Accredited official statistics

Statistical bulletin - Civil Service Statistics: 2022

Updated 2 March 2023

Statistical Enquiries: Andrew Millan

Press Enquiries: Ludo Sappa-Cohen

Next Publication: July 2023

Download data tables (ODS, 483KB)

1. Overview

This National Statistics release presents headline statistics on the UK Civil Service workforce, including demographic characteristics, earnings, grades, and locations of civil servants as at 31 March 2022.

Key Statistics:

Civil Service Statistics shows that employment stood at 510,080 headcount and 478,090 on a full-time equivalent basis (FTE) as at 31 March 2022 (NB: see section 2 below for more information on our headline measure for monitoring the changing size of the Civil Service workforce). Of these civil servants:

• 54.5% are women, up from 54.2% in 2021.

• 15.0% are from an ethnic minority background, up from 14.3% in 2021.

• 14.0% declare themselves as having a disability, up from 13.6% in 2021.

• 6.1% identify as being lesbian, gay, bisexual or recorded their sexual orientation as ‘other’ (LGBO), up from 5.6% in 2021.

• 71.8% are working at Executive Officer (EO) grade and above, up from 70.0% in 2021 and 54.4% in 2012.

• The median age of civil servants is 44 years, down from 45 years in 2021.

• Headcount has increased across all regions, with the largest increase in North West England (64,300, up from 59,340 in 2021).

• The median salary is £30,110, up £930 (3.2%) from £29,180 in 2021.

• The median and mean gender pay gap for the Civil Service is 11.3% and 8.5%, up from 8.1% and 7.8% in 2021 respectively.

• There were 69,400 entrants to the Civil Service in 2021/22, up from 57,200 in 2020/21.

• In 2021/22, 44,220 people left the Civil Service, up from 27,830 in 2020/21.

Figure 1.1: Representation of ethnic minority, disabled and LGBO (from 2015) civil servants 2012 to 2022 (see table E1) (ODS, 483KB)

2. Civil Service Headcount

Civil service headcount stands at 510,080 as at 31 March 2022. On a full-time equivalent (FTE) basis, Civil Service employment is 478,090. FTE takes into account part-time workers.

Figure 2.1: Civil Service departmental headcount (see table 11) (ODS, 483KB)

The five largest departments (Department for Work and Pensions, Ministry of Justice, HM Revenue and Customs, Ministry of Defence and Home Office) account for over two-thirds (68%) of the workforce.

Statistical Note

At the time of release, the latest statistics from the ONS Quarterly Public Sector Employment Survey (QPSES) are also as at 31 March 2022, and show Civil Service employment was 511,100 (479,040 on an FTE basis). Users should refer to the regular ONS quarterly statistics when monitoring changes in the size of the Civil Service.

3. Grade

The Civil Service is becoming more senior in grade.

• The percentage of civil servants working at grades EO and above is now 71.8%, up from 70.0% in 2021 and 54.4% in 2012.

• The percentage of civil servants working in more junior grades (Administrative Assistant/Administrative Officer) is 28.2%, and has fallen each year since 2012 (45.6%).

• The percentage of civil servants working in grades 6 and 7 has increased to 14.3%, up from 13.3% in 2021 and 7.3% in 2012.

Figure 3.1: Civil Service grade structure 2012 to 2022 (see tables 1 and E2) (ODS, 483KB)

The percentage of unreported grades has increased to 4.6%, up from 3.4% in 2021.

Several departments did not supply grade information for some of their employees. Ministry of Justice (19,240) and Ministry of Defence (3,880) account for nearly all unreported grades.

The increase in unreported grade between 2021 and 2022 is mainly attributed to around 7,000 Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) staff without a mapped standard Civil Service grade being transferred into MOJ in late June 2021.

