreaking though, is greater fl exibility in The reality, however, has been very di erent. In- this year’s civil service pay guidance over ele- creasingly pay delegation simply became a tool ments that come with little or no direct cost. of Treasury control, with little scope for genuine In a year when the civil service has been divergence before pay restraint became the default. at the forefront of the government’s response Reward strategy, which should drive organisa- to the health and economic emergencies, this tional and behavioural change, has been relegated to could be a tangible recognition from minis- an afterthought by the power dynamic of Whitehall, ters for all that incredible work. Surely that with complete disinterest from a succession of minis- would be something worthy of applause. ters whose concern for civil service pay was limited to the signal it sends elsewhere in the economy. Dave Penman is the general secretary of In almost three decades, there have only been a the FDA union. He tweets @FDAgensec

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09 CSW303 Penman.indd 9 17/02/2021 15:08:02 OPINION❯ ❯ UKOPINION AID WHAT AID CUTS MEAN FOR GLOBAL BRITAIN Since David Cameron’s election as Conservative leader in DR PHILIP A. BERRY AND DR JOE 2005, the party had fully embraced the international develop- DEVANNY ARGUE THAT BORIS ment agenda and committed to the target of 0.7% of GNI for ODA. JOHNSON HAS OVERTURNED Support for international development was an important part of Cameron’s rebranding of the party and relocation of it to the 15 YEARS OF CONSERVATIVE political centre ground after three successive election defeats. The PARTY POLICY ON DEVELOPMENT move was not solely positional: Cameron was personally supportive MOVING TOWARDS A NARROWER of development as a moral imperative and a means of boosting Britain’s soft power. His support for international development VISION OF “GLOBAL BRITAIN” was also shared by other senior Conservative MPs, most notably uring November’s Spending Review, chancellor of the his first international development secretary, Andrew Mitchell. exchequer Rishi Sunak announced the government’s Significantly, and in the face of considerable politi- intention to temporarily abandon spending 0.7% of cal opposition, the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coali- gross national income on Official Development Assis- tion government (2010-15) was the first British government tance. Instead, the chancellor outlined plans to spend ever to meet the internationally-recognised 0.7% of GNI D0.5% of GNI on overseas aid next year, saving approximately £4bn. target for ODA in 2013. The target was then, with Cam- With Britain facing its worst recession in 300 years, the eron’s tacit support following a private member’s bill initi- chancellor is in an unenviable position as he seeks to bal- ated by a Liberal Democrat MP, enshrined in law in 2015. ance the books. The decision to reduce ODA spending, however, should not be viewed solely as a short-term meas- “Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party ure to alleviate challenging economic circumstances, but has moved away from some of the as the end of the cross-party consensus on international development that has held for approximately 15 years. centrist policies adopted by his The decision to cut the aid budget, combined with the Depart- predecessors and has a different ment for International Development’s merger with the Foreign conception of Britain’s soft power” and Commonwealth Office in September 2020, reflects sharp disagreement within the Conservative Party regarding the level Despite this support for aid at the top of the party, there was and function of overseas aid, which stretches back half a century. always a dissenting faction. Not all Conservative MPs, members or These decisions are further proof that Boris Johnson’s Con- aligned media were enthusiastic about Cameron’s determination to servative Party has moved away from some of the centrist policies meet the 0.7% target, or indeed to retain DfID as an independent de- adopted by his predecessors and, more importantly to interna- partment amid public sector austerity. This dissenting faction was tional allies, has a different conception of Britain’s “soft power”. partly motivated by a view that development was being wrongly Five former prime ministers, including three Conservatives, have prioritised over more traditional Conservative commitments, such reportedly disapproved of Johnson’s decision to cut the aid budget. as to defence spending. Johnson’s simultaneous cut to the aid budget and increase in the defence budget is a clear indication of his relatively consistent position in this intra-party debate. Johnson’s views on development were well known before his ascent to the premiership. For example, in 2019 he argued: “We can’t keep spending huge sums of taxpay- ers’ money as though we were some independent Scandinavian NGO… The present system is lead- ing to inevitable waste as money is shoved out of the door in order to meet the 0.7% target [for spend- ing]”. Whereas this view was the dissenting voice against the party leader-

10 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

10-11 CSW303 Overseas aid.indd 10 17/02/2021 15:10:04 ❯ OPINION UK AID ❮ OPINION

UK aid A Syrian refugee camp during a visit by then-international development secretary Justine Greening in 2016

ship under David Cameron and Theresa May, it has now become the party orthodoxy, against which supporters of aid must argue. Several centrist Conservative MPs have been dismayed by the decision to cut aid, with one, Baroness Sugg, resigning from her ministerial position in protest. It is likely that the government will face a parliamentary rebellion, led by Andrew Mitchell, when it ultimately introduces legislation to repeal the 0.7% spending target. The rebels are concerned that the decision to repeal the law – despite assurance from the chancellor that the move is tempo- rary – indicates that the government’s longer-term intention is not to reinstate the 0.7% target when the public finances are restored to health. It is unclear if a Conservative rebellion in the House of Commons – or a similar effort in the House of Lords – will have the numbers to inflict a parliamentary defeat on the government. Johnson presides over a different party – in parliament and in the composition of its electoral support – than did Cameron or May. And what about public opinion? Some polling suggests that the public broadly supports the decision to cut aid. In the context of Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic, with a widespread as- sumption that – defence and a small number of other protected sectors notwithstanding – further domestic spending cuts are likely, it is perhaps unsurprising that public opinion supports cutting aid too. The decision is, nevertheless, further evidence of John- son’s disjointed approach to what was meant to be his Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy. A symbolic decision to, as Andrew Mitchell once put it, “balance the books on the backs of the poorest people in the world,” does not bode well for Britain’s global standing, ahead of a year in which a new US president is inaugurated and Britain has the presiden- cies of two prominent multilateral meetings, the G7 and COP26. After nearly eighteen months in office, we are finally seeing the shape of Johnson’s vision of the national interest and what “Global Britain” will mean in practice. It is a narrower, meaner vision of Britain’s role in the world, with its “soft power” diminished.

Dr Philip A. Berry and Dr Joe Devanny are lecturers in the Department of War Studies at King’s College London. They write here in a personal capacity

civilserviceworld.com | February 2021 | 11

10-11 CSW303 Overseas aid.indd 11 17/02/2021 15:10:08 INTERVIEW ❯ CAT LITTLE Little’s account After an extraordinary year, Cat Little refl ects on how the Treasury and government fi nance function met the pressures of a pandemic with innovation. By Richard Johnstone

at Little was not planning to causing chaos in the background, they’re run a Spending Review from always a good distraction when you’re her house. The Treasury’s trying to have di cult meetings with director general of public minister” – Little acknowledges the strange- spending found out she was ness of starting a new job in Covid times. Cgoing to move from her previous role “As a leader, you work really hard to as chief fi nance o cer at the Ministry develop relationships in your fi rst weeks of Defence in December 2019, with her and months, because it matters so much start date at 1 Horse Guards Road set for to your ability to get stu done,” she says. the following March, after the Budget. “But it was completely di erent to what Little’s predecessor, James Bowler – now I expected. It really changed a lot of the a Cabinet O ce permanent secretary lead- way in which my teams had to operate.” ing the Covid taskforce – was to cover the She joined the Treasury just after the Budget. She was to take over the following chancellor, Rishi Sunak, had set out the day and start on the next fi scal event. government’s initial fi scal response to “So it all was very clean, but then of coronavirus in the March 2020 Budget, a course, Covid happened,” Little says. “I £12bn package that was soon overtaken think it’s fair to say nobody was really by the scale of the crisis. Just two weeks doing what they expected to be doing.” later, Sunak announced the Coronavirus Little was thrust into the corona- Job Retention scheme, also known as virus response before she could even furlough, which at its peak saw the govern- get to the Spending Review. She had ment pay 80% of the wages of 8.9 million just three days in the o ce before the people. To date, it alone has cost £46.4bn. fi rst national lockdown, making ac- A sister scheme for the self employed has climatising to her new role di cult. cost £5.4bn to the end of December 2020. Although there have been some benefi ts Following the Budget, “it was all of working from home in her hectic fi rst about getting money quickly to the year in the fi nance ministry – “I normally right places to tackle the crisis”, says have a couple of dogs with me who are Little. “There’s still a bit of that, but we

14 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

14-17 CSW303 Cat Little Interview.indd 14 17/02/2021 15:09:46 “It was all about getting money quickly to the right places to tackle the crisis”

civilserviceworld.com | February 2021 | 15

14-17 CSW303 Cat Little Interview.indd 15 17/02/2021 15:09:48 INTERVIEW ❯ CAT LITTLE

were all learning on our feet, and huge a minister here in the Treasury, normally the chief secretary works very closely with amounts of money were involved.” the chief secretary, then back to the Cabi- them on this,” she says. “For the fi rst time, Development of the support schemes net O ce, and the Cabinet O ce would the conditions are right, you’ve got ministe- happened at an unprecedented pace. advise the minister,” Little says. “So we in rial and senior o cial sponsorship, and a The furlough scheme was up and run- e ect brought together the departmen- real burning platform staring us in the face.” ning on 20 April, exactly a month after tal and the central decision making.” Changes was also evident in the process Sunak announced its creation, and a full Looking beyond Covid, Little is keen around the 2020 Spending Review, which 10 days sooner than expected. It was to maintain these processes to keep was initially planned as a full three-year followed by the Self-Employment In- government agile. This forms part of review, but was truncated as the impact come Support Scheme and an expanded the government’s Project Speed, which of Covid meant it wasn’t possible to go sick pay entitlement, which went live is focused on quickening infrastructure beyond a one-year settlement for 2021-22. on 13 May and 26 May respectively. delivery and policy implementation. “Almost up until the point of ne- Little says that while there has been “One of the things I’m really keen gotiations, we were operating on the innovation in how these schemes have to do as part of Project Speed is to work basis it would be a multi-year review,” been developed, she adds that “I would with departments to say: ‘what has this Little recalls. Details of how to submit stress our control frameworks in Man- taught us about the pace at which we information for a multi-year settlement aging Public Money [the Treasury’s can make good decisions and add value, were sent to departments in July. It was spending control guidance] and how and do we want to normalise some of only in late October that the decision we approach spending decisions hasn’t that regardless of Covid?” she explains. was made for a one-year review – the in substance changed throughout”. “The sums of money that we’ve had to second successive 12-month round. Indeed, she is pleased with how the make decisions about at a very, very fast “We had departments submit their SR Treasury’s guidance has stood up to pace are obviously signifi cant, but I think bids on the basis of a multi-year spending the pressures of the pandemic, includ- we’ve made some brilliant fast-paced deci- review,” Little says, noting that would always ing the increase in ministerial direc- sions and crucially got money to where it is be her preferred way of doing the exercise. tions sought for elements of the re- needed. Equally, I think we’ve been able to The impact of Covid means the 2020 sponse, such as the hospitality-boosting delegate money to departments in di er- round was a long way from the “star Eat Out To Help Out Scheme. ent ways that perhaps we would have been chamber” sessions of previous reviews. reticent to do prior to Covid, so it’s made “We did nearly all the negotiations us really think about how we empower virtually, with our ministers in the Treas- “One of the things departments and their accounting o c- ury and departments in their buildings I’m really keen to do ers to deploy funds in a crisis moment.” or wherever they were located, so that The hypothesis of Project Speed, says was di erent,” she says. “And we ended is say: ‘what has this Little, is that the faster government can up doing a lot of the publication and the taught us about the deliver, the quicker it can have impact, and development that happens in decision- pace at which we can the less money it’s going to cost. “In order making at the end remotely as well.” to enable faster delivery of anything in Little says “lots and lots of posi- make good decisions government, you’ve got to have decision tives” emerged from the process. and add value?’” making and agile ways of developing busi- “I was able to get experts in a virtual ness cases and making decisions,” she says. room much quicker and much more ef- “We fully expected to get more direc- “So we’re using Project Speed to look at our fi ciently than we would have been able to if tions,” she says. “Partly because of pace, and governance – and to be frank, we’re start- we were all physically located at the Treas- partly because a lot of the things that we ing to think about how we use it for other ury, and it helped with a lot of the cross-gov- were doing were fi rsts, and we haven’t got policy areas, not just not just infrastructure.” ernment interactions,” she says. “We worked evidence to prove or to fully inform our as- very closely with other functions and with sessments of value for money, or feasibility. ven in Covid times, Little acknowl- the Cabinet O ce, and with departmen- Being able to say very quickly to the public edges frustration at the “bureaucracy tal experts, so it was brilliant to have the that we think this is the right thing to do Eand layers of decision making” in the fl exibility to access all of that in a virtual but here are the gaps in our ability to prove Treasury. But she senses an opportunity to environment, and it was very fast paced.” it to you, has been a really positive thing.” unlock quicker delivery that, while a long- Individual successes include virtual However, the speed of the response – standing objective, has only been patchily capital appraisal panels for all of the capital and the need to develop and implement realised. “You’ve got to have the whole con- investment that went into the Spending major schemes with most of the civil service text and environment to want it, and I think Review. Little says they formed a “mas- working from home – did change some you’ve also got to have very clear direction sive, important part of the evidence base” of the Treasury’s processes, Little says. from ministers and from senior o cials to for the decision to increase capital spend- “It allowed us to innovate, and think do things di erently,” she says. “That proba- ing by £27bn to £100bn for 2021-22. di erently about decision making,” she bly hasn’t always been the case, to be frank.” “It was great to be able to run that tells CSW. Bringing together the usually- But the combination of Covid process seamlessly in a virtual environ- separate ministerial and o cial approv- showing how things can change and ment,” she says. “I also co-chaired panels als for spending and creating bespoke buy-in from senior ministers means on technology, data and automation with decision-making points were among “the conditions are right”, she says. [Cabinet O ce perm sec and civil service the more agile processes adopted. “Project Speed is sponsored by the chief operating o cer] Alex Chisholm “Normally you’d have o cials make chancellor, and by [joint Treasury and and it was fantastic to be able to get all a decision, then you’d sequentially go to Cabinet O ce minister] Lord Agnew, and of our digital experts together to talk

