Government and Public Sector work

Civil service

The term civil servant is used to describe employees working for specific branches of government in the UK, with some other commonwealth countries using the term, public servant, to refer to similar categories of those same worker types

Civil servants are a specific branch of public sector worker. While civil servants work in many types of government departments and agencies, they can also be affiliated with, or work for, non-government bodies (NDPBs)

For this reason, there are several broader categories of workers within the government apparatus who do not fall under the heading of ‘civil service’, such as:
Houses of parliament
Armed forces
Police
National health service
These occupations fall under the role of public sector work, although they are still termed as government employees

Civil servants

Civil servants work for the crown, and as such, they are deemed as being accountable to the public, that’s why, the modern-day civil service has established a new set of core principles that has been recently introduced as a guideline where hiring new employees that seeks to promote the following:

Integrity, honesty, objectivity, impartiality 

Present day civil service has changed a lot with the times, and with a forward-thinking outlook, seeks to achieve stability and prosperity throughout the nation. Within today’s civil service this now equates to an increased focus on training, career development, and an emphasis on introducing new talent at the graduate level into the organisation

As they are employed directly by the crown, civil servants can be moved between departments within the civil service at the crown’s discretion at any time. While this rarely ever happens, it makes it easy for the government to restructure any part of the civil service apparatus as and when required, as such, this might affect departments like the ones listed below:

Companies House
DVLA
Food Standards Agency
Health and Safety Executive
HM Passport Office
Met Office

Another category of people who are not civil servant servants yet still classed as government employees falls under the category of Non-Departmental Public Bodies, often known as Quangos, these goes as follows

Cabinet Office
Department for work and pensions
HM Revenue and customs
Treasury

Civil servants form a large part of the bureaucracy that helps the government implement its policies so it can function most efficiently. They are politically impartial, and the roles they perform are varied within the overall government apparatus itself. As such, they are regarded as a key part of today’s government infrastructure. There are around 500,000 people employed in the civil service profession today

There are many different roles within the civil service, many of these include the following:

Administrators and Support staff

Departments like the cabinet office, business and energy, education, work and pensions, DVLA, all need reliable administrators and support staff that have the capacity to perform diligence, oversight, and other office and administrative related duties

Commercial and Procurement roles

Essential goods and services the country needs are bought by procurement teams within the civil service. This involves analysis, commercial purchasing, contract, and negotiation expertise. Such contracts can be worth tens of billions of pounds, and are relied upon by many areas in the public sector like healthcare, housing, and education

Digital, culture, media, and sport

Roles enhancing the nations digital and media services not only helps promote commercial opportunities throughout the UK, but are also responsible for helping spread cultural propaganda both at home and aboard

Government Economic Service

These are roles that seek to enhance and improve the nation’s economic outlook by analysing the impact of policies and decisions made at both the local and national level, and seeks to provide recommendations on ways to enhance and improve those policies over time

Government Social Research roles

These are roles that seek to understand the social impact of government policies, legislature, and cultural trends within the nation as a whole. They are centred on advising the policymakers in government with a view to further enhancing future policy-making decisions and legislature, with the overall objective of improving the UK’s economic and cultural prosperity on a nascent level

Finance

One of the most important roles in any government, government financiers play a key role in deciding how government money is spent and how its resources are allocated over the numerous branches that constitute the government as a whole

Human Resources

Another important part of the apparatus that helps to run the government, these personnel are part of the administration used to maintain the nearly 500,000 people that work within the civil service itself

Internal auditors

Internal auditors are also another important part of this apparatus too, and are responsible for conducting internal audits within the various branches that constitute the civil service itself, helping to ensure its various branches are always up to standard

International Trade Negotiators

Trade is a vital part of any nation’s economy on this planet. Trade negotiators are responsible for agreeing trade arrangements with the various sovereign nations that exist on earth and ensuring the best deals possible for the UK

Legal

The government uses lawyers for the implementation of law and policy, as well as to help it take on any legal disputes it might face. Those who work in this capacity are responsible for working alongside ministers and policy makers to help devise the most effective legal solutions for the issues currently faced by people throughout UK society today

Policymaking

From legislature to economic policy, policymaking involves the firm knowledge and application of law in the relevant fields of specialization. It involves proposing the appropriate courses of action to local leaders and government officials where the formation of public policies is concerned.
There are many different types of teams who construct policy throughout a vast number of areas, ranging from industry, sports, finance, welfare, education, and everything in between…

Project Management and Delivery

Trillions are spent on highly important government projects by nations around the globe each year. These projects can range in size and scope, consisting of everything from large mega projects like high-speed broadband networks, high speed rail projects, land reclamation projects, and other massive construction projects. They also include many other smaller and medium sized types of projects and initiatives too, such as stimulus packages, local community projects, various schemes and incentives targeted at specific demographics of the public, and multitudes of other things in between. These are enacted to create new growth and job opportunities throughout the nation, and it takes multitudes of skilled people with the vision and expertise to conceive of these projects and properly implement them up and down the country

Property

Management of government property and other government holdings is an important responsibility for those who undertake this task, and those who work in these roles are responsible for the management and maintenance of many different buildings and other property related holdings owned by the government

Public Relations

By providing important information about current events and upcoming initiatives to the media, roles in public relations are not only concerned with promoting favourable propaganda to enhance the government’s reputation both at home and abroad, but are also concerned with communicating important announcements that are then relayed through the media about things like new government policies, public services, and other important events and actions

Science and Engineering

If science can be described as the key to the healthy progression of society, engineering can be described as the workhorse that drives it forward.
The government employs many scientists and engineers throughout the UK that attempt to solve a wide range of problems faced by citizens today. This concerns areas such as industry, energy, technology, climate change, and more

Tax

Tax is an essential source of revenue for any government. As such, the civil service relies heavily on the accountants and tax personnel it employs to ensure the government receives the stable revenue stream it needs in order to continue to function effectively. In such roles, a full understanding of the tax profession itself is required. This means not only a full knowledge and application of tax law, but also a proper understanding and familiarity with UK tax policy and tax codes too

Urban Planners and Inspectors

These are the people responsible for planning out the nation’s cities and residential areas. They are also responsible for implementing the policies that will be most effective in maintaining them, as well as for providing expert advice to local and regional government officials on issues pertaining to urban planning and building standards