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Digital skills brand to attract
top tech talent to Civil
Service

A new brand, Government Digital and

Data, has been launched today to bring
together the growing number of digital
and tech specialists working in
government to improve public services in
the long-term.

From: Cabinet Office

(/government/organisations/cabinet-office), Central
Digital and Data Office
(/government/organisations/central-digital-and-data-
office), and Alex Burghart MP
(/government/people/alex-burghart)
Published 29 November 2023

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New digital brand, known as Government Digital

and Data, launched today, to attract top tech
talent.
Proportion of Civil Service working on tech and
digital nearly doubles in five years, making the UK
Government one of the biggest tech employers.
Move comes as Government opens up to more
digital secondments from the private sector.

Top tech talent will be recruited into key public sector

roles through a new brand, the Cabinet Office has
announced today.

The new brand, Government Digital and Data, has

been launched today to bring together the growing
number of digital and tech specialists working in
government to improve public services in the long-
term, through digital innovation and AI.

New figures revealed today also show that the

proportion of digital, data and tech specialists has
nearly doubled in the last five years, growing from
2.8% in 2018 to 5% this year.

The boost to digital skills in the Civil Service

underlines how the UK Government is becoming one
of the largest employers of digital and data
professionals in the UK, rivalling big tech companies
in the competition for talent.

The new Government Digital and Data brand unites

the community of staff working in specialist roles,
such as data analysts, software developers and
infrastructure engineers, and provides a clearer

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career path for talent looking to come into the Civil

Service.

Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office Alex

Burghart, said:

“ Digital talent is the driving force behind creating

essential and accessible public services for
everyone in the UK.

“ So we’re taking long-term decisions to attract

the top talent into government. To do this, we’re
launching a new brand, Government Digital
and Data, to provide a more coherent network
of specialists helping to tackle the biggest
challenges government faces.

“ Embracing technology isn’t just about

efficiency, it’s about crafting a government
that’s agile and ready to support the needs of
tomorrow and the digital talent community is
essential to that.”

New figures from the latest cross government

workforce insights show that the digital and data
workforce grew by 9% between October 2022 and
April 2023 to a total of more than 28,000
professionals.

The growing workforce reflects a shift towards a

digitally transformed, more efficient government, and
reinforces government’s commitment to attracting the
best UK digital talent.

By driving efficiency and boosting productivity

through innovation, the growing digital workforce will
help the government to meet its ambitions to reduce
the overall civil service, and capping the headcount
during this spending review period saving up to £1
billion by March 2025.

In recognition of the growing workforce, Government

Digital and Data has been launched today as the first
ever community leading digital transformation in
government.

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New insights have also revealed today that 79% of

the total digital and data profession in government,
and 66% of senior civil servants in digital roles, are
based outside of London.

They also found that software developers are the

most in-demand specialists in the profession,
accounting for 13% of all filled roles in the
Government Digital and Data profession.

Chief Digital Officer for Government, Mike Potter,

said:

“ These figures show that Government Digital

and Data should be viewed alongside tech
giants as one of the largest and most exciting
employers in the UK. And we have a unique
selling point for prospective talent: our work is
fundamentally about transforming lives for the
better.

“ At the forefront of digital innovation, we’re

shaping the future workforce with a strong
focus on AI roles. Our commitment to cutting-
edge technology and data is revolutionising
government for greater efficiency and
effectiveness.”

The new umbrella brand aims to promote

collaboration, innovation, and knowledge-sharing
across all government departments and the wider
public sector.

As an employer rivalling the biggest tech companies

in the UK, Government Digital and Data aims to
attract prospective talent working in other sectors.

The strapline, ‘transforming lives through technology’

promotes the unique nature of public sector work,
having a direct impact on people on a national scale.

This announcement comes as the government

opened its Digital Secondments Programme for
applications in September, which calls on the UK’s
best technical minds from industry to work on the

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country’s biggest challenges, such as cyber security

and new emerging technology.

Published 29 November 2023

All content is available under the Open Government Licence

v3.0, except where otherwise stated © Crown copyright

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