16 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

14-17 CSW303 Cat Little Interview.indd 16 17/02/2021 15:09:48 about technology investment. I’m sure we Little says departments “want to t is this “deep passion” for public would have done it if we’d been physically be heard and to have straight and hon- fi nances that fi rst brought Little into together, it was just easier to coordinate est conversations” with the Treasury. Ithe civil service. A relatively late joiner, and probably more e cient [remotely].” “I really hope that the way in which we she describes herself as the “classic con- The Treasury’s focus has now begun engaged, communicated, and worked in sultant who has joined a client”, having to move to the 2021 review, and Little says partnership with departments refl ected previously been the external auditor to the challenge will be to make sure the that,” says Little, who also chaired weekly HM Prison Service and the HM Courts work that went into the 2020’s cancelled Spending Review discussions with the and Tribunals Service, and the inter- three-year review doesn’t go to waste. fi nance leadership group of depart- nal auditor to the Legal Aid Agency. “I don’t think it will, because govern- mental and arm’s-length body fi nance “I got to know the Ministry of Justice ment departments – speaking from ex- chiefs. “We were really open about where pretty well, along with all of their fi nancial perience – operate on a multi-year basis. we were in the decision-making pro- issues,” she says. “It was it was a matter of Depending on which department you’re cess: we asked them to tell us what they coincidence [that in 2013] a job was com- in, you’ll always have a business plan that’s thought about the move to a one-year ing up, and I was at a stage in my career more than one year and you’ll always want review, ahead of decisions being taken. when I thought actually having the op- to be thinking about the strategic and “I think I think people want an honest, portunity to get my sleeves rolled up and medium to long-term context,” she says. timely engagement, and I really hope that stuck in rather than being the consultant “So I hope a lot of what departments we’re the way in which we engaged and commu- on the sidelines was a great opportunity.” doing will still bear fruit in the future.” nicated, with departments refl ected that.” Even though she was moving to work with a client she had previ- ous experience of, she says that the working environ- ment was “massively di er- ent” from consultancy fi rms. “I remember someone explaining to me the box sys- tem, and just thinking that is bonkers,” she recalls. “I’d come from PwC where everything is incredibly slick and agile, and then someone was explaining to me that we make decisions through paper going in boxes and boxes being locked. “It’s just very, very di er- ent. And I’m a historian by training so I really enjoyed the tradition and the culture and the ethos, and learnt very The plan, when Little speaks to n addition to her Treasury role, Lit- quickly to celebrate those di erences and CSW in December, is that 2021 will be tle is also the head of the government to embrace them, but equally to use that a multi-year review, but after the tu- Ifi nance function, having taken over private sector perspective, to innovate and mult of 2020, this isn’t yet a certainty. from Mike Driver when he became in- challenge constructively where needed.” Whatever the length of the next re- terim permanent secretary at the MoJ. Despite that initial reaction, Lit- view is, Little says her Treasury leadership Little says she is “humbled” to com- tle says she soon began to appreci- will be informed, as the 2020 review was, bine the two roles into what she says ate how the system helps minis- by her experience on the departmental is her dream job. “I’ve dedicated my ters with civil service advice. side of the table – for both the MoD and, whole career to public fi nance, so be- “It really does work,” she says. “A before that, the Ministry of Justice. ing in this role at this moment in time minister who’s diligent with their box “I’ve led spending reviews from a is an absolute privilege,” she says. and makes decisions quickly [makes it] departmental perspective,” she says. “I’ve She is committed to the function’s a really slick decision-making process.” seen what a really good e ective, open, strategy, which was published in 2019, It is, though, another part of gov- trusted, evidence-based relationship looks and wants to “harness the collective ernment that has been a ected by the like, and the positive impact that can have talent and the coalition of leadership” pandemic. “I think Covid has changed on frontline services in the public sector. across government to implement it. boxes,” says Little. “Ministers are much “So when I took on this job, and when “We have a team of directors general more IT savvy and much more techno- we launched the Spending Review, we who lead as chief fi nance o cers and chief logically driven so you’ve kind of got very much set out the ambition of hav- operating o cers across departments, and virtual boxes and physical boxes.” ing very transparent, clear priorities right it matters deeply to me that every single It is yet another decision-making from the start. The way in which I expect one of these people feel that the vision and tweak in a year packed full of them. As my spending teams and the Treasury the strategy is equally owned. And that Little’s dogs, bemused by a year of pub- to work with departments is all about leaders right through the fi nance function lic spending decisions in their house, how we can help things to get done.” feel as passionate about it as we do so.” would surely attest if they could.

civilserviceworld.com | February 2021 | 17

14-17 CSW303 Cat Little Interview.indd 17 17/02/2021 15:09:51 FEATURE ❯ INNOVATION

‘ZEROING IN ON THE ART OF THE POSSIBLE’ INSIDE THE GOVERNMENT’S INNOVATION ENGINE

18 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

18-22 CSW303 Ace feature.indd 18 17/02/2021 15:09:21 A Home Office unit focused on innovative ways to solve problems is attracting a lot of attention across government. Richard Johnstone took a look inside the Accelerated Capability Environment to find out more

Toby Jones

he Maritime and Coastguard Agency has a challenge. The Department for Transport agency collects a lot of data “When certain from its bases and aircraft, but as the names and information has proliferated, it has strug- gled to make use of all its intelligence. numbers In the face of such a quandary, the come up on TMCA did what increasing numbers of your phone, government departments and agencies are doing and turned to the Accelerated you know Capability Environment. ACE, based in the this must be Home Office, is rethinking how govern- important” ment tackles big challenges, and could change the future of the civil service itself. ACE was established in April 2017 as part of the Office for Security and Counter Terrorism, and initially focused on problems where criminal justice and policing came up against technology bar- riers. It was established to quicken delivery by focusing on what its head, Toby Jones, says is “removing ambiguity and uncertainty about the art of the possible for a particular prob- lem and bringing it to life very rapidly”.

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“That zeroing in makes sure eve- “batphone” ringing indicates something organisations to help with each commis- ryone knows what they’re doing today major. This time, ACE is being called in sion. Known as Vivace, this group of more and tomorrow, and what the next steps to help deploy the coronavirus vaccine. than 200 companies is hosted by defence are to get ideas through to impact.” “We’ve just been called to see if we giant QinetiQ and provides cutting-edge Its success to date is such that the can help with vaccine rollout that was industrial expertise for each project. way it works is being considered as confirmed following the approval of the Commissions generally only take part of the government’s civil service vaccine in the UK in the last 24 hours,” he around 12 weeks. A project lifecycle pro- reform agenda, as ministers seek to says in a conversation on 2 December. vides what Jones calls a “handrail” to guide spread its mix of innovation, collabora- Jones is limited in what he can say projects at pace while maintaining govern- tion, engagement and pace outward. about ACE’s work in the vaccine rollout – ance and oversight for public money. The ACE has thrown its doors open (vir- “it’s to do with data but I don’t think that’s 10 steps are split into three stages: assess, tually) to CSW to provide an insight on going to help very much, everything is to assign, deliver. There are review points how it is quickening innovation across a do with data,” he says – but it builds upon between each: one to determine if ACE host of sectors, and how it might point the work it did helping to stand up the govern- should take on the work, and another to re- way to a more innovative government. ment’s Joint Biosecurity Centre in June. view possible approaches after initial work ACE tackles the challenges that data “That’s an example of the sort of things by staffers and the research community. and digital technology present to public that can happen,” Jones says. Some of “We bring the customer on the jour- safety and security like a start-up, Jones ACE’s work is planned, “and some of it ney with us,” says Alun Jones, who heads says. After a series of successes in areas is about phone calls that come out of the up ACE’s delivery function. “During including cybercrime and verification blue. When certain names and numbers that process, we are breaking delivery of children online (see box), the group’s come up on your phone, you work broadened into other policy areas. know this must be important.” This included its work with the MCA, The fact that ACE’s which initially engaged ACE to better work ranges from ships to analyse its incident data, so it could better deploy its ships and other assets. Then, “We’re realising the once the MCA started using benefit of creating two fixed-wing surveillance an environment that aircraft, it wanted a bet- ter way to bring together allows behaviours all the data it gathered via we see in the civil radar, ship detection, in- service – but struggle frared video, and mobile signal and wifi sensors. to harness and amplify It is addressing, cam- – to become possible” paign architect Paul Mc- Carthy says, a “swivel chair problem, where coastguards are looking around multiple displays to try and under- down into a series of time-boxed stand what the picture is”. sprints, and that gives the team “What they need is a plat- an opportunity to pause, reflect, form where they can exploit confirm whether this is still the that information and make it right way to do things or whether more beneficial to their res- we need to tweak some things.” cues, but also in other things Although the approach is dif- they do, including action on ferent from conventional civil pollution in the maritime service policymaking, it was con- environment,” he says. ceived, says Toby Jones, “in the “They’re looking for face of a number of classic prob- a complete view of eve- lems in public sector delivery”. rything they know in Katie Gardiner, ACE’s senior order to gain a better understanding of shots demonstrates how in-demand it responsible owner in the Home Office, that data, and make it better for sharing is as government tackles policy prob- agrees. “It is very much an emphasis on a with other government departments.” lems that arise from digital and data. new way of responding to emerging and ACE aims to zero in on policy solutions complex threats in a changing environ- e will return to how ACE though a 10 step process, driven by a team ment, particularly in the digital world, helped solve the MCA’s of 40 specialists in areas including data sci- where we see rapid change,” she says. Wswivel-chair problem, but ence and engineering, behavioural psychol- The intention was to create a space just as Toby Jones is explaining how ogy, policy and law, delivery, intellectual where the public and private sector could this is a classic ACE problem, his phone property and technology. It also draws on collaborate on particularly challenging rings. And this is not just any call – his a community of private and third-sector questions, she says. “The culture is all about