Figure 3.2: Percentage of grade reported and not reported 2012 to 2022 (see tables 1 and E3) (ODS, 483KB)

Civil Service grades:

• Senior Civil Service level (SCS level)

• Grade 6 and 7 (G6/G7)

• Higher Executive Officer/Senior Executive Officer (HEO/SEO)

• Executive Officer (EO)

• Administrative Assistant/Administrative Officer (AA/AO)

Departments with large numbers of front-line staff delivering public services tend to have a higher proportion of junior grades. For example, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has the highest percentage of staff at EO grade and below (82.5%).

Departments with more senior grades tend to have fewer employees delivering services directly to the public. For example, DCMS has the highest percentage of employees at grades HEO/SEO and above (90.2%).

Figure 3.3: Grade structure by department (see table 20) (ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

There are two measures of the SCS available: the Senior Civil Service and SCS level. See Notes section.

4. Location

Civil servants work in all regions of the UK, and Overseas.

• More than one in five civil servants are based in London.

• The regions with the largest number of civil servants are London (104,830), the North West of England (64,300), and Scotland (51,020).

• Excluding Northern Ireland and Overseas, the East of England has the fewest civil servants (22,930).

Figure 4.1: Civil Service headcount by region (see table 10) (ODS, 483KB)

Most Civil Service organisations have a presence in London. The majority of civil servants in the North West are working for DWP, HMRC, HMPPS and the Home Office. Civil servants in the North East are primarily working for HMRC and DWP.

Organisations with large numbers of staff in Wales include the DVLA, based in Swansea, and the Welsh Government, based in Cardiff. There are home civil servants working in Northern Ireland – the majority for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), and Ministry of Defence. The organisations employing the most civil servants in Scotland are Scottish Government, DWP and HMRC.

The majority of civil servants based Overseas work for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and the Ministry of Defence.

Civil Service employment increased in all regions between 2021 and 2022 (except Overseas).

The number of civil servants based in London has increased by 2.8% since 2021; however the overall proportion of civil servants based in London decreased to 20.7% from 21.2% in 2021.

The regions with the largest percentage increases in headcount are Northern Ireland (+11.6%), West Midlands (+8.8%), North West (+8.4%) and North East (+8.1%). The regions that have seen the largest increase in actual headcount numbers are the North West (+4,960), Scotland (+3,420), London (+2,900) and West Midlands (+2,680).

Figure 4.2: Percentage change in Civil Service regional headcount from 2021 to 2022 (see table 10) (ODS, 483KB)

Outside of London, 32.7% of civil servants are in AA/AO grades, compared to just 11.6% within London. The percentage of those in G6/G7 and SCS level grades outside of London is only 11.1%, compared to 33.0% within London.

Some professions are predominantly London-based; 78.9% of those in Economics, 75.4% in International Trade, 64.6% in Policy, and 53.1% in Communications. Other professions tend to be more evenly distributed across the regions (see table 47)(ODS, 483KB).

Figure 4.3: Percentage of civil servants at each grade within London, and outside of London (see table 16) (ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

Workplace postcode data are used to derive geographical information (International Territorial Level) from the National Statistics Postcode Lookup (NSPL).

5. Sex

There are more women (278,060) than men (232,000) in the Civil Service; however, men outnumber women in G6/G7 and SCS levels.

The percentage of women in senior grades is increasing: in 2022 47.2% of those at SCS level are women compared to 35.0% in 2012. Similarly, 48.9% of G6/G7 are women in 2022, compared to 41.1% in 2012.

Figure 5.1: Civil servants by sex (see table 1) (ODS, 483KB)

Figure 5.2: Percentage of civil servants at each grade by sex (see table 1) (ODS, 483KB)(ODS, 483KB)

Figure 5.3: Percentage of women by grade 2012 to 2022 (see table E4)(ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

The Annual Civil Service Employment Survey (ACSES) collection that these statistics draw from records data on sex, not gender.

6. Age

The median age of civil servants stands at 44 years, down from 45 in 2021.

The percentage of civil servants aged under 30 is 16.8%, up from 16.2% in 2021.

