Relocation, relocation: how moving civil service jobs out of London and the southeast can drive regional rebalancing

The government has committed to moving 22,000 civil service jobs out from London by 2030. This session will look at the progress that has been made so far, and the possible benefits for policy and service delivery in spreading government’s geographic footprint.

Corin Robertson, Director General, Finance and Corporate Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, United Kingdom

Making modern public services accessible for all

As citizens demand that more services are made conveniently available online, it is vitally important that government departments also think innovatively about the way they can ensure services are accessible in an increasingly digital world.

This session will share best practice for across both the UK government and beyond on how to make public services accessible for all.

Fireside chat: Innovation in digital and data

This session will share the latest developments from government on sharing data and using technology to create more joined-up public services.

Fireside chat: Innovation in skills

This session will share best practice on how public services are developing the skills of public servants to make sure that they have the capability they need.

AI in society: how governments can tackle mis and disinformation generated by artificial intelligence tools

Artificial intelligence could revolutionise many areas of life, and not just in the delivery of public services.

AI creates the potential for quicker, more responsive services, but there is also the risk of bad actors using AI to create deep fakes and other forms of misinformation to undermine societal cohesion and attempt to subvert democratic processes.

This session will look at how government can tackle this risk to make sure that AI is deployed safety across society, from improving digital literacy to watermarking images generated by AI.

Skills for the future: how government can identify – and develop – the skills that it needs for the future

To deliver digital-enabled public services that citizens expect, government departments need to both understand the skills required, and to develop a plan to deliver them that combines bringing in external skills to the civil service, and developing the skills of those already working for government.

This session will share insight in how this is best done, looking at how departments can get the skills mix right to deliver improved public services.

Speakers:

Thomas Beautyman, Deputy Director, Government Digital Capability, Central Digital and Data Office, Cabinet Office, United Kingdom

Israel Pastor Sainz-Pardo, Director of the Learning Department of the National Institute of Public Administration, Ministry of finance and Civil Service of Spain

Making hybrid working work for all

Many government departments have implemented hybrid ways of working, with civil servants working a mix of in home and in the office.

This session, held in partnership with the Global Government Women’s Forum, will look at the best practice that departments are developing to make the most of this new normal, including how to build and maintain hybrid teams, how to ensure that offices have the technology to help everyone work effectively, and how to ensure career progression prospects are equal for everyone, regardless of their place of work.

RPA in the civil service – how departments can use automation to boost government efficiency

Headlines have been dominated in recent months by the leaps forward taken by artificial intelligence, and its potential applications in government.

However, AI is not the only form of transformation that can help government become more efficient. Indeed, many government departments are already making use of automation technology to help civil servants complete routine tasks, both quickening services for citizens and freeing up officials for other work.

This session will share the stories from departments that have deployed automation – where they are using it, how they developed it, and what the benefits have been.

Crowding in innovation: how to open up policy development to people-powered insight

Governments need to better join-up policy development with operational delivery to make sure they can meet the growing challenges they face.

However, such collaboration can be difficult to implement in practice. This session will share insight from across the UK government and beyond on how to build collaboration between policy development and operational delivery, including how to identify and develop the enabling infrastructure needed.

Speakers:

Paul Morisson, Chief Executive, The Planning Inspectorate Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, United Kingdom

Jo Jolly, Deputy Director and Head Projects of Futures, Infrastructure and Projects Authority, United Kingdom

The tip of the arrow: how cybersecurity can help unlock government transformation

Cyber security is vital to protecting the delivery of public services from hostile forces. The Government Cyber Security Strategy: 2022 to 2030 sets out how to build a cyber resilient public sector.

This session will share insight from departments on how they are implementing the plan, as well as bringing in international perspectives on how cyber security improvements can also be used to deliver broader improvements to their technology and service delivery.