20 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

18-22 CSW303 Ace feature.indd 20 17/02/2021 15:09:22 providing the opportunity for a safe space to try out new ideas and to work at pace, in a way that really drives innovation.” ACE PROJECTS ACE’s success has gained it a nomina- Better investigations through data tion in the Civil Service Awards, in the ACE has developed the data inves- innovation category. Gardiner says that tigation and collaboration environ- “there wasn’t really any existing means ment to enhance knowledge shar- that we could use that would enable us ing across the security sector. to work in the way that ACE does with According to ACE’s annual report, it industry on specific problems”. The “created an innovation environment for Home Office first explored possible best the law enforcement community that practice around how a function would can be used to explore future opportuni- operate, before concluding that the ACE ties in multi-source data exploitation, model represented the best way forward. as well as non-technical aspects such “We knew that conventional ways of as personal compliance monitoring”. working on digital and data challenges in the public sector were not as effective Verification of Children Online as they might be at dealing with the pace ACE was commissioned by GCHQ, and of change in hugely uncertain times,” supported by DCMS and the Home Office, Toby Jones adds. “Problems emerge re- to run a cross-sector research project ally quickly out of your field of vision, to provide insights to government on and they demand a rapid response. We how children could be kept safer online. knew that we needed something differ- It brought together experts to stimulate ent – a unified problem-solving approach innovation and collaboration, with a cross- ACE’s aim was therefore to get to across the public sector, private sec- sector task force considering the hypoth- a proof of concept for the MCA about tor, academic and non-profit sector.” esis: “If platforms could verify which of how this data could be better used, a their users were children, then as a society project Roberts calls “pretty typical”. o return to the Maritime and Coast- we would be better empowered to protect “That’s also where ACE can add most guard Agency swivel-chair problem, children from harm as they grow up online”. value,” he says. “They’ve come with a TCSW joins a project gate meeting The project had two phases. For phase one, problem – and an opportunity – but at this between the “assess” and “assign” stages the taskforce met fortnightly for ten weeks stage, we didn’t really talk about any solu- of the project. At this meeting, the team to explore the issue. A range of promising tion. We want to understand the problem.” considers if it is right for ACE to take on, solutions were identified for further ex- “This is a good example of one that and decides to progress it from the assess ploration and trialling, alongside a scoring fits squarely into what we do,” adds to the assign stage. A second major meet- system for proposals. The task force deliv- Debs Kearse, ACE’s chief technol- ing between stages five and six determines ered a phase-one report with ten recom- ogy officer. “It’s a data problem, it’s an the outline of the pitch to customers. mendations to help find a workable, practi- integration problem, and it’s some- “Some customers will come to us with cal solution focused on preserving privacy thing that we can help them solve.” problem statements that either aren’t really that would make a real difference to how Kearse goes first in the question ses- well understood, and we want to work with platforms recognise their child users. In sion, which is attended by seven of ACE’s them to understand what the problem looks the second phase, the taskforce consid- staffers and whichCSW sits in on. like, or they might actually be wanting ered the theoretical and practical aspects She says having heard the problem, to ‘solutioneer’ and say ‘we want to buy a of age assurance by providing valuable the team has a couple of routes to choose certain widget’, and that’s not appropriate research and proof of concepts to inform from. “That can influence what exactly for ACE,” says Simon Christoforato, chief wider government initiatives. This work is that we’re going to do next, and that’s executive of Vivace. “So this two-to-three now helping to inform policy decision mak- the headline thing I’m thinking about.” [stage] is really to say, is this the right thing ers considering how to tackle online harms. Commercial lead Ryland Wilson builds for us to be doing? And let’s have a col- on what the output will be. “Our approach lective review of the best approach, which will probably be a proof of concept to the will then lead us to success in the five-six ing, produces the problem statement, customer. I’m thinking: what will we give gate review. That is the formal bid back as well as considering the legal and them at the end of it? It could be a short- to the customer to ensure we understand security issues ACE might need to con- term licence, for example, that we hand over the scope, and we’re defining the cost sider if it takes on the commission. to the customer, for them to use the capabil- and the time boundaries of the work.” The MCA’s problem, he says, is that ity that we’ve demonstrated for a short time Progress though the two-three gate and “they’re not really able to use their data at period. They’re thoughts and considera- the problem is thrown open to the Vivace the moment”. He explains: “They are look- tions for the team to take away and explore community, which accesses the data in ing at getting that information downloaded before this comes back for five to six [gate].” its own development environment, called in more real time, and what they need is Iain Wallace, who represents the Vivace “PodDev”. It uses that data to assess possi- a platform where they can exploit that community in this session, then gets to be, ble solutions, which are then fed back to the information and make it more beneficial to in his words, “the annoying disrupter” at the customer at the five-six stage, after which their missions – both in supporting rescues, meeting, “and point out sort of opportuni- solutions are “made real” for clients to use. but also in tackling pollution and other ties to do things a little bit differently”. Carl Roberts, who leads the meet- activities in the maritime environment.” He explains: “One hat I’m wearing

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is, what approach can we take that’s go- ing is growing very quickly, as people officials through to those who are just ing to give us a different set of options? learn from each other about what’s been joining and learning the ropes, and I’d How do we open up as wide as possible achieved through using this model.” bring experience from across sectors to to make sure we’ve got a broad range But it is spreading the mindset, rather some active problem solving that they of companies coming forward to pre- than turning ACE into a central func- need to address in their department,” he sent opportunities and capabilities?” tion, that he says is the way forward. says. “And I’d coach them to work and After this meeting, the next move “Do I think there’s a future where this behave in the way that we have, to show was to hold a call with 50 companies ACE becomes some uber-organisation? that it releases more value more quickly. setting out the MCA’s requirements. I don’t think that’s necessarily the right “From that, they will develop models As this project progressed, the com- strategy,” Jones says. “What I think is that work for them… I would say that’s the panies were given access to the MCA’s really interesting is the learnings about way to scale this: to take those core behav- data through ACE’s development environ- our ways of working and our culture.” iours and scale them and respect things ment, and, after a four-week development Jones says one way to absorb the les- like unified participation from different period, 13 pitches were put to the MCA. sons of ACE is to focus on its watchwords: sectors. That’s where the magic lies.” Five were then developed into proof of innovation (translating ideas to impact), Jones, whose career has encompassed concept tools for the agency – all within collaboration (bringing people and or- the public sector, an established multi-na- ACE’s 12-week project timeframe. ganisations together around the prob- tional and a start-up, knows this is possible lem), engagement (trusted relationships because it was how he learned the approach, o what does ACE have that gov- created to share the burden of problem although he acknowledges that it does ernment needs? ACE’s model has solving), and pace (if there is something include some “pain of working with the ma- Sbeen praised by Massachusetts that needs to be done, get on with it).” chinery that we find ourselves dealing with”. Institute of Technology, which said its Jones acknowledges that some of these Gardiner says civil servants who work co-creation model should be replicated are long-standing public sector priorities, on projects with ACE report finding it across the UK government; Toby Jones “refreshing” to have the space to work says that officials in the Cabinet Office differently. “I think it is something that have discussed how best to learn from can require some adjustment. There’s a it in wider civil service reform efforts. certain amount of education – for want While he defines the values driving of a better word – that’s required about ACE as key civil service ones – impact, how things are going to work, how they’re value, integrity, fair and open competi- going to feel, what’s required of the team tion, opportunity, diversity – he also says that’s engaging ACE, and how they can that “inquisitiveness, collaboration and make the most of that experience. flexibility are additional qualities”. “It is different to how things often “What we’re realising is the benefit of work in other situations, so there can creating an environment that really al- be a bit of a learning curve there.” lows those behaviours that we do see in All this sounds like manna for Domi- the civil service – but at times struggle to “It can require some nic Cummings’s erstwhile efforts to bring harness and amplify – to become possible.” adjustment. There’s in greater external expertise into the civil Gardiner agrees that “there’s an op- service, from weirdos and misfits among portunity for the civil service to really draw a certain amount others. Jones says he understands the ACE on those attributes and amplify them”. of education that’s model was flagged to the prime minister’s She says that “core civil service values required about former top adviser as an example of what are incredibly important in all of the work is possible within government, but ACE that we do”. While working at pace “is how things are itself didn’t speak to the Brexit svengali certainly not unknown to the civil service”, going to work” before his pre-Christmas departure from ACE’s approach can be a real enabler. No.10. But, Jones says, ACE “drew yet more Toby Jones adds: “I think that’s one of energy from the demand for ‘do different’.” the exciting things about ACE: what can but are not always achieved. “We’re not It is still to be seen how the wider civil we do to learn from the cultural aspects always excellent at collaboration, either in service reform plans being developed by so that this becomes a more systemic and the private sector or public sector alone. Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove endemic way of working across the pub- The public sector recognises the need and permanent secretary Alex Chisholm lic sector with the private sector. ACE is for collaboration, but driving it from a formalise these lessons, but there is a clear learning by doing, which actually is a pretty leadership point of view means driving willingness to look at how to change. good mechanism to speed things up.” by example, and behaviours,” he says. “We’re finding ACE is actually bring- So how could government depart- So how can this be done in other ing to life those values and this way of ments learn from how ACE does things? parts of government that do not have working for many,” Jones says. “It’s un- “I think there is a lot of best practice here, the space that ACE has? He says the comfortable, but very, very productive.” which actually really helped to inform key thing is to create the space for and drive that agenda as much where we people to think and work at pace. ACE will be taking part in the Home are thinking about collaboration within “I wouldn’t take the ACE model, but Office’s Security and Policing event from the public sector,” Gardiner says. what I’d do is I’d form a blended team 9-11 March. For details and to register to “I think about this a lot,” Jones agrees. from across a government department: attend please visit: “The demand for this way of work- right from the most accountable senior www.securityandpolicing.co.uk

22 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

18-22 CSW303 Ace feature.indd 22 17/02/2021 15:09:23 divorce of the century

Issue 254 | March 2016 | www.civilserviceworld.com Issue 258 | July 2016 | www.civilserviceworld.com Columnists Peter riddell, Jane Dudman and Dave OLD AGE Penman give their take TENSIONS JANE DUDMAN ON LESSONS FROM MYCSP economist’s LOOSENING outlook An interview with THE GRIP Vicky Pryce WHAT DOES THE PATCHWORK OF DEVOLUTION DEALS MEAN FOR WHITEHALL?

PAPA JOHN CIVIL SERVICE where next? CEO JOHN MANZONI ON LEADERSHIP AND In-depth Brexit report featuring TRANSFORMING Melanie Dawes, Bob Kerslake, GOVERNMENT NATURAL LEADER Simon Fraser, Peter Hennessy and more Clause FRESH CLARE MORIARTY and effeCt FEEDING AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW we don’t need to invoke WITH THE PERMANENT Article 50 straight away – if GROUNDS SECRETARY OF THE at all, says Bernard Jenkin WHY GDS NEEDS DEPARTMENT FOR TO REDISCOVER ITS ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND NEVER KILLER INSTINCT RURAL AFFAIRS

01 cover - 254.indd 1 14/03/2016 15:43:08 01 cover - 258.indd 1 04/07/2016 14:40:42

Issue 263 | January 2017 | www.civilserviceworld.com Issue 274 | January 2018 | www.civilserviceworld.com MISS AN DEFENCE OF THE REALM AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW ALL CHANGE WITH THE MOD Where do top officials PERMANENT go when they leave AN EXCLUSIVE SECRETARY government? INTERVIEW WITH ISSUE STEPHEN LOVEGROVE GENTLY DOES IT SURGE AND British Council chief RESCUE Ciarán Devane on soft We meet the team MEG crossing boundaries power and hard data to serve in a crisis BREXIT STAGE LEFT Sue Cameron on the REASONS TO Ivan Rogers row BE CHEERFUL HILLIER Andrew Greenway CHAIR OF THE ALL WELL? PUBLIC ACCOUNTS O cials are taking fewer is thankful that sick days – but managers COMMITTEE shouldn’t be complacent 2017 is over

01 cover - Jan 2017.indd 1 09/01/2017 15:18:42 1 CSW cover 274.indd 1 08/01/2018 16:28:43

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Produced in association with CSW’s sister title PublicTechnology TECHNOLOGY IN THE TIME OF CORONAVIRUS

Early move Singapore’s contract tracing app launched in March 2020

The Singaporean government’s response to Covid-19 “My message to my senior officers and has made extensive use of digital, devices, and data – not stakeholders is that, if there is a silver lining to Covid-19, it is in the digitalisation agen- always uncontroversially. Sam Trendall talks to Kok Ping da,” Kok says. “Many things that we wished Soon, head of GovTech Singapore, to find out more we could do have been brought forward.” GovTech, an operational unit based in e are one of the we have good data infrastructure; these the Singaporean prime minister’s office, countries that has were the key reasons why we were able fulfils a similar function to the Government really been able to to deliver the digital solutions quickly. Digital Service, with a team of more than leverage technology “But we are not resting on our lau- 500 software developers and other tech “ to respond to Covid,” rels – we want to make sure we lock specialists supporting the creation of digital Wsays Kok Ping Soon, chief executive of in the gains from digitalisation.” services, as well other areas such as the use GovTech Singapore. “I suppose our ability Such gains saw the technology agen- of data analytics and artificial intelligence. to do that rests on our good engineer- cy’s work progress “five years in eight The organisation also has a consider- ing capabilities, the fact that we were weeks” around the start of the pandemic, ably wider role than its UK equivalent, able to leverage the cloud, and the fact according to the chief executive. as it directly provides and manages the

24 | February 2021 | | civilserviceworld.com

24-27 CSW303 PT.indd 24 17/02/2021 15:11:00 ❮ SINGAPORE DIGITAL & DATAEdited by ❯ DIGITAL & DATA ❯ DIGITAL & DATA Sam Tredall