Figure 6.1: Civil Service by age band 2012 to 2022 (see tables 4 and E5)(ODS, 483KB)

Those at the younger and older ends of the age distribution are more likely to be at administrative grades.

The percentage of those at AA/AO grades aged under 30, and 65 and over is 32.0% and 42.3% respectively. This compares to 22.2% of 40-49 years old.

Figure 6.2: Percentage of civil servants at each grade by age band (see table 4)(ODS, 483KB)

7. Ethnicity

Of those with a known ethnicity, the percentage who are from an ethnic minority background is at a record high of 15.0%. This is up from 14.3% in 2021, and 9.3% in 2012.

The largest increase has been at HEO/SEO level; up to 14.7% in 2022 from 13.8% in 2021, and 8.0% in 2012.

Civil servants from an ethnic minority background are less represented at senior grades than in junior grades, with those at SCS level having the lowest representation rate at 10.3%, down slightly from 10.6% in 2021.

The Civil Service has a higher proportion of workers from an ethnic minority background than the working age population in the UK (14.5%).

Figure 7.1: Percentage of civil servants from an ethnic minority background by grade 2012 to 2022 (see tables 2 and E6)(ODS, 483KB)

On a headcount basis, Asian civil servants (33,650) make up the largest ethnic minority group in the Civil Service, followed by Black civil servants (17,080).

Figure 7.2: Civil servants by ethnic group (see table 2)(ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

The percentages stated here exclude those with an unknown ethnicity and those who have elected to not declare their ethnicity. The working age population figure referenced here includes only those who are economically active. See the Notes section for more information.

8. Disability

Since 2012 there has been a year-on-year increase in the percentage of civil servants who declare themselves as disabled. This figure now stands at 14.0%, a record high, up from 13.6% in 2021, and 8.3% in 2012.

The proportion of civil servants with a declared disability has increased across all grades compared to 2012.

The percentage of civil servants declaring themselves as disabled remains below that of the economically active working age population (16.0%).

Figure 8.1: Percentage of civil servants that have declared a disability by grade 2012 to 2022 (see table E7)(ODS, 483KB)

Figure 8.2: Civil servants by disability status (see table 3)(ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

The percentages stated here exclude those with an unknown disability status and those that have elected to not declare themselves as either disabled or non-disabled. The working age population figure referenced here includes only those who are economically active. See Notes section for more information.

9. Sexual Orientation

Of those with a known sexual orientation, 6.1% of civil servants identify as being lesbian, gay, bisexual or recorded their sexual orientation as ‘other’ (LGBO). This has increased every year since data on sexual orientation has been captured in these statistics, and is up from 5.6% in 2021 and 3.7% in 2015.

LGBO representation has increased at all grades over the last year. The grade with the highest percentage of LGBO civil servants is SCS level (6.7%).

Reporting rates for sexual orientation have increased from 38.1% in 2015 (when it was first collected), to 70.8% in 2022.

Figure 9.1: Percentage of civil servants that identify as LGBO by grade 2015 to 2022 (see table E8)(ODS, 483KB)

Figure 9.2: Civil servants by sexual orientation (see table A2)(ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

The percentages stated here exclude those with an unknown sexual orientation and those that have elected to not declare their sexual orientation. Reporting rates refers to those who have declared, and therefore excludes ‘Undeclared’.

10. Religion and Belief

Reporting rates for religion and belief have increased this year to 69.9%, up from 68.2% in 2021.

The most commonly reported religion or belief is Christianity at 45.5%. The second most commonly reported is Islam (Muslim) at 4.7%. A further 41.4% of civil servants reported having no religion or belief.

Figure 10.1: Civil servants by religion, belief, or non-belief (see table A4)(ODS, 483KB)

Figure 10.2: Percentage of civil servants by religion, belief, or non-belief (see table A4)(ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

The percentages stated here exclude those with an unknown religion or belief and those that have elected to not declare their religion or belief. Reporting rates refers to those who have positively declared, and therefore excludes ‘Undeclared’

11. Pay

Over the year, the median salary in the Civil Service rose to £30,110 from £29,180 in 2021, an increase of £930 (3.2%).

