Sir Chris WormaldPermanent Secretary, Department of Health & Social Care Head of UK Policy Profession

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About me

Civil Service lifer: 15 years Department for Education 2 years Local Government and Regeneration 3 years Cabinet Office 4 years Permanent Secretary Department for

Education 3 years Permanent Secretary Department of Health

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Public service policy over the same period:

Privatisation/contracting out

Agencies

Citizens charter

Choice & quasi-markets

New public Management

Devolution

Deliverology/delivery chains/PSAs

Entitlements

Open public services

Austerity/efficiency

Autonomy and accountability & transparency

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The Policy Profession is …

20,000 civil servants

Inclusive

Focuses on:- How we advise on policy- How we train and develop policy makers

Cooperative effort

Levy funded

Central support from a 10 person Policy Profession Unit

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History of the Policy Profession

2006 - 10 2010 - 12 2012

2013

2013 2014 2015 2016

2017 2018 2019

Professional Skills for Government programmeestablished a Sector Skills Council and National School of Government

Reform = professions

agenda; Chris Wormald starts as

Head of Profession

Executive Masters launched with LSE

Early iteration of the Professional

Standards. Commission for

Masters.

Piloting of the professional standards – development of apprenticeship

Development of Policy apprenticeship – first cohort of 109 started in September

More Apprenticeships; more qualifications; 12 Actions review; Future of the Profession

Coalition government & Civil Service reform

Development of professional standards

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What we do

Events

Qualifications

Standards

Networks

Policy tools

Build partnerships Nationally Internationally

Signposting/Stealing

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“International Civil Service Effectiveness (InCiSE) Index, 2019”

“The policy making scores for all countries in this top 5 table are very close. The UK’s and Canada’s scores are highest out of the top 5 on the quality of policy advice theme, while Finland’s and Denmark’s scores are highest on strategic planning…”

Country RankFinland 1Denmark 2UK 3Canada 4New Zealand 5

Policy making Top 5

“This indicator has 4 themes: the quality of policy advice; the degree of strategic planning; the coordination of policy proposals across government; and the degree of policy monitoring during implementation.”

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“International Civil Service Effectiveness (InCiSE) Index, 2019” UK policy making scores

UK overall results of the 2019 InCiSE Index

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1. Transform the role of Heads of Policy Profession. Each is accountable for raising standards and driving improvement in their department and contributing to Civil Service-wide action to professionalise policy making

2. Enhance policy profession support; a strengthened Policy Profession Board, funded by a levy on departments; build a service-wide policy community

3. Regular communication with policy officials; focus on professional development

4. Each department to adopt policy standards, and quality assurance against those standards

5. Department HoPPs to make improvement systems transparent and subject to HoPP peer review

6. Departmental HoPPs to champion Open Policy Making

7. Overhaul policy induction for new entrants

8. All policy officials to take responsibility for developing their own skills and expertise, linked to appraisals

9. Transform the development of policy Grade 7 - SCS 1; more post graduate qualifications

10. High potential Directors working on policy making to become a Civil Service-wide talent pool

11. Review and improve knowledge management practices

12. Assess the implementation and impact of Twelve Actions to Professionalise Policy Making

“Twelve Actions to Professionalise Policy Making” October 2013

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What has worked / what hasn’t worked

Improvements Made Work in progress

• Governance and collective ownership• A framework for professional

development (collectively developed)• Knowledge sharing programmes across

government (particularly at senior levels and across the UK)

• Accredited learning • 3/4 identify with and are proud of policy

being their profession (more departmentally…)

• Engagement at senior levels • What works networks

• Showing the big picture – communicating across the profession

• Increase policy tools and techniques guidance and usage

• Developing mid career accredited learning

• Building policy careers beyond Whitehall and the civil service

• Building relationships with academics

The Policy Environment

Changing environment – climate change, demography etc

Digital, Data, and Technology (including negative changes)

Policy and operations

Responding to democratic change

Policy making for the whole country

UK’s place in the world

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What is policy?