Produced in association with CSW’s sister title Public Technology

in-house IT teams of about two thirds of and access to services and support. To support this, GovTech worked government departments; this comprises This began with the creation of the on developing an affordable prod- around 1,200 people. GovTech also oversees Mask Go Where online service, which uct that could allow firms to con- government-wide cybersecurity, includ- allowed citizens to find where they could duct widespread screening. ing the management of an annual tech collect their government-distributed masks. “For some of the biggest premises procurement budget of around £1.5bn. “Very soon, we found there were lots where they want to deploy higher-end Speaking to Civil Service World’s sister of other things,” for which the GoWhere solutions, that can be quite expensive,” Kok title PublicTechnology in December, Kok platform could be repurposed, Kok says. says. “[But] the secret sauce here doesn’t says that, when the corona- virus crisis first hit – “which “We have benefitted seems like a century ago” – the from a system where organisation identified three primary objectives that it our office is embedded believed could be supported by into ministries – the digital platforms and services. CIOs from the Ministry “Firstly, how can we get information across to our of Health and the citizens in a very timely and Ministry of Trade are accurate manner?” he says. from my agency” “How can we use digital solu- tions to broadcast messages? Kok Ping Soon, And, beyond the broadcasting, GovTech Singapore there’s a [need] to use digital channels for more ‘narrowcast- ing’ – in the sense that, if you can personalise, that is good, but if not then at least provide lie so much in very expensive more contextualised or more hardware – it is actually in localised specific information.” the software. We used deep The mass promulgation learning-based software and of government updates was packaged it with low-cost supported by the creation of off-the-shelf hardware.” a WhatsApp channel that, The result is an infrared at its peak, sent as many as camera that can detect faces and seven daily messages, in four measure temperature – remov- languages, to a total of more ing the need for temperature to than 1.3 million subscrib- be scanned manually. GovTech ers across the country. made about 50 of these units for Other communication tools SafeEntry the digital check-in rapid deployment, and has since include the Ask Jamie chatbot, system developed by GovTech licensed its SPOTON software an online tool rolled out across to three local SMEs and one more than 70 Singaporean government These have included “where to go non-profit organisation, which will con- agencies since its launch in 2014. Since to a clinic for a check-up, where to go struct further units to be sold to businesses early 2020, the program has been adapted for financial support… [and] distribut- across the country at a cost of about £375. and bolstered to support queries concern- ing meals and community food packs”. Companies have also been supported in ing the pandemic. A companion chatbot The third major area on which GovTech fulfilling their coronavirus requirements by for business has also been launched. has focused is “digital solutions to sup- the GoBusiness portal, which allows them The Covid-19 Situation Report website, port the management of outbreaks”. to apply for and declare the exemptions meanwhile, serves as a central hub through “There are two parts to this,” the chief and permissions needed for organisations which the Ministry of Health publishes executive says. “One is how can we help and individual workers to return to work. daily data on the spread of the virus. companies manage the situation and “We developed a declaration sys- fulfil their requirements. The second is tem that allows [companies] to inte- Business support how can we help health authorities.” grate it into their own business-man- The provision of more detailed and local During the pandemic, Singaporean agement systems,” the CEO says. information supported the second key businesses have faced new obligations objective identified by Kok at the start including ensuring adequate social dis- App and running of the pandemic: to aid in the distribu- tancing and, where necessary, conducting The most high-profile element – for good tion to the population of essential goods, temperature scanning of employees. and for ill – of GovTech’s coronavirus

publictechnology.net | | February 2021 | 25

24-27 CSW303 PT.indd 25 17/02/2021 15:11:11 ❯ DIGITAL & DATA SINGAPORE Edited by ❯ DIGITAL & DATA Sam Trendall

Produced in association with CSW’s sister title PublicTechnology

response effort has been its work to sup- can then “deanonymise” the data. “With Exposure Notification – it is Apple port Singapore’s Ministry of Health, Singapore is one of the only countries and Google that do so,” he says. “It prevents and the wider national public health that has successfully launched a pro- health authorities from identifying the response, principally through the devel- gramme that allows for data to be collected transmission chain. You need to understand opment of contact-tracing technology. and collated by public health authorities; the transmission chain, in order to do epide- Singapore launched the Trace- the UK government’s attempt to do so miological investigations and identify clus- Together app as early as 20 March was abandoned, in favour of adopting the ters. That was the key reason why we didn’t 2020 – three days before the UK went Exposure Notification infrastructure jointly go with the exposure notification protocol, into its first national lockdown. developed by Apple and Google, in which and stuck with our own TraceTogether.” Like the contact-tracing apps that have data is stored solely on users’ phones. Kok says that, in cases where a user de- followed since, the Singaporean program The privacy concerns raised over nies permission for their log to be provided, uses Bluetooth technology to detect close centralised models like Singapore’s – laws exist through which the government contacts between users, each of whom is coupled with the limitations of Apple’s can compel them to do so, if required. assigned a random ID. This is then used to generate further tem- porary IDs each day. The app captures and stores on users’ phones for 25 days information on contacts, including the temporary IDs of each device, the time the contact took place, and the duration. To supplement the app, in September GovTech began distrib- uting small Bluetooth- enabled tokens that can be worn on a lanyard or carried in users’ bags or pockets. This, according to Kok, not only helped address the need to Tracking TraceTogether Public offering TraceTogether include in the contact- tokens tokens are distributed to residents tracing programme as part of contact tracing efforts citizens who do not own smartphones, but can also help “overcome “Most of the time we don’t need the limitations of iOS” that mean that the to do that – citizens understand TraceTogether app cannot be kept run- the importance of it,” he adds. ning in the background on Apple devices Tracing trust – and so stops working for long periods. CSW talked to the GovTech chief before The app and tokens tie in with the ministers admitted that the data gath- SafeEntry system which allows us- ered by the contact-tracing app could ers to check into venues. This platform also, in some cases, be shared with the processes more than 10 million check- police for investigative purposes. ins at venues around the country each The long-standing Criminal Pro- day, according to the GovTech chief. cedure Code of Singapore allows law- Information from the contact- operating system – has seen most coun- enforcement agencies extremely broad tracing, venue check-ins, and quar- tries go for the decentralised technol- access to any publicly or privately antine orders has been gathered in ogy developed by the two vendors. held data they believe may be “neces- a government “data warehouse”. But the GovTech chief points out that, sary or desirable for any investigation, When a user tests positive for coro- in the Singaporean system, the ultimate inquiry, trial or other proceeding”. navirus, permission is requested for holder of the “master key” that can unlock But, last summer, foreign minister Viv- their encrypted contact log to be pro- the anonymity of the data is the govern- ian Balakrishnan had indicated that the data vided to the Ministry of Health, which ment – and not a private company. gathered through TraceTogether would be

26 | February 2021 | | civilserviceworld.com

24-27 CSW303 PT.indd 26 17/02/2021 15:11:20 ❮ SINGAPORE DIGITAL & DATAEdited by ❯ DIGITAL & DATA ❯ DIGITAL & DATA Sam Tredall

Produced in association with CSW’s sister title Public Technology

used for nothing other than contact tracing. Tourism boost into ministries – the Ministry of Health After his cabinet colleague, home af- The Singaporean government’s response CIO is from my agency, as is the CIO fairs minister Desmond Tan, revealed last to Covid has encompassed more than for the Ministry of Trade,” he says. month that CPC law did apply to Trace- just crisis management; initiatives such The day before the first coronavi- Together data, Balakrishnan admitted that as the SingapoRediscovers Vouchers rus case was detected in Singapore in data had been accessed by law enforce- have sought to promote in-country tour- January 2020, the government set up a ment – although, to data, this has only ism, and boost the local economy. multi-ministry task force, supported by an happened for one murder case, he said. The scheme has seen every adult citizen operational committee of civil servants. Shortly after these revelations, the Smart of the country given $100 (£55) of vouch- “That committee is where our office Nation and Digital Government Office ers which, between 1 December 2020 and gets plugged in… and we can say ‘actually, – a policy and programmes unit that sits 30 June 2021, can be spent on attractions technology can play a part’,” Kok says. alongside its implementation-focused sister and accommodation “All these digital agency GovTech in the prime minister’s within the country. “If there is a silver solutions arising office – issued a statement that said “we Citizens can log lining to Covid-19, it from our response to acknowledge our error in not stating that in to a GovTech-built better manage Covid data from TraceTogether is not exempt platform to access and is in the digitalisation came about because from the Criminal Procedure Code”. manage their vouchers. agenda; many things we have a ringside The update added that urgent legisla- According to Kok, that we wished we seat for these discus- tion would be brought forward ensuring the development of sions at the intel- that police could access TraceTogether this service – which is could do have been ligence level, as well data only for investigations into seven of run by the Singapore brought forward” as at the individual the most serious types of offences: danger- Tourism Board, an Kok Ping Soon, ministry level.” ous weapons crime and armed robbery; agency of the Ministry With the coro- terrorism-related offences; violent crime of Trade and Industry – GovTech Singapore navirus crisis now and murder; drug trafficking; escape from is the latest example of into its second year, custody; kidnapping; and sexual offences. GovTech’s ability to work across ministries. the GovTech leader says that work will “It is not in the public interest to This is, in part, due to its operating continue to improve the services built or completely deny the police access to such model, which means that many departmen- repurposed during the last 12 months. data, when the safety of the public or the tal technology leaders are provided by the The agency has also reimagined proper conduct of justice is at stake,” the digital agency, ensuring a strong “ops-tech” its own use of technology; at the time SNDGO said. “If a serious criminal of- integration between technologists and of our conversation shortly before fence has been committed, the police their colleagues in delivery and policy. Christmas, Kok says he has begun go- must be able to use this data to bring the “I think we have benefitted from a ing in to the office “once or twice a perpetrators to justice, seek redress for system where our office is embedded week” – but that the default for the or- the victims, and protect society at large.” ganisation is still to work from home. It added: “We value the trust that the “I don’t think 80% of my guys are public has placed in the TraceTogether going to work from home [in the long programme, and feedback from members of 20 March 2020 term], but we shouldn’t revert to 100% the public. Dr Vivian and [law minister] Mr Date on which Singapore launched its back in the office… because there are K. Shanmugam held a public consultation contact-tracing app – three days before the wellbeing and productivity advantages,” [on 8 January] with members of the press, UK went into lockdown for the first time he says. “Even the way we think about the legal fraternity, technology experts, an office has to change. Increasingly we and academia, to hear their views on the find an office is not a place for work, but matter. The views gathered will inform % for social interaction. We are configuring the debate on the upcoming legislation.” our office to be equipped for more social By January, about 80% of the popula- 70 80 spaces. And every meeting is equipped for tion was using TraceTogether. During his Number of Singapo- Approximate remote participation. Most of our infra- conversation with CSW, Kok says that the rean agencies that proportion of structure is not there at the moment.” adoption of technology and data has proven already used the population using GovTech also intends to continue an effective tool in Singapore’s coronavirus Ask Jamie chatbot, the TraceTogether to recruit talent, he says, particularly response partly because “the trust between which now answers app or token as of at a time when some companies are the citizen and the government is strong”. coronavirus queries January 2021 being forced to let workers go. A quick perusal of the online reaction of After a momentous year for its inter- some of those citizens to ministers’ revela- nal operations and the citizen services tions about the use of their data suggests 10 million it delivers, the GovTech leader says that that, beyond the new laws, the govern- Number of venue check-ins processed by his goals for the coming months boil ment may have to work a little to maintain the SafeEntry system each day down to a simple question: “How do I – or, in some cases, regain – that trust. ensure these gains are not lost?”

publictechnology.net | | February 2021 | 27

24-27 CSW303 PT.indd 27 17/02/2021 15:11:21 INTERVIEW ❯ TOM KETTELEY

OUTstanding achievement Tom Ketteley is an assistant director at UK Visas and Immigration who was named in the OUTstanding top 100 LGBT+ future leaders for 2020. He tells CSW about mentoring, diversity in the civil service and why public role models are important

28 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

28-30 CSW Tom Ketteley LGBT interview.indd 28 17/02/2021 15:14:43 he OUTstanding top 100 top division, which we’ve only had since 2014, How does that breadth of experience LGBT+ future leaders recog- where every other protected characteristic benefit the Home Office, where you work? nises business leaders who has had one since the ‘70s or ‘80s. And still, From an operational perspective, the are breaking down barriers it’s controversial, and people don’t really more we reflect the communities that and creating more inclusive understand it. It’s similar in the Home Of- we serve, the less likely things like Tworkplaces. After being included in the fice, but at a different level – you see some Windrush are to happen again. And list for 2021, Tom Ketteley talks to CSW of the comments on staff news articles, and it’s not just about LGBT+ perspec- about his work as an LGBT+ role model you realise there’s a lot more that we need tives; that’s where I add a lot of my and mentor in the Home Office, and how to do to create that inclusive environment. time and effort, but not exclusively. the civil service can be more inclusive. Where in particular do you think progress How else do you champion di- Congratulations on be- still needs to be made in the civil service? versity and inclusivity? ing named in the top 100. One area is visibility – I’ve always been I guess I annoy people a bit but I Thanks! It’s really very flattering, espe- out at work, but I know from speaking won’t sit on all-male interview pan- cially when you see everyone else on the to law students that they often expect to els. We can do better than that. I’ll list. I’m really pleased, I’ve certainly told go back into the closet when they start tell people “I’ll find you someone to the story in my area of the Home Office, their career. And some of our gradu- take my place or you need to find but it’s really nice to get a bit more expo- ates who come into the Home Office, I’m someone else to sit alongside me.” sure – not really for me, but for why it’s important that we have things like this.

Why is public recognition like this for LGBT+ role models important? For me, it is about creating – particularly in the civil service – an inclusive culture, where we know that no matter who you are, where you come from, what makes you special is what makes you different. I think there’s a perception that there are barriers and glass ceilings, and I’m sure there are – but hopefully these lists will help other people see what they can achieve. I’m a great believer in ‘you have to see it to be it’.

