About the Civil Service
Civil Service Statistics 2004
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A history of staff numbers
The highest number of civil servants recorded was in 1976 when (on a full-time equivalent basis) there were 750,900 staff. Since then the number of permanent civil servants has fallen by around 30 per cent, and it was 523,580 in April 2004. However in the year to April 2004 the numbers rose by 12,280, or 2.4 per cent.
On a headcount basis, numbers have fallen by around 27 per cent in the period since 1976; the difference is accounted for by strong growth in numbers of part-time staff. At the peak in 1976, some 763,170 civil servants were employed, of whom 31,120 (4.1 per cent) worked part-time. By April 1994, numbers had fallen to 559,400, of whom 52,100 (or 9.3 per cent) worked part-time. In April 2004, the total number had fallen further to 554,110, but part-time staff numbered around 93,060, or 16.8 per cent of the total. The proportion of staff in all grade levels working part-time has increased in recent years. By April 2004 there were over 91,790 non-industrial part-time staff, 17.2 per cent of all non-industrial civil servants.
A number of other factors have influenced overall trends in Civil Service staff numbers in recent years. These include;
- Privatisation or contracting out particularly in technical or production areas (See Diary of events - Machinery of government changes; defence related agencies, National Savings and ADAS are recent examples);
- Changing work volumes in those sections of the service providing public delivery; for example, staff numbers in the Department for Work and Pensions and Jobcentre Plus are closely related to the level of unemployment;
- Staff levels in the Prison and Immigration Services have been affected over the years by rises in the prison population, in international travel and of claims of asylum; and
- Policy changes such as the establishment of the New Deal initiative and the drive for more joined-up government through the strengthening of the Cabinet Office.
Other policy changes have created new functions and otherwise affected the boundaries between the Civil Service and other public sector functions. Devolution in Scotland and Wales effected significant changes. (See section on Location.) Other recent changes over the last year are outlined in the section on The Number of Civil Servants.
Chart 7 shows the overall pattern in departmental staffing by broad function (FTE basis). In 2004 Work and Pensions represented 23.9 per cent of Civil Service staff. In Defence the downward trend continued and in April 2004 they accounted for 17.5 per cent of civil servants.
Chart 5 - Permanent staff working in executive agenciesor Next Steps lines by department; 2004 (Full-time equivalent)
Chart 6 - Civil Service permanent staff numbers; 1994 to 2004
Chart 7 - Civil Service staff by function; 2004 (Full-time equivalent)
