The incoming head of the civil service, Sir Bob Kerslake, has warned civil servants that in 2012 ministers will expect to agree and enact reforms across the civil service.

Writing today for CSW in our annual permanent secretaries’ round-up, Kerslake says: “In terms of our own reform agenda, we need to identify and agree with ministers the priorities for change and then organise their delivery.
“The civil service has immense strengths but also needs to adapt to a new world with new expectations. This will require strong corporate leadership towards a shared endeavour.”

Meanwhile, new cabinet secretary Jeremy Heywood urges civil servants to “embrace techniques such as ‘nudge’, transparency and innovative funding models.”

In this year’s perm secs’ round-up – comprising articles by 21 top officials plus an interview with Sir Gus O’Donnell – several permanent secretaries take the opportunity to set out their ideas about how the civil service is likely to change in 2012.

Transport permanent secretary Lin Homer  talks of the need for a “cultural change”, arguing that civil servants must “be more challenging of ourselves and the way we work”. Meanwhile Treasury solicitor Paul Jenkins and international development chief Mark Lowcock both call for renewed pride in, and respect for, the civil service, and departing education perm sec David Bell urges the civil service’s new leaders to “resist the temptation to seek change for the sake of change”, adding that reforms should not be “‘radical’ for the sake of it”.

You can find the perm secs’ round-up here.

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Written by csw