You do a lot of work mentor- ing other civil servants – how did you get involved in that? I’m quite a chatty person, I like talking to people. And I’m really fortunate that a “I’ve always been out at lot of my role is around developing and work, but I know from bringing people on. My day job is legal career pathways, as well as some opera- speaking to students tional work, which is really about investing that they often expect in people and talent. So I’m very lucky to to go back into the have space to be able to champion things. I get approached a lot of the time for chats closet when they and coffees or mentoring. I do a range start their career” of mentoring, some through our talent schemes in the Home Office, particularly But actually, everyone can do that. our Access scheme which is for underrep- And I think once we’ve cracked things resented groups. I don’t just mentor LGBT+ on the gender side, we can move onto people, but I do tend to find that’s who I get surprised how many people feel that they other things – so I want to make sure that matched up with most, particularly at the have to hide themselves and be some- every panel I’m going to be on is not all junior grades. Outside work I mentor for thing different when they’re at work. white. I try and put my money where my Queer Lawyers for Tomorrow, which is for So I think we’ve got to educate people, mouth is, so on the selection programme law students. I’m very involved in mak- starting before they come anywhere near I run we have diverse panels, we have ing the legal profession more inclusive. us that actually, you can be who you want blind selection, we aspire to be the gold to be in the civil service. Then following standard, and to keep improving. It helps Is there a long way to go there? on from that once they arrive, we need to being LGBT and also having a disability Yes. My background is as a solicitor in instil that we value that difference. Hav- so I tick those two boxes! But all of that, I private practice, and the law is just so stuffy ing different lived experiences can make think, is really important to making sure and outdated, it’s quite incredible. I’m on our policy professions better because that we spot the right talent and we don’t the committee of the Law Society’s LGBT+ there’s more thought around the table. always just recruit within our own image.

civilserviceworld.com | February 2021 | 29

28-30 CSW Tom Ketteley LGBT interview.indd 29 17/02/2021 15:14:47 INTERVIEW ❯ TOM KETTELEY

Whose responsibility do you need to do in their career if they want Have you ever experienced think it is to drive change? to aim for that and what their next steps any diffi culties in your career I think there’s a lot of individual responsi- should be. I’ve benefi tted a lot from those as a result of being out? bility. You also need to have the permissive panels in terms of senior networking too. I feel that I have a place of privilege, environment where you can stand up and because I don’t think I’ve had any nega- say “I’m not going to sit on that panel” and What goals do you have tive impact – in fact, quite the opposite. feel comfortable to champion that. I think for your own career? I think it helped me as a more junior, the civil service gives me that safe space. My career anchor has always been im- younger lawyer, to go to LGBT events in Sometimes in coaching conversations migration, I love to know why people the legal profession where you’d network I get told ‘it’s easier for you because you’re move around the world. That was the case with people across diff erent levels. It more senior’. And I always say “well, I right from university, studying migra- enabled me to be better with my clients, wasn’t always more senior!” You have to tion and refugees and doing volunteer because I would talk to them about have a moral or ethical compass, and I work with the Red Cross refugee unit. I going to [the UKVI offi ce in] Croydon think civil service values allow you to take then worked in private practice on im- with my husband, to go through his those positions. But you need that enabling migration, where I ended up specialising, immigration application and have our culture to do that interview. So I have that empathy and – and to care about credibility with them. where you work. In the civil service, when I’m coaching Are you encouraged people for interviews, by civil service I tell them that if leadership say- “I have a place of there is anything ing they want to privilege, because that makes them a champion diver- bit diff erent, a bit sity – or does this I don’t think I’ve ‘not the norm’, they feel like a con- should sell that versation that’s had any negative as much as they been happening impact of being out, can, and be really for a long time? proud about that. That It has been going on in fact the opposite. comes across really for a long time, but well in interviews, I’m really pleased It helped me as a and helps people to see some of the junior lawyer to go demonstrate some of practical changes their leadership. But that are taking to LGBT events, also, you don’t want place, like the to work with a racist introduction of it enabled me to or homophobe so get independent panel have empathy that out on the table members – not just really early on. because I enjoy and credibility I have always sitting on interview had great work panels and hearing with my clients” environments, but the classic stories problems exist – I people tell you. The pick it up when I fact that more places support grievances are now using that best or people having other is- practice – I don’t know what the stats are, particularly in LGBT+ family migration sues in the workplace. There are pockets but I feel it must make a diff erence. and human rights family work – that was where on the outside, people are broadly the bit that I really loved about my work. accepting of diversity and understand What’s important about having in- When I moved into the Government Le- why there is a benefi t to the public in dependent panel members? gal Department after that, I really enjoyed that we will make better decisions and do The fact that there is someone who is being there and being able to see not better work. But you still look a little bit diff erent on the panel, I think, should help just the impact not just on an individual below the surface, not all is quite right. people feel more comfortable with these place or client, but a systemic impact. In particular, I think there are real roles. And there’s a lot of benefi t to being I’ve always wanted to work in the struggles around trans rights. It feels an independent panel member – because Home Offi ce so when my chance came I like things are going backwards in the I’ve done it, I know far more about how moved over. I guess I see myself pivot- country as a whole – you look at how the system works now, so my applications ing around the legal side of the civil gay men were treated in the ‘80s and I are signifi cantly better than they would service, whether that’s in GLD, or out- don’t think it’s too far away from how be otherwise. That experience can help side in other areas. I’m really passion- lots of trans people are struggling now. more junior people really understand ate about professionalising people so I That’s why it’s really important for what people are looking for when they’re can see myself in the space of building people like me, who are in that place of appointing a director general, what they capability of our lawyers, somehow. privilege, to talk about those issues.

30 | February 2021 | civilserviceworld.com

28-30 CSW Tom Ketteley LGBT interview.indd 30 17/02/2021 15:14:49 Awards

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Congratulations to all who made the 27 The Project Delivery Excellence Award Civil Service Awards shortlist Every day of the year, the achievements 28 The Public Service Award of every civil servant across the UK are making a difference for each and every 29 The Resilience & Rapid Response Award citizen, and that is something we are very proud to be a part of celebrating. 30 The Rising Star Award ey.com/uk/govt 31 The Science Award © 2021 EYGM Limited. All Rights Reserved. EYG no. 000293-21Gbl. ED None.

CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 3 16/02/2021 11:57:42 Awards Category Champions

Alex Aiken Madeleine Alessandri Executive Director, Permanent Government Secretary, Northern Communications Ireland Office Service

Simon Case Alex Chisholm Cabinet Secretary Chief Operating and the Head of Officer for the the Civil Service Civil Service and Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Office

Mike Driver Tamara Finkelstein Department of Health Permanent Secretary, and Social Care Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Elizabeth Gardiner Sue Gray CB QC Permanent Secretary, First Parliamentary Department of Counsel and Finance in the Permanent Secretary Northern Ireland Executive

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 4 16/02/2021 11:57:43 Awards Category Champions

Jim Harra Sarah Healey Permanent Secretary Permanent Secretary, and Chief Executive, Department for HM Revenue Digital, Culture, and Customs Media and Sport

Stephen Lovegrove Dame Shan Morgan Permanent Secretary, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence Welsh Government

Sarah Munby Antonia Romeo Permanent Secretary, Permanent Secretary, Department for Ministry of Justice Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Peter Schofi eld Sir Patrick Vallance Permanent Secretary, Government Chief Department for Scientifi c Adviser Work and Pensions and Head of the Government Science and Engineering Profession

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 5 16/02/2021 11:57:43 Dods Events Advert for CSA 230x300-v4.pdf 1 10/02/2021 18:47

Good luck to all entrants of the Civil Service Awards

C Dods are proud to have been the organiser of these awards M

Y for the past 15 years, helping our government celebrate

CM excellence in public service.

MY

CY

CMY We are an events, training and political information

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We specialise in:

• High profile conferences, exhibitions and awards • Intimate policy and breakfast briefings • Virtual events, webinars, workshops, summits and debates • CPD certified Diversity and Inclusion events • Event marketing, award-winning content production and data analytics

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 6 16/02/2021 11:57:44 Dods Events Advert for CSA 230x300-v4.pdf 1 10/02/2021 18:47

The Citizenship Award Awards

Recognising exceptional individuals who go way beyond what could reasonably be expected of them, to improve the lives of citizens or communities. Their contributions could be in the workplace, or as volunteers outside work, or both. Good luck to all entrants of the Civil Service Awards

C Dods are proud to have been the organiser of these awards M

Y for the past 15 years, helping our government celebrate Diane Law-Crookes Lisa Hodge Sarah Morton CM excellence in public service.

MY Ministry of Defence Ministry of Defence Department for Work and Pensions

CY ‘Lest we forget’ is the creed by which we During the lockdown between April and Working with local communities in CMY We are an events, training and political information live in the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. June, Lisa created a Facebook group of 60 Liverpool, Sarah supports homeless K company dedicated to supporting the public sector. Diane Law-Crookes, administration assistant, sewers in Newport, South Wales. Together, people, assists with food banks, and exemplifies this in her selfless, nurturing and they formed the group ‘Newport and works to eliminate period poverty. caring attitude towards WW2 veterans in Caerleon Scrubbers’ sewing scrubs, bags, She encourages her work colleagues We specialise in: the evening of their life, making their lives hats and headbands for NHS staff and to recognise the hardships faced by relevant and visible to everyone. These local care homes. Lisa managed the group’s vulnerable citizens, organises charity • High profile conferences, exhibitions and awards individuals were particularly threatened needs, balancing orders coming in, getting drives, and enables colleagues to assist • Intimate policy and breakfast briefings by COVID-19 and, irrespective of this, fabric delivered to individuals, and picking in their communities. Sarah has worked • Virtual events, webinars, workshops, summits and debates Diane ensured that every possible contact up and delivering completed items. Lisa alongside local councillors, gaining valuable • CPD certified Diversity and Inclusion events with them was maintained (safely and completed all of this while sewing herself, insight into the economic pressures they adhering to COVID-19 restrictions). homeschooling two children and continuing face, particularly during the pandemic. • Event marketing, award-winning content production and data analytics COVID-19 challenged this, but Diane in her day job! Lisa made over 1,000 items, This insight guaranteed she focused her undertook every measure to ensure and as a group the Newport and Caerleon efforts where need was greatest. Sarah contact was maintained and never lost. Scrubbers made and delivered close to is fully committed to enhancing quality of 100,000 items, enabling vital protection life for all and works tirelessly to ensure For more information, please contact: to the people working on the front line. everyone can live the best life possible. [email protected]

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 7 16/02/2021 11:57:45 Proud sponsors of the Collaboration Award

Congratulations to all the shortlisted nominees

As a joint venture between the Cabinet Office and TDX Group, Indesser collaborates across the private and public sectors to help government use the best available data, technology and analytics to collect debt responsibly, fairly and ethically.

Working in partnership with central and local government, we continually develop fair and effective ways to tackle debt, error and fraud. More than 50 public bodies trust Indesser to look after their debt and the people that owe it. With Indesser’s support, people and businesses have paid back over £2.3 billion in public sector debt since 2015.

Collaboration is at the heart of everything we do.

Indesser_CivilServicesAwards_FINALBH v2 with RP comments edit.indd 1 12/02/2021 16:07:54 CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 8 16/02/2021 11:57:45 Supported by The Coll aboration Award Awards

Recognising excellent collaboration that spans the boundaries between sectors, Proud sponsors of the administrations, or layers of government. Collaboration Award

Congratulations to all the shortlisted nominees

National Volunteer Prescription PPE Portal Team Shielding Delivery Scheme (Wales) Department of Health and Social Care Ministry of Housing, Communities Welsh Government The PPE Portal is an outstanding innovation and Local Government This project focused on delivery of that has been developed in partnership On the 22 March 2020, the government medicines to the most vulnerable people with the armed services, eBay, Clipper introduced new shielding health guidance in society during COVID-19 lockdown Logistics, Volo Commerce and Royal and a support offer to help protect the through a Wales-wide new prescription Mail to develop a service from scratch, people most vulnerable to COVID-19. delivery service. The National Volunteer to respond to the extra need for PPE What made this task truly remarkable Prescription Delivery Scheme and the for primary and social care providers was not only the scale and pace of the Royal Mail Service were designed and which has arisen as a direct result of the programme, but the unprecedented implemented to supplement capacity COVID-19 pandemic. From a standing collaboration across MHCLG, DHSC, NHSE, and resilience of pre-existing medicine start in March, the team have onboarded NHSD, GDS, DEFRA, DWP, CO, local delivery arrangements, operated by just under fi fty thousand providers and government and local delivery partners. community pharmacies and dispensing Over four months, 2.2 million people were As a joint venture between the Cabinet Office and TDX Group, Indesser collaborates across the distributed more than 1.2 billion items doctors in Wales. The scheme was contacted by the programme, 1.2 million private and public sectors to help government use the best available data, technology and analytics to of PPE to critical front line services. designed to address an increased demand signed up to the website, and 4.7 million collect debt responsibly, fairly and ethically. resulting from measures taken to reduce The PPE Portal partnership not only food boxes were delivered to over 500,000 spans the boundaries of the public Working in partnership with central and local government, we continually develop fair and effective the spread of coronavirus. Devised and people, with every department pulling and private sector, but also traverses ways to tackle debt, error and fraud. More than 50 public bodies trust Indesser to look after their debt established within just fi ve weeks of together to help protect people’s health. national borders, collaborating with the and the people that owe it. With Indesser’s support, people and businesses have paid back shielding being introduced in Wales, a total EU to gain EU State Aid for £1.3 billion over £2.3 billion in public sector debt since 2015. of 7,984 medicines deliveries were made between May and September 2020. within two months, to ensure PPE is free for those who need it most. Collaboration is at the heart of everything we do.