The mean and median salaries are higher for full-time staff compared to part-time staff on a full time equivalent basis.

Figure 11.1: Median and mean salary of full-time, part-time, and all civil servants 2012 to 2022 (see table E9)(ODS, 483KB)

The median salary varies by grade, from £21,380 in the administrative grades to £82,550 at SCS level.

Figure 11.2: Median salary by grade (see table 25)(ODS, 483KB)

Women have a mean salary of £33,210 compared to £35,970 for men. Women have a median salary of £28,310, compared to £31,650 for men. Salary differences between the sexes are partly explained by their relative representations across the grades.

Figures represent the average across all staff, and may not be representative of changes affecting individuals or their salaries.

Figure 11.3: Mean and median pay by sex (see table 31)(ODS, 483KB)

Any differences in pay presented here do not represent the official measure of the ‘Gender Pay Gap’ (these are shown in the ‘Gender Pay Gap’ section). Government departments separately publish their gender pay gap data on the Government Equalities Office (GEO) portal each year to comply with the legal requirements.

Statistical Note

It is important to note that these figures are not adjusted for inflation. All salaries are on a full-time equivalent basis, i.e. the salary that part-time staff would earn if they worked full-time at the same hourly rate.

12. Working Pattern

One in five (20.0%) of civil servants work part-time in 2022. This is down from 21.0% in 2021 and from a peak of around one in four (25.5%) in 2015.

The percentage of civil servants working part-time is lower in senior grades, decreasing from 28.4% of those in the AA/AO grades, to 11.0% at SCS level.

Figure 12.1: Percentage of civil servants working part-time by grade 2012 to 2022 (see table E10)(ODS, 483KB)

The Department for Work and Pensions has the highest percentage of employees working part-time (34.1%, down from 35.3% in 2021).

Figure 12.2: Percentage of civil servants working part-time by department (see table 46)(ODS, 483KB)

Women are more likely to work part-time than men at all age bands apart from those aged 16-19.

Overall, older age groups have a higher percentage of both men and women working part-time.

There is a marked increase in women working part-time from age bands 30-39 and above. At the age bands 60-64 and above, both men and women see a large increase in the percentage working part-time.

Figure 12.3: Percentage of civil servants working part-time by sex and age band (see table 44)(ODS, 483KB)

The number of civil servants working full-time is 408,110; an increase from 382,950 (+6.6%) in 2021.

The part-time headcount has shown little change, increasing from 101,940 to 101,960 across the same period.

Figure 12.4: Working patterns of civil servants 2012 to 2022 (see table E11)(ODS, 483KB)

13. Gender Pay Gap

The median gender pay gap for the Civil Service rose from 8.1% in 2021 to 11.3% in 2022. The mean gender pay gap for the Civil Service also rose, from 7.8% in 2021 to 8.5% in 2022.

Figure 13.1: Earnings gender pay gap (see table C(ODS, 483KB) and E12)(ODS, 483KB)

The median and mean bonus gender pay gaps for the Civil Service showed a decrease from 40.5% and 29.3% in 2021, to 37.1% and 27.4% in 2022 respectively.

Figure 13.2: Bonus gender pay gap (see table C(ODS, 483KB) and E12)(ODS, 483KB)

In line with last year, a higher proportion of women received a bonus compared to men (58.2% and 54.2% respectively). However, both proportions showed a decrease from 70.8% and 69.8% respectively in 2021.

Figure 13.3: Percentage of men and women receiving a bonus (see table C(ODS, 483KB) and E12)(ODS, 483KB)

Women are under-represented in the highest pay quartile (46.5% compared to 53.5% of men) and overrepresented in the lowest pay quartile (61.6% compared to 38.4% of men).