Policy Excellence

Politics/Democracy

Analysis

Policy delivery

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A profession that is…

OPEN… to new ideas, techniques, voices, ways of working, insights, evidence and expertise• Four Nations: 80 – 100 civil servants at the yearly conference

•International relationships

•Peer review: • collective ownership• Stealing with pride

•Academic partnership:

•Other government professions: e.g. Operational Delivery and Project Delivery professions

•Policy Lab

•Behavioural Insight

•Digital

PROFESSIONAL… by sharing knowledge and experience, effectively building our community of practice through networks and continuous improvementInduction:• Apprenticeship: First cohort in 2018. 109 policy apprentices have started in departments• Fast Stream policy Basecamp: 403 Fast Streamers since pilot in July 2016

Learning:• More than 35,000 civil servants have accessed policy core curriculumproducts• Knowledge Sharing: Over 30 events per year•Policy Excellence Group: 100-200 senior policy officials explore critical issues

Executive Masters in Public Policy:•Four cohorts since 2015•111 candidates

CONSISTENT… through the development of professional standards clearly linked to careers and accredited professional development

Professional Standards:•500 people worked together to develop the Policy Profession Standards•Departments established “Policy Tests” in 2014

Diversity & Inclusion•Diversity of thought•Diversity of representation

Continuous improvements•Level 1 self assessment tool•Level 2 accreditation•Development of new modules (e.g. Behavioural Government masterclass)

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Open…

80–100 civil servants at the yearly conference

Four Nations

International relationships

Policy Lab

Other government professions

Academic partnership

Peer Review

Behavioural Insight

Digital

Events designed to bring people

together and share tools that

work

EMPP: 4 cohorts since 2015. Total 111 candidates Fellowships Joint events

E.g. Operational

Delivery Project

Delivery

Collective ownership Steal with pride

What Works centres

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Consistent…

Approx. 4,500 handed out at the 2018 Civil Service Live

2014 2018

Yes - it's my main profession81%

59%

Yes - it's one of my professions 21%No - I work in policy but don't consider myself part of the profession

15% 13%

No - I am part of another profession 3% 3%

No - I am not part of any profession 1% 1%

Not sure - 2.59%

SURVEYDo you consider yourself part of

the Policy Profession?

Continuous improvements

Departmental Standards / Tests

Diversity & Inclusion

ProfessionalStandards

About 500 people worked together to develop the Policy Profession Standards

Departments established own “Policy Tests” in 2014

Two strategies:- - Diversity of

thoughts- - Diversity of

representation

Level 1 self assessment tool

Level 2 accreditation

Development of new modules (e.g. Behavioural Government masterclass)

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Policy Tests - Education

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The six policy tests

I = ImaginationG = GoalsE = EvidenceA = AudiencesR = RelevanceS = Success

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Policy Tests - Health

Professional …

More than 35,000 civil servants have accessed policy core curriculum products

Knowledge Sharing: Over 30 events per year

Policy Excellence Group: 100-200 senior policy officials explore critical issues

Apprenticeship: First cohort in 2018. 109 policy apprentices have started in departments

Fast Stream policy Basecamp: 403 Fast Streamers since pilot in July 2016

LearningExecutive Masters in

Public Policy

Induction

Four cohorts since 2015

111 candidates since 2015

The professional standards framework

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Futures, Foresight & Horizon Scanning

Futures, Foresight & Horizon Scanning

Policy Making in

Your Policy Area

Statistics & Data Analysis

Science & Technology

Policy Framing

Economics

EVIDENCEEVIDENCE

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Working Internationally & Exiting the

European Union

Advising, Briefing and

DraftingWorking with Parliament

Devolution Finance

Stakeholder Management

POLITICS & DEMOCRACYPOLITICS & DEMOCRACY

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Understanding the Delivery

Context & Effective Implementation

Planning

Communicatingwith Influence

Programme & Project

Management

User Centred Design, Digital &

Behavioural Insights

Commercial

Evaluation

DELIVERYDELIVERY

PP2025: Future policy excellence

CONTEXT CUSTOMERS PEOPLE

POLICY MAKING SYSTEM

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

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The future…

Delivering Policy Profession 2025 (Aligned with wider CS direction)

Stronger relationships with Operational Delivery Profession

Embedding the Policy Profession Standards

Understanding more about the members of the profession

Widening our accredited learning offer

Expanding our knowledge sharing programme

Diversity and Inclusion strategies

More on policy systems

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