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Indesser_CivilServicesAwards_FINALBH v2 with RP comments edit.indd 1 12/02/2021 16:07:54 CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 9 16/02/2021 11:57:47 PROXIMA CSW award advert 230 x 300.qxp_Layout 1 20/01/2021 12:44 Page 4

Proud sponsors

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL SHORTLISTED NOMINEES.

At Proxima we work alongside public sector commercial teams to deliver value for money. We know the difference that effective procurement makes to public services. It’s what inspires us every day.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 10 16/02/2021 11:57:47 PROXIMA CSW award advert 230 x 300.qxp_Layout 1 20/01/2021 12:44 Page 4

Supported by The Commercial Award Awards

Recognising exemplary commercial skill and sound business judgement in delivering an exceptional outcome, with value for money for government.

Proud sponsors Complex Transactions Team - COVID-19 Emergency Measures Energy Effi cient Scotland COVID-19 Response in Rail Franchising Contracts National Delivery Scheme Cabinet Offi ce Department for Transport Scottish Government To support DHSC and NHSE&I during the As the coronavirus crisis began in March, Warmer Homes Scotland is the Scottish COVID-19 crisis, the Complex Transactions the number of rail passengers plummeted. Government’s fl agship national fuel CONGRATULATIONS Team (CTT) enabled the delivery of This created a huge shortfall in rail poverty scheme. Benefi ts are realised 15,154 ventilators designed and built within industry revenue which, unaddressed, through the installation of a bespoke suite TO ALL SHORTLISTED NOMINEES. 4.5 months, operationalisation of testing would have left many operators facing of energy effi ciency measures, including from a daily testing capacity of 3,000 to imminent fi nancial collapse. The team insulation and heating, to properties of At Proxima we work alongside public sector commercial teams to 100,000 in six weeks, and 32 billion items moved with extraordinary speed to design households living in or at risk of fuel deliver value for money. We know the difference that effective of PPE equipment. This was achieved by and implement an innovative and widely- poverty. Launched in September 2015, procurement makes to public services. It’s what inspires us every day. deploying 57 commercial specialists to praised commercial agreement to avert this the scheme has helped almost 20,000 all COVID-19 cells (Ventilation, Testing, outcome and allow the railway to perform households reduce their fuel bills. The Nightingale Hospitals and PPE) and the its role as a public service, transporting key contract to operate the scheme, worth Civil Contingencies Secretariat. The team workers, medical supplies, food and fuel £224 million over seven years, was awarded took a leadership role in delivering the throughout the lockdown. Subsequently, the to Warmworks Scotland LLP following an commercial arrangements to secure team developed and delivered a further open procurement exercise. The Scottish supplies and services, working at rapid ‘recovery’ agreement with operators, which Government delivery management pace under highly pressurised conditions. incentivises fi nancial and performance team consists of Team Leader, Delivery improvements for passengers and taxpayers. Lead, Policy Offi cer and a Procurement (contract management) specialist. www.proximagroup.com

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 11 16/02/2021 11:57:49 The Communication Award Awards

Recognising exceptional performance by a communications team to deliver a highly effective national or international communications campaign.

DHSC Communications and Marketing DVLA Vehicle Tax Evasion National Resilience Hub, Team - ‘Our NHS’ Allied Health Campaign 2020 Covid-19 Communications Response Professions and Nursing Recruitment Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency Cabinet Offi ce Campaign This nomination is to recognise DVLA’s The National Resilience Hub was formed in Department of Health and Social Care work to tackle vehicle tax evasion. The March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 The ‘Our NHS’ allied health and nursing agency has a long-term strategy to keep outbreak. Over the past eight months it recruitment campaign attracted over 30,000 vehicle tax evasion low, and uses a wide has delivered one of the largest cross- people to express interest in an NHS range of prevention and enforcement government communication efforts, and career in just six weeks. UCAS reported measures to remind motorists of coordinated a 24/7 communications an increase of 24,810 applications. their legal duties to pay vehicle tax response to an unprecedented emergency. on time. Using an evidence-based The hub is a team of multi-disciplinary approach, DVLA planned and delivered communication and insight experts Developed and delivered by a multi- a fully integrated behaviour change from across government who have disciplinary team of communications communications campaign at the start come together to work collaboratively professionals, the campaign supported the of 2020 using communications targeted for the fi rst time. Throughout the crisis, government’s major pledge to build the NHS to the highest evasion areas in the UK. they have continually and determinedly workforce of the future, by attracting 76,000 supported the public to understand how nurses and primary care staff into training. the government is balancing the needs This fully integrated campaign used real NHS of society, the economy, and health in staff to tell the story of their interesting, order to save lives and livelihoods. demanding, varied and rewarding careers, helping our community back to health. It combined proactive campaigning with direct digital communication to maximise numbers going on to apply for training.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 12 16/02/2021 11:57:52 The Developing Awards People Award Recognising excellence across all areas of learning, skills development, strengthening capability, and talent management.

Civil Service Dyslexia and DfT Commercial Inclusion Apprenticeship Programme Dyspraxia Network Development Programme Foreign, Commonwealth & Cross-government Department for Transport Development Offi ce The Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia DfT’s Commercial Development How can we become the most inclusive and Dysgraphia Line Managers Toolkit Programme is a fantastic example of employer by 2020? By designing an inclusive was developed to help line managers collaboration across multiple professions resourcing process focusing on equity of understand more about the ‘4Ds’ and and disciplines, to manage an identifi ed opportunity for all applicants, regardless neurodiversity. These conditions may affect gap in the commercial leadership arena. of their social or educational background. up to 15% of the Civil Service and require The three-year accelerated development The Civil Service recruitment principles reasonable adjustments. The toolkit was programme provides commercial associates encourage this type of approach but developed by the CSDDN (Civil Service with the opportunity to undertake apprenticeship schemes typically follow Dyslexia and Dyspraxia Network), a three diverse and stretching commercial a traditional selection route. Removing cross-government network, to provide placements. The programme is built on minimum entry requirements, targeting insight into traits of neurodiversity. Written industry best practice and provides a marginalised candidates, linking with local by and from the perspective of staff with comprehensive learning and development authorities and schools, holding outreach these conditions, their aim is to help: offer, including working towards events, running a social media campaign, • line managers support colleagues; recognised professional qualifi cations. outlining the selection process at an open • neurodiverse people aware of their condition; The programme has successfully enabled day and partnering with the department’s • those that may not be aware the department to build a sustainable Social, Economic Diversity and Inclusion they have a condition. pipeline of commercial leaders, and very Network, the team delivered an apprentice clearly advances the pillars of ‘A Brilliant cohort which refl ects the Civil Service’s Civil Service’ alongside commercial desire to be the most inclusive employer. priorities for the transport sector.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 13 16/02/2021 11:57:52 Proud sponsors of the 2021 Digital, Data & Technology award

Shared Services Connected Ltd (SSCL) provides critical business support services for 17 governmeri,t departments, the Metropolitan Police Service and Ministry Of Defence.

We design innovative digital solutions that enhance our customers' experience.

We understand the importance of smarter thinking, digital transformation and innovation to enable personalised, more responsive and accessible services.

We're delighted to sponsor this award.

Shared Services Connected Limited

CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 14 16/02/2021 11:57:56 Supported by The Digital, Data & Awards Proud sponsors Technology Award Recognising excellence in the application of digital technologies or data to solve a problem of the 2021 or make things better for users and celebrating people whose commitment to data-driven and technological improvements reach measurable outcomes. Digital, Data & Technology award

Shared Services Connected Ltd (SSCL) provides critical business support services for 17 governmeri,t departments, the Metropolitan Police Service and Ministry Of Defence. Digital Learning Division - Get Your State Pension Scottish Government Design System Hwb EdTech Programme Department for Work and Pensions Scottish Government Welsh Government We design innovative digital solutions The Get your State Pension (GySP) digital Launched in August 2020, the Scottish that enhance our customers' experience. Through a number of collaborative and service has transformed the way citizens Government Design System will make innovative workstreams, offi cials have been claim their state pension. Developed in building websites and digital services quicker, able to develop and deliver the EdTech 2018, within two years it has progressed cheaper and more accessible. The Design We understand the importance of programme, supporting connectivity, in- from being a mainly form-based service to System enables common digital problems smarter thinking, digital transformation school infrastructure, cloud services and become the fi rst benefi t which can award to be solved once for Scotland and shared and innovation to enable personalised, more digital resources, generating unparalleled and pay the customer without any agent for re-use across public sector teams, responsive and accessible services. fi nancial economies of scale and supporting intervention, in a process called Citizen breaking down organisational boundaries key areas such as the Curriculum for Wales, Straight Through Processing (CSTP). In and creating new professional communities online safety and cyber resilience. The Hwb 2018, 25% of customers invited to claim focused on delivering high-quality digital EdTech programme is widely regarded as their state pension did so online. Today, services for citizens. The system shares a We're delighted to the Welsh Government’s most successful that fi gure is 75%. Over 60% of customers collection of ready-made web components sponsor this award. digital transformation programme. It is are now paid using CSTP. Through created by a multi-disciplinary team, regularly referenced by other government collaborative working across departmental ensuring they meet best-practice standards administrations who are keen to establish boundaries, the customer experience for technical build, design, user experience, similar programmes of work and hailed has been transformed in a positive way. accessibility, usability and performance. as ‘world-class’ by tech giants including Microsoft, Google and Adobe.

Shared Services Connected Limited Foll ow us @UKCivilService Join the conversation #CSAwards 15

CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 15 16/02/2021 11:58:03 Supported by The Diversity & Awards Inclusion Award A winner of winners from the Civil Service Diversity & Inclusion Awards; an award that recognises real achievement and success at all levels of the Civil Service.

BAME Male Working Group and Campaign & Projects Leeds D&I Group Civil Service Carers Network Race Network Co-Chairs HM Revenue & Customs Cross-government Foreign, Commonwealth & Campaign and Projects, Leeds, is a new The CSCN brings together carers networks Development Offi ce offi ce of over 400 people from a diverse from across the Civil Service to share The DFID (now FCDO) Race Network range of backgrounds. The Diversity knowledge and resources, maximise the launched a project to empower BAME & Inclusion Group was formed by 11 network support available to carers, and men to share lived experiences, understand volunteers who aim to ensure that promote a carer-inclusive Civil Service how race affects BAME men’s employment staff recognise everyone’s individuality, through developing and improving policy experiences, and advocate for improvements. with different values, skills and ways of approaches for supporting carers. They In support of DFID’s fi rst Race Action Plan, thinking. They promote the benefi ts these provide resources to help networks get the team used a snowballing technique differences bring to HMRC, and raise going, including ideas for ways of working, to engage BAME men, assuring them of awareness of a range of topics; in the training on wider Civil Service issues, and anonymity and sensitive handling. The last year, the group has delivered over presentations to support outreach. In outcome was a report launched on 21 30 awareness campaigns. Their ‘Time 2019, the network made suggestions for March 2020 (International Day for the to Talk Day’ events promoted better becoming a carer-inclusive Civil Service, Elimination of Racial Discrimination) understanding of mental health, and for which led to them being commissioned which provided unique insights on what Inclusion Week, the group organised by the Chief People Offi cer to work with is preventing BAME men from realising engagement workshops such as exploring CSHR and create a carers strategy. This was their potential, including subtle and overt identities and ‘speed-inclusion’. Recognising launched in February 2020 with an update forms of discrimination: racially-aggravated the potential wellbeing impact of working in June, and they are already working to shouting, swearing, racist jokes and from home due to COVID-19, the group implement the commitments made. sexualised-racial harassment. Respondents developed online weekly group tasks to demonstrated considerable bravery in promote inclusion, bring teams together providing testimonies. Support was offered and combat feelings of isolation. and senior-level commitment was maintained throughout COVID-19 and the DFID/FCO merger leading to institutional change.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 16 16/02/2021 11:58:04 Supported by The Diversity & Awards Inclusion Award A winner of winners from the Civil Service Diversity & Inclusion Awards; an award that recognises real achievement and success at all levels of the Civil Service.

