Public sector employment in Scotland: statistics for first quarter 2016

5. Civil Service Employment in Scotland; Headcount (see Tables 6 and 7)

This section provides a summary of the civil service in Scotland.

The devolved civil service is made up of:

• Scottish Government Core Departments
• Scottish Government Agencies
• Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service
• Non-Ministerial Departments

The reserved civil service is made up of:

• UK Government Departments
• Scotland Office

In Q1 2016, there were 42,700 people employed as civil servants in Scotland. This is made up of 16,900 (39.6%) people working in the devolved civil service and 25,800 (60.4%) working in UK government departments. The total number of civil servants has decreased by 300 (-0.7%) over the year from 43,000 in Q1 2015 to 42,700 in Q1 2016.

Devolved Civil Service

The devolved civil service has decreased by 600 (-3.3%) since Q1 2015.

Chart 6 shows a breakdown of the devolved civil service in Scotland as at Q1 2016 ^[5] .

Chart 6: Breakdown of Devolved Civil Service Employment, Scotland, Headcount, Q1 2016

Scottish Government Core

In Q1 2016, there were 5,400 people employed in Scottish Government ( SG) core directorates, representing 31.9% of the devolved civil service in Scotland. Over the year to Q1 2016, employment in SG core directorates remained at similar levels to Q1 2015.

Scottish Government Agencies

There were 6,400 people employed in Scottish Government agencies in Q1 2016. Employment in SG agencies has decreased by 1,000 (-13.1%) over the year. This was mainly due to Historic Scotland no longer being part of the civil service.

Non Ministerial Departments

Non Ministerial Departments ( NMD) include the National Records of Scotland, Registers of Scotland, the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service and the Scottish Housing Regulator (from April 2012), Revenue Scotland (from January 2015) and Food Standards Scotland (from April 2015). In Q1 2016, there were 3,400 people employed in these NMDs, an increase of 300 (+11.4%) since Q1 2015. This increase is partly due to one new public body becoming operational during the year - Food Standards Scotland.

Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal

In Q1 2016, there were 1,700 people employed in the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal. Over the year to Q1 2016, employment in the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal increased by 20 (+1.4%).

Reserved Civil Service

Employment in the reserved civil service has increased by 300 (+1.1%), from 25,500 in Q1 2015 to 25,800 in Q1 2016.

Chart 7 identifies the breakdown of headcount employment in UK government departments as at Q1 2016.

Chart 7: Breakdown of Headcount Employment in the UK Government Departments as at Q1 2016

Department for Work and Pensions

In Q1 2016, there were 9,600 people employed in the Department for Work and Pensions ( DWP). Over the year from Q1 2015, employment in DWP has decreased by 500 (-4.6%).

HM Revenue and Customs

There were 9,100 people employed in HM Revenue and Customs in Q1 2016, an increase of 800 (+9.6%) since Q1 2015.

Ministry of Defence

There were 3,900 people employed in the Ministry of Defence in Q1 2016. This has decreased by 100 (-1.6%) since Q1 2015.

Other Civil Service ^[6]

The number of people employed in Other Civil Service in Q1 2016 was 2,400, a decrease of 200 (-5.9%).

Department for International Development

The number of people employed in the Department for International Development in Q1 2016 was 600, an increase of 30 (+5.0%) over the year.

Scotland Office

In Q1 2016, there were 70 people employed in the Scotland Office.