What is the Civil Service?

The Civil Service is one of the largest employers in the UK. It supports the government of the day to implement its policies. We offer the unique opportunity to contribute to challenging, fast-paced work that makes a difference to the whole of society.

When you join the Fast Stream, you become a civil servant.

Civil servants work across the UK and abroad to promote and protect the nations’ interests. We help to shape the decisions that will affect everyone’s lives and to deliver the public services that we all rely on.

You can find out more about what it feels like to work for the Civil Service.

What are our values? 

Civil servants deliver their roles in the spirit of the Civil Service values of integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality.  Join us and you become part of a modern, vibrant community of professionals, who have one goal in common: to give back to the communities they serve.

Many of the government departments offering Fast Stream roles feature in Stonewall’s Top 100 Employers. We are ‘Disability Confident Leader’ accredited and our new Autism Exchange Internship Programme has won an Institute of Student Employers’ Award.

We offer support to those who need it, not only through our application and assessment process, but also through your employment with us.

You can find out more about the Civil Service at Civil Service Careers which gives potential applicants a positive, honest, reliable and relatable insight into working for the Civil Service. It provides information about departments, professions and ways to join, bringing these together in one place for the first time. 

What is the role of Fast Streamers?

Fast Streamers work across the Civil Service, typically gaining experience of working in different government departments, as they are developed to become our future leaders. The programme offers unlimited career potential to reach the very highest levels of the organisation.

As a Fast Streamer, you will be challenged and stretched from the outset and will be able to apply your skills and learning in a variety of contexts.