Civil Service Fast Stream and Civil Service LGBT+ Network Civil Service Working Through Early Talent Cross-government Cancer Network Cross-government Cross-government As the cross-government network for The Fast Stream and Early Talent (FSET) LGBT+ civil servants and for networks In the UK, one in every two people will team oversees the flagship Fast Stream within Civil Service organisations, the CS be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime, programme for graduates with the potential LGBT+ Network provides a supportive and around one million people of working to become Civil Service future leaders - environment that enables individuals to age have been told they have cancer. ranked number one in the Times Top 100 connect across departments and develop The impacts of COVID-19 on people graduate employers. FSET aims to be the their understanding of themselves within affected by cancer are significant, and most inclusive graduate and early talent the LGBT+ community. The network also supporting vulnerable colleagues is vital programme in the UK, with disability and acts as a critical friend to the Civil Service to ensure people feel included, valued, neurodiversity as an essential priority. FSET D&I team, offering feedback on policies and able to deliver their best work. The is a Disability Confident Leader which and practices, and working with LGBT+ network has two principles: to support demonstrates proactive improvement to champions across the Civil Service. They people affected by cancer, including carers support disabled young people. They are collaborate closely with Jonathan Slater, and line managers; and to normalise also passionate about inclusion, creating the CS LGBT+ Champion, playing a key role talking about cancer in the workplace. environment and culture for post-holders in setting agendas for champions meetings In 2019, network chair Seonaid Webb with disabilities to flourish. FSET has a and presenting at each one. The network delivered a presentation to CS Disability number of multi-award winning positive partners with the CS Race Forum to Champions and was then contacted action diversity internships, all of which create awareness-raising sessions focused by several departments looking to set encompass participants with disabilities on BAME LGBT individuals and their up their own Working Through Cancer alongside other diversity categories. contribution throughout history. They use networks. Membership continued to grow volunteers collaboratively, encouraging throughout 2020, and at the last count cross-departmental working groups to there are 25 organisations represented implement initiatives, ensuring diversity in the network, including Scottish, Welsh of thought, approach and content. and Northern Irish governments.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 17 16/02/2021 11:58:05 Supported by The Diversity & Awards Inclusion Award A winner of winners from the Civil Service Diversity & Inclusion Awards; an award that recognises real achievement and success at all levels of the Civil Service.

Food Vulnerabilities Directorate Heather Wilson Home Offi ce Gender Equality Department for Environment, Scottish Government Network (GEN) Home Offi ce Food and Rural Affairs Heather has made a signifi cant contribution As millions of people were shielding, Defra to the success of the Scottish government’s The Home Offi ce Gender Equality set up the Food Vulnerability Directorate disability network and the Civil Service Network (GEN) was re-launched by co- to support the food needs of people Dyslexia and Dyspraxia Network (CSDDN) chairs Kerry O’Dea and Jason Ghaboos in who were shielding, vulnerable people toolkit. She managed the creation of the 2019, establishing a diverse core team of struggling to access food but not shielding, toolkit, remotely leading a cross-Civil over 25 passionate volunteers. GEN takes a and people economically vulnerable as Service team who she didn’t meet until programmatic and evidence-led approach, a result of COVID-19. The directorate the launch event. Heather completed an initiating a series of pilots and projects oversaw the delivery of over fi ve million illustration course in her own time to aimed at improving workplace inclusivity food packages to shielding households, improve her drawing skills, so she could for all staff and embedding gender equality engaged with supermarkets to prioritise create visuals (later enhanced by a graphic in everything the department does. Their shielding people for delivery slots, and designer) to increase accessibility for those evidence draws from departmental data, built a referral service to enable local who fi nd it easier to learn from images surveys and focus groups with staff, with authorities and selected charities to refer than written guidance. The toolkit supports a strong focus on outcomes. The network vulnerable individuals for access to prioritised conversations between colleagues and line focuses on the personal development supermarket slots. The team secured £16m managers about dyslexia and dyspraxia, of their team, supporting each other to from the DCMS Charity Fund to support and helps draft workplace adjustment achieve their goals without recognising economically vulnerable people, providing passports. Heather networks throughout grade structures - the most junior grade can food to over 5,000 frontline charities. the organisation at all levels to contribute to be working on the highest profi le project. Analysis conducted by the team suggested wide-ranging developments by infl uencing that children, ethnic minorities, and young decision-makers and collaborating with people were disproportionately affected, HR. Heather is connected with other staff resulting in the team leading a successful bid networks, sharing her advice and learning to HMT, securing £63m to be administered about intersectionality challenges. She through local authorities, aimed at 250,000 also provides peer support to colleagues, people experiencing acute hunger. helping them work through challenges. Foll ow us @UKCivilService Join the conversation #CSAwards

CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 18 16/02/2021 11:58:06 Supported by The Diversity & Awards Inclusion Award A winner of winners from the Civil Service Diversity & Inclusion Awards; an award that recognises real achievement and success at all levels of the Civil Service.

LGBTI Chile D&I Team, ONS Faith and Belief Network Preeta Ramachandran and Mark Foreign, Commonwealth & Offi ce for National Statistics Thompson and Aspire Participants Department for Work and Pensions Development Offi ce The co-chairs of the All Belief Network at The British Embassy in Santiago is the Offi ce for National Statistics (ONS), DWP’s purpose is to ensure social mobility recognised among the 20 best employers Jaspreet Gakhal and Paul Thomas, are opportunities for its customers; Preeta in Chile for LGBTI+ talent, becoming dedicated to tackling misconceptions and and Mark wanted to replicate the same the fi rst diplomatic mission and public raising awareness of religious and non- development opportunities for their Work sector organisation in Chile, and the only religious faiths and beliefs. For Interfaith Coaches across the South East. Many British embassy in the region, to receive Week in November 2019, they chose the colleagues join DWP straight from school, accreditation from one of Latin America’s theme ‘Building Bridges’. The theme and its leading to a lack of confi dence and self- leading LGBTI+ civil society networks. aims were agreed with the ONS Faith and limiting beliefs to progress to more senior Attaining accreditation brought together Belief champion, Peter Benton, who was so roles. Participants in the Aspire programme the embassy’s public diplomacy, corporate supportive that he highlighted the ‘Building have been encouraged to challenge self- policies, learning and development, and local Bridges’ theme to the Civil Service’s imposed barriers to success and show outreach into a strategic effort, working Faith and Belief Champion, who in turn confi dence in their ability to communicate towards eradicating discrimination and adopted this across the entire Civil Service. effectively. They have learned how to setting a standard for LGBTI+ inclusion in Working with other diversity networks, build a powerful personal brand and set Chile, for the public and private sector alike. Jaspreet and Paul’s passionate call to challenging but achievable goals. Feedback increase inclusivity resonated and all were has been extremely positive: participants keen to work together to make Interfaith say the programme has increased their Week a success. The calendar of events confi dence and sense of purpose, and was an outstanding achievement where many have a newfound confi dence personal stories were shared, understanding to seek progression opportunities. raised and connections made.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 19 16/02/2021 11:58:07 Proud sponsors of the HEALTH & WELLBEING AWARD Congratulations to all nominees and winners In a year like no other, you’ve done so well. Whatever the future brings, we’re still here for you.

Supporting all civil servants, past and present, throughout their lives. We listen without judgement, offering practical, financial and emotional support that helps to deal with life’s challenges. foryoubyyou.org.uk

A charity registered in England and Wales no. 1136870 and in Scotland SC041956.

CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 20 16/02/2021 11:58:07 Supported by Proud sponsors of the HEALTH & WELLBEING AWARD The Health & Awards Congratulations Wellbeing Award Recognising people who have made a highly effective contribution to promoting or to all nominees and winners improving health and wellbeing within the Civil Service. In a year like no other, you’ve done so well. Whatever the future brings, we’re still here for you.

Gillian Whitworth Home Talk Julie Slater Foreign, Commonwealth & Home Office Defence, Science and Technology Laboratory Development Office Home Talk is a mental health support Julie took over leadership of the Dstl Gillian demonstrates extraordinary group operated by volunteers. Colleagues EnableD Mental Health employee support commitment, courage and compassion struggling with their mental health are network in October 2019, and during in raising greater awareness of eating encouraged to drop in and talk about how her time at the helm, the community disorders, an issue often stigmatised and they are coping in a group that is non- has flourished. Prior to lockdown, Julie’s overlooked. At BEIS, she collaborated with judgemental, confidential and supportive. enthusiasm and approachability saw colleagues to form the first Eating Disorder Participants are encouraged to talk attendance at group meetings increase from Support Group across the Civil Service about both positives and negatives, and single digits to over 30. During lockdown, and has continued to raise awareness at are connected with others with similar she has instigated methods allowing this the FCDO. She has spearheaded work to experiences. Due to the pandemic, Home support mechanism to more than double highlight how eating disorders may present Talk is now held virtually which has widened again. For many, this has been a true lifeline in the workplace and how we can be its reach, allowed more colleagues to join, in these extremely challenging times. Julie’s more inclusive, providing clear constructive and is successfully tackling stigma as well as contribution to providing mental health advice on eating disorders, body image and the isolation that the pandemic is causing. and wellbeing support to everyone at Dstl diet culture. Colleagues have welcomed Home Talk has recently expanded to cannot be overstated. It continues to grow, Gillian’s empathetic approach, creating include a dedicated women’s group as well. alongside their community, on a daily basis. spaces for colleagues to share, connect and learn about this difficult, emotional issue.

Supporting all civil servants, past and present, throughout their lives. We listen without judgement, offering practical, financial and emotional support that helps to deal with life’s challenges. foryoubyyou.org.uk Follow us @UKCivilService Join the conversation #CSAwards 21 A charity registered in England and Wales no. 1136870 and in Scotland SC041956.

CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 21 16/02/2021 11:58:08 Civil Service Awards 2021 INNOVATION AWARD The new and increasingly complex challenges in the world around us can only be addressed through fresh thinking, broad vision, and a human touch.

We are proud to support this award.

www.oliverwyman.com Twitter: @OliverWyman [email protected]

CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 22 16/02/2021 11:58:16 Supported by The Innovation Award Awards

Recognising the outstanding advancement or application innovation to improve policy, service delivery or public administration.

Civil Service Awards 2021 Accelerated Capability Say My Name The Analytics Academy, A coding course Environment (ACE) Department for Environment, for everyone at DfE (Jack Tattersall, Home Offi ce Food and Rural Affairs James Lowe and Peter Fitzsimons) INNOVATION AWARD The Home Offi ce’s ACE team solve Our names are central to who we are Department for Education public safety challenges from data and as individuals, and getting people’s names The Analytics Academy is a bite-sized, digital technology, at the pace demanded right is crucial to helping people feel seen, gamifi ed, online R coding course developed The new and increasingly complex by a fast-changing world. ACE challenged included and valued. The Say My Name by the Central Analysis Unit for the whole conventional problem-solving, introducing campaign started as a simple idea from of DfE. It uses an innovative approach to challenges in the world around us can agile, collaborative ways of working that a creative individual and grew into a deliver training through online videos and accelerate solution-fi nding from years proud achievement for a team. The team coding ‘missions’, incorporating insights only be addressed through fresh thinking, to months or weeks. This imaginative, is now furthering inclusion and respect from behavioural science and the video- entrepreneurial team found a new, cost- by using Say My Name - an initiative gaming industry. Analytics Academy makes broad vision, and a human touch. effective way to drive start-ups, SMEs, encouraging people to add the phonetic what could be a dry and tedious learning the not-for-profi t sector and academia pronunciation of their name to their email process into something entertaining and to bring cutting-edge expertise to bear signature. This is a simple, elegant idea engaging, by injecting the personality on these challenges. The team won the to make all colleagues feel included. of the trainers and the odd nerdy pop We are proud to support this award. Institute for Collaborative Working’s 2019 culture reference to keep things light- innovation award, and the Massachusetts hearted. Nearly 500 DfE staff - almost Institute of Technology cited ACE as 80% of the department’s analysts - have an effective model which should be enrolled, and that number keeps growing. replicated across government.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 23 16/02/2021 11:58:17 The Inspirational Awards Leadership Award Recognising individuals who have demonstrated outstanding leadership, regardless of grade or role.

Chris Atkinson Chris Rampling Kelsey Williams Northern Ireland Office Foreign, Commonwealth & Department for Education Chris Atkinson led work to establish a Development Office Kelsey is nominated for her exceptional scheme for payments to recognise and As well as providing direction, inspiration contribution to driving continuous support those seriously injured through and guidance, Chris is passionate and improvement for creating a race-inclusive no fault of their own during the troubles committed to strengthening the UK’s culture at a time of heightened sensitivity in Northern Ireland (NI). For years it presence in Lebanon and delivering UK during the pandemic and the tragic seemed impossible to get agreement for interests. He is a natural leader and a great death of George Floyd, while continuing this scheme. Chris’s passion for making a diplomat, inspiring everyone he works to inspire members of her team by difference to the lives of these vulnerable with - embassy colleagues, implementers, role modelling authentic and honest people is commendable. In putting donors, local contacts - to achieve common communication to the department. She people at the heart of his approach, goals. He genuinely motivates people prioritised the wellbeing of her team so he pitched a way forward focused on around him, and builds strong teams that that they could contribute to the success practical action and a sensitive framework strive towards continuous improvement. of PR while feeling valued, empowered, for managing political differences. The embassy works as one team under and included. As a result, Kelsey got the his leadership, leading by example and best out of her team so they could deliver applying the Civil Service’s core values. above and beyond the project’s original Chris is respected for being genuine, objectives during a very challenging time. ethical, principled, and consistent, and is very ‘human’ with every member of staff.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 24 16/02/2021 11:58:18 Supported by The Policy & Awards Use of Evidence Award Recognising excellence in policymaking.

