Civil Service in the news

Gus O’Donnell accompanies Cabinet to Birmingham

The Head of the Civil Service launches Civil Service West Midlands apprenticeship pilot and attends Cabinet meeting in Birmingham.

On Monday 8 September, Gus O’Donnell launched the Civil Service Apprenticeship Programme in Civil Service West Midlands and attended the Cabinet meeting in Birmingham.

At the Civil Service Apprenticeship Programme launch, Gus heard how Civil Service West Midlands aims to harness the incredible diversity of the area.

The apprenticeship offer is part of the Civil Service West Midlands programme for in-service staff ,and offers employment to, among others, the long-term unemployed and those with no qualifications. Once employed, apprentices are given training to increase their career chances and are encouraged to work towards accredited qualifications.

Gus congratulated Civil Service West Midlands for the progress made in ’improving the deal for staff‘ before wishing the 30 new apprentices ­ who were at the event ­ success in their Civil Service careers.

‘I am really pleased to welcome the first people on to the Civil Service Apprenticeship programme and that the West Midlands is taking the lead in this important initiative,’ he said.

Sir Gus O’Donnell meets members of the West Midlands Apprenticeship Programme

Gus then attended the Cabinet meeting at the ICC in Birmingham in his role as Cabinet Secretary. It was the first time since 1921 that the Cabinet have met outside London.

Before the meeting, members of the Cabinet met around 200 local people from all walks of life in a table discussion and Q&A. They listened to people’s views on everything from the economy and the environment to knife crime and standards in our schools.

Cabinet Office Minister Ed Miliband said, ‘you can learn a lot from a day spent outside of Whitehall.’

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