Recruitment for Senior Civil Service jobs

Dyddiad y datganiad:
7 June 2022

FOI Ref: ​FOI/2022/4154

You asked

  1. What proportion of advertised Senior Civil Service jobs are ever awarded to non-civil servants?
  2. What sort of idiomatic or non-idiomatic recruitment process, or machines, do you use to read CVs and personal statements?

We said

Thank you for your request.

1) What proportion of advertised Senior Civil Service jobs are ever awarded to non-civil servants?

This is calculated for the years that we have data for - so between 2016 and up to current time, including roles which have been offered and not started. The percentage of roles awarded to non-civil servants at the Office for National Statistics is 17%.

2) What sort of idiomatic or non-idiomatic recruitment process, or machines, do you use to read CVs and personal statements?

We do not employ any type of machine or artificial intelligence (AI) in the sifting process to read CVs and personal statements.  There are usually two stages to the SCS sift process -  

  • First stage - The panel will receive all applications and they will individually score applicants against the advertised criteria.

  • Second stage - A sift meeting is held with the recruitment panel, overseen either by a Civil Service Commissioner (if SCS2 and above) or the SCS Recruitment Partner (SCS1 roles). Scores are discussed as a panel and final scores are agreed for each candidate against the advertised criteria. The top scoring candidates are agreed to progress to interview and the remaining candidates will be sent a rejection notification.

The sifting is conducted as a fair and open process in line with the civil service recruitment principles which you can view here. All candidates for each vacancy are assessed against the same advertised criteria and complete the same assessment process.

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