Behaviour, Insight and Research Childcare Team GO-Science COVID SAGE Secretariat Team C19 Response Welsh Government Department for Business, HM Revenue & Customs The Coronavirus-Childcare Assistance Energy and Industrial Strategy Building evidence and integrating it into Scheme helped maintain capacity in vital The Scientifi c Advisory Group for policy takes time - and yet HMRC’s public services during the fi rst peak of Emergencies (SAGE) secretariat delivers Behaviour, Insight and Research Team the pandemic, by providing childcare scientifi c advice to decision-makers during brought cutting-edge techniques and deep to enable parents employed in critical emergencies. Co-chaired by Chief Scientifi c insight to develop the furlough scheme infrastructure to work. It also supported Advisor, Sir Patrick Vallance, and Chief without that luxury. The team deployed vulnerable children and their families Medical Offi cer, Professor Chris Whitty, social media analytics to gather real-time where intelligence indicated they could SAGE fi rst met in January to discuss an data on business needs, rejigged its research be at risk. Robust evidence and economic outbreak of a novel coronavirus in Wuhan. methodology to set up online focus groups, modelling underpinned the business case The secretariat has since delivered over and mobilised the behavioural insight to repurpose funding for this scheme, 60 meetings and released 400 papers, evidence from its randomised controlled while primary and secondary research convening hundreds of experts and leading trials. As a result, every step of the informed collaborative implementation specialists from the UK’s diverse scientifi c journey to make a claim was informed by with the wide range of stakeholders. community to provide timely, impactful evidence - rather than assumptions - about A dashboard on service availability, advice to the Cabinet. The secretariat has customers’ behaviour. The scheme received takeup, and virus outbreaks, provided championed independence, proactivity widespread praise as the best-designed management information and has given a and transparency, welcomed challenges, service the department has developed. data sharing legacy. Independent evaluation and provided an authoritative, unifi ed verifi es that the scheme is exemplary. voice to inform the UK’s response.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 25 16/02/2021 11:58:20 Proud sponsors of The Civil Service Awards: The Project Delivery Excellence Award

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 26 16/02/2021 11:58:20 Supported by The Project Delivery Proud sponsors of Awards Excell ence Award The Civil Service Awards: Recognising outstanding contributions to the successful delivery of government projects. The Project Delivery Excellence Award

Course Design Team, Nabeeha Ahmed Virtual Machine Environment, Foundation Medic Course Ministry of Justice Replacement (Jobseekers Allowance) Ministry of Defence During COVID-19, Nabeeha played a vital Department for Work and Pensions The Course Design Team has delivered leadership role in facilitating technology The project to replace DWP’s benefi t a major revision of the Military Medics changes and training to enable remote systems within the UK’s National Critical training. The Foundation Medic Course is working for MoJ colleagues. Nabeeha Infrastructure was the biggest in Europe. a tri-service course which takes the core managed the rollout of MS Teams across As well as these systems being old, military skills delivered in initial training the department, collaborating with suppliers replacement of the systems was necessary and conjoins them with medical skills, to and partners to ensure the service was to enable future welfare policy changes make these service-men and -women into fully supported in time for lockdown. to be implemented. This was undertaken fi rst response Military Medics. The design So that colleagues could make the most as an in-house exercise between DWP and delivery, which normally takes 24-36 of MS Teams, Nabeeha drove a change- Digital and Service Planning and Delivery months, was delivered in six months - a management cycle for the rollout: she colleagues, requiring precision in planning milestone which has never been achieved defi ned the approach for communicating and execution with zero disruption to before in Defence Medical Services. The with colleagues about MS Teams, arranged DWP benefi t operations. The latest team of six applied innovation, working for the provision of learning materials, system, Jobseekers Allowance, was to be consistently above and beyond to deliver and organised training delivery. The replaced in the peak of the COVID-19 an integral course which will positively software was rolled out successfully with pandemic. The outcomes achieved impact care given on operations. approximately 38,000 colleagues installing have been independently recognised and using it quickly and easily. Over 4,000 by Internal Audit and Senior Offi cials. colleagues joined the training sessions and gave very positive feedback. Colleagues received information about technology releases in a timely and consumable manner, and MoJ saved £45,000 in change management costs due to the service arrangement set up by Nabeeha. www.newtoneurope.com Foll ow us @UKCivilService Join the conversation #CSAwards 27

CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 27 16/02/2021 11:58:21 The Public Service Award Awards

Recognising exceptional service delivery.

Joint HMRC/HMT CJRS, SEISS and Non-Shielded Vulnerable People Project The UK-Japan Trade Agreement EOHO Teams Department for Environment, Negotiations Team Cross-government Food and Rural Affairs Department for International Trade HMRC and HMT delivered HMG’s flagship Up to 630,000 non-shielded vulnerable The team successfully negotiated the economic interventions to respond to people now have access to vital food UK’s first trade agreement for 50 years, the COVID-19 pandemic and protect supplies thanks to a new Defra, Kainos, with Japan. The agreement met all the businesses and jobs. CJRS (or the furlough Capgemini and KITS digital service. objectives set for it and has been widely scheme) has helped employers pay the COVID-19 resulted in a 40-fold increase praised externally. This was the world’s wages of nine million people across the UK in demand for supermarket deliveries, fastest-ever trade negotiation, was - over a quarter of the workforce. Over 2.7 and placed significant issues and barriers conducted almost entirely virtually, in million people have been supported by the in front of non-shielded vulnerable unprecedented circumstances, and with Self-Employment Income Support Scheme people who were self-isolating or social a heavyweight nation of the trade world. (SEISS), and hundreds of thousands of distancing. Targeted at the elderly, disabled The team did so in collaboration with 20 businesses have been supported, including people, and those with long-term health government departments and agencies, through Eat Out To Help Out (EOHO). conditions, the new service provides an under intense pressure and scrutiny, These schemes have all been delivered England-wide self-service system which creating new ways of working. The team as a partnership between experts from enables local authorities and charities received a letter of praise from the HMT and HMRC, who have operated to refer non-shielded vulnerable people Cabinet Secretary for their achievement. as a single virtual team. They have been to priority food delivery slots, while delivered successfully at a rapid pace. observing competition law and complying with GDPR data requirements.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 28 16/02/2021 11:58:22 The Resilience & Awards Rapid Response Award Recognising excellence in crisis management, contingency planning, or major incident response.

MHCLG Rough Sleeping The China Network The Isolation Note; DHSC (Alexander Covid-19 Taskforce Foreign, Commonwealth & Peck), DWP (Ailsa McGinty, Ministry of Housing, Communities Development Offi ce David Long), NHSX, (Diane Baynham), NHSD (James Higgott) and Local Government HMG’s China Network is nominated for The MHCLG Rough Sleeping Covid-19 exceptional crisis response as COVID-19 Cross-government Taskforce worked rapidly and successfully spread in China. They managed the Nominated for the Health Tech Awards with local authorities and other partners successful evacuation of British nationals 2020, the Isolation Note is an example to bring thousands of vulnerable rough from the epicentre of Wuhan, and used of Civil Service collaboration at its best. sleepers and others at risk into emergency accurate situational awareness to shape UK The Isolation Note was introduced at the accommodation at the height of the ministerial and scientifi c policies at a crucial start of the pandemic as a digital means by pandemic. The team swiftly refocused stage of the outbreak. A challenging context which individuals can certify absence from priorities and sustained morale through included closure of consulates in Wuhan work for COVID-19 reasons via NHS111 extremely challenging circumstances to and Chongqing, the largest draw-down of Online, and is pragmatic, creative and fl exible bring ‘Everyone In’ through collaboration over 400 UK-based staff and dependants, solution to mitigate complications arising from with local authorities, voluntary sector and signifi cant restrictions on staff COVID-19 for citizens, GPs, employers and partners, and hotels. Within two weeks, movements. Colleagues from 18 government benefi t claimants. Available UK-wide, more over 90% of rough sleepers had been departments worked in crisis structures, than 2 million Isolation Notes have been offered accommodation, and as well as giving 24/7 support to British nationals and issued (correct as of December 2020) and saving hundreds of lives, this has helped meeting intense ministerial demand for the system has been adapted and adjusted to turn around the lives of many more. analysis at the most uncertain and rapidly to refl ect the latest requirements and evolving stage of the COVID-19 outbreak. guidance from the Government. The Isolation Note’s introduction has empowered citizens; protected GP clinical time; safeguarded access to and payment of benefi ts; and given needed reassurance to employers and employees. The initiative has also provided valuable lessons and acted as a springboard for future government improvements around certifi cation requirements. Foll ow us @UKCivilService Join the conversation #CSAwards 29

CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 29 16/02/2021 11:58:23 The Rising Star Award Awards

Recognising a civil servant who has made a significant impact within the first eight years of their Civil Service career.

Abigail Agyei Leanna Conradson Sidonie Edey Ministry of Housing, Communities HM Courts & Tribunals Service Department for Work and Pensions and Local Government During COVID-19, and in addition Sidonie’s outstanding people and policy Abigail has passion and commitment to to her role as a team leader with a leadership makes her a rising star. public service and has made a significant substantially increased workload, Leanna Approachable and generous with her time, impact to communities, dedicating her has demonstrated extraordinary foresight despite dealing with complex issues across career to supporting marginalised and in setting up Wales Employment Tribunal’s several portfolios, Sidi inspires all around minority communities and amplifying their (ET) technology, Cloud Video Platform her. With her exemplary support and voices. She has worked with Grenfell (CVP), ensuring the upkeep of justice. Acting guidance, her team delivered - at pace - victims and survivors, and supported Regional Employment Judge for Wales, policy to base maternity pay for furloughed children being brought safely to the UK Sian Davies, says: “Leanna’s contribution workers’ on their usual earnings rather from Calais and is currently working in to the administration of justice during the than their reduced furlough pay, supporting MHCLG engaging with faith and BAME pandemic has been extraordinary. I have thousands of families through challenging communities following COVID-19. no doubt whatsoever that Wales ET would times. Committed to staff development, Abigail has been instrumental in leading have been unable to respond to the crisis in she manages portfolios thoughtfully, on race in the Civil Service and enabled the way it has without Leanna; she is simply ensuring staff are optimally stretched and uncomfortable conversations to happen, exceptional and her efforts are deserving supported. She conveys passion for DWP’s in order to create an inclusive, safe and of national recognition with this award.” objectives and confidence in her team’s accountable culture particularly with the ability to deliver excellence, taking pride Black community with the disproportionate in embodying the Civil Service values. impact of COVID-19 on minority ethnic people and the witnessing of the death of George Floyd and many others.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 30 16/02/2021 11:58:24 The Science Award Awards

Recognising the outstanding advancement or application of science to improve policy, service delivery or public administration.

Climate Change - International Travel Synthetic Data to Support Rapid Attribution Studies Risk Assessment Team MedTech Innovation Met Office Animal and Plant Health Agency Medicines and Healthcare The scientific group led by Professor Peter The International Travel Risk assessment products Regulatory Agency Stott at the Met Office has revolutionised team engaged in cross-disciplinary science, There has been an explosion of artificial the way climate science is applied, by working with Public Health England (PHE) intelligence algorithms used in healthcare. assessing how human activities are affecting to develop innovative models to inform However, many are not validated, leading current weather. This new scientific the UK government on the risk of entry to concerns about bias and patient safety. application has helped people better of SARS-CoV-2 to the UK via international The MHRA has developed a novel method understand how the distant-seeming threat travel. Delivering at pace, the team to generate synthetic data as a cost- of climate change is affecting them in the provided robust results that fed into policy effective solution for algorithm training here and now. Recent assessments made discussions, identifying countries from which and validation. These high-fidelity datasets by the team have clearly demonstrated the the risks are highest and alternative health are completely artificial, but capture the value of this new approach. Through their measures to 14-day self-isolation. The team complex clinical relationships found in the analysis of record-breaking temperatures stepped outside their scientific comfort original data. This methodology provides in the UK and above the Arctic circle, zone and displayed fantastic teamwork in regulators and MedTech innovators with the team has brought vividly to life the order to aid PHE at this demanding time. a robust route for algorithm validation rapidly rising risks of climate change. and regulation. It also provides the NHS and patients with assurance that algorithms used in clinical decision making are safe, effective and equitable.

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 31 16/02/2021 11:58:25 Awards

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CSA Shortlist 2020 230x300.indd 32 16/02/2021 11:58:28 Are you aware of the latest policy changes?

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westminster briefing.indd 1 17/02/2021 15:00:30 A WORD IN YOUR EAR In our new podcast we speak to the biggest figures in government, and experts from across the country, to get the lowdown on key issues affecting the civil service. Presented by CSW editors Jess Bowie and Suzannah Brecknell, The Civil Service World Podcast is an essential tool for navigating the challenges facing public servants today.

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