Figure 13.4: Salary quartiles by sex (see table C(ODS, 483KB) and E12)(ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

Figures presented here are calculated using a methodology fully aligned to the Government Equalities Office (GEO) statutory reporting requirements. Earnings pay gap calculations are based on employees receiving their normal pay on 31 March 2022. Bonus calculations also include employees who received a bonus but were on reduced pay or unpaid leave on 31 March 2022.

14. Profession

The majority of civil servants (53.4%) work in the Operational Delivery profession. Operational Delivery staff provide frontline government services directly to citizens or businesses, including paying benefits and pensions, providing employment services, staffing prisons, and issuing driving licences.

The next largest profession is Policy (6.9%), followed by Digital, Data and Technology (4.2%), and Tax (4.1%).

The reporting rate for professions data is 93.7% this year.

Figure 14.1: Percentage and headcount of civil servants working within each profession (see table 8)(ODS, 483KB)

The professions with the highest median salary are Education and Training Inspectors (£70,500), Planning Inspectors (£58,810) and Legal (£49,710).

Those with the lowest median salary are Operational Delivery (£27,130), Counter Fraud (£27,570) and Security (£29,670).

The Operational Delivery profession accounts for a large proportion of the Civil Service; therefore the overall median will be heavily influenced by the salaries in this profession.

Figure 14.2: Lower quartile, median, and upper quartile of salary by profession (see table 45)(ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

Cabinet Office and Scottish Government either did not supply any, or provided very limited information on professions. The chart and data presented is based on those employees with a known profession.

15. Function

The majority of civil servants (63.8%) do not work in a function. The largest function is Project Delivery (6.2%), followed by Digital, Data & Technology (5.1%), then Counter Fraud (4.0%).

The response rate for functions information has increased from 65.6% in 2021 to 84.4% in 2022.

Figure 15.1: Headcount and percentage of civil servants working within each function (see table D1)(ODS, 483KB)

The functions with the highest median salary are: Legal (£48,830), Internal Audit (£43,300) and Commercial (£40,980). Those with the lowest median salary are Debt (£21,260) and Grants Management (£21,300).

Figure 15.2: Lower quartile, median and upper quartile of salary by function (see table D3)(ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

Home Office, Welsh Government and Scottish Government either did not supply any, or provided very limited information on functions. The chart and data presented is based on those employees with a known function.

16. Entrants and Leavers

The number of new entrants increased to 69,400 from 57,200 in 2020/21, the highest number over a year since 1975 (79,200). More than a quarter (18,180) of these new entrants were at MOJ which includes around 7,000 Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) staff that were transferred in from the Private Sector to HM Prison and Probation Service.

Over the year, 44,220 people left the Civil Service, up from 27,830 in 2020/21. This is the highest number since 2011/12 (46,110).

Figure 16.1: Civil Service entrants and leavers 2011/12 to 2021/22 (see table E13)(ODS, 483KB)

The most common reason for leaving the Civil Service was resignation, accounting for over half (23,870) of leavers. The next most common reason was retirement (10,450).

Figure 16.2: Civil Service leavers by leaving cause (see table 42)(ODS, 483KB)

Statistical Note

Entrant and leaver numbers are calculated from entry and leaving dates provided as part of the ACSES data collection. The difference between them does not align precisely with the year-on-year difference between in-post headcounts. For example, there are people who left and rejoined the Civil Service more than once during a year, and people whose last day falls on the reference date (31 March) - these are counted as both leavers and in-post.

17. Notes

See the quality and methodology information document for further detail

How the output is created

The statistics in this release are derived from returns completed as part of the Annual Civil Service Employment Survey (ACSES). Its scope covers all Civil Service organisations, including all major Departments. ACSES requests from organisations an individual-level record of all their Civil Service employees ‘in post’ as at the reference date, along with records for leavers and joiners from/to the Civil Service in the preceding 12 months. ACSES collects information via a standard Excel template that includes data fields on pay, contractual hours, grade and location. It also includes personal characteristics, such as age, sex, religion, and sexual orientation. The data collected are anonymous in that no employee names are requested. The data, however, is considered and handled as ‘personal data’ because in certain circumstances individuals may be identifiable. Where departmental figures are quoted these will include the main department and their executive agencies and crown non-departmental public bodies. For Gender Pay Gap, however, different aggregations may apply – see relevant data table. Given the varied nature of the HR/pay systems within departments, caution should be exercised in comparing statistics across departments.

Further information

The Civil Service Statistics data tables, and the quality and methodology information document are published on gov.uk.

Data up to 2018 are also made available via NOMIS, which is a service provided by the ONS to give users free access to a range of UK labour market statistics from official sources. There may be small differences in NOMIS figures and ACSES time-series data within this online bulletin resulting from ensuring consistency of methodology between this year and previous years.

External Sources

Comparative data for the UK workforce on disability and ethnicity are sourced from the Office for National Statistics Labour market overview UK, published on 17 May 2022. Figures in this publication are based on the Labour Force Survey as at March 2022, and include the UK working age population aged 16-64 who are economically active.

Technical notes

Organisations within the Civil Service have different grading systems. These have been mapped to common responsibility levels in the statistics presented in this bulletin.

There are two measures of the SCS available: the Senior Civil Service and SCS level. ACSES measures SCS level employees that includes a number of health professionals, military personnel, and senior diplomats that are not part of the Senior Civil Service. The Civil Service Statistics release, therefore, does not contain the official headline figures used for monitoring diversity, pay and other key measures of the Senior Civil Service. These are monitored using the Cabinet Office SCS Database that collects more frequent and comprehensive information on those individuals that make up the Senior Civil Service.

18. About

Civil Service Statistics is an annual National Statistics release describing the UK Civil Service workforce in terms of its size, demographic characteristics, salaries, working pattern, grade, and location. The data is drawn from the Annual Civil Service Employment Survey (ACSES). The Civil Service helps the government of the day develop and implement its policies as effectively as possible. It provides services directly to the public, including paying benefits and pensions; running employment services; running prisons and issuing driving licences. Civil servants also work on policy development and implementation, including analysts, project managers, lawyers and economists. The Civil Service is politically impartial and independent of government. Organisations that make up the Civil Service include central government departments, their agencies, and crown non-departmental government bodies. These statistics count all home Civil Service employees, including those based in Northern Ireland and Overseas. Not included are the Northern Ireland Civil Service, other Crown servants and employees of the wider public sector, for example, employees of non-crown non-departmental public bodies and the National Health Service (NHS). This release presents departmental information as at 31 March 2022, and will not, therefore, reflect machinery of government changes that have or will take place after this date.

Notes on the statistics

Unless otherwise specified, all figures are calculated on a headcount basis and exclude unknown values for all variables. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 in the case of headcounts, FTE, and salaries, and to one decimal place for percentages. 2022 data in this release is available in the associated Civil Service Statistics data tables. Where time-series are presented, data have been taken from previous Civil Service Statistics publications.

Further analysis and methodology

Summary information on the scope and limitations is available in the Notes section of this release, with further details available in the quality and methodology information document published on the gov.uk website, along with previous versions of these statistics:

National Statistics

Civil Service Statistics are designated National Statistics in accordance with the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007. National Statistics status means that official statistics meet the highest standards of trustworthiness, quality, and public value.

All official statistics should comply with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics^{[footnote 1]}. They are awarded National Statistics status following an assessment by the UK Statistics Authority’s regulatory arm. The Authority considers whether the statistics meet the highest standards of Code compliance, including the value they add to public decisions and debate.

Responsibility for the collection and publication of Civil Service Statistics transferred to Cabinet Office from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on 1 October 2018. The Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) — the regulatory arm of the UK Statistics Authority — undertook a compliance check of Civil Service Statistics during December 2019 and January 2020. The OSR confirmed the continuing National Statistics designation for Civil Service Statistics in their letter published 19 February 2020.

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1. Code of Practice for Official Statistics: ↩