The Civil Service World Podcast

The Chancellor has said she wants to build an active and strategic state that drives investment-led growth across the whole of the UK. But is the wiring in place to make that happen?
In this episode, recorded at the Connected Places Summit in London, Suzannah Brecknell speaks to Alan Welby, managing director for built environment and local growth at the Connected Places Catapult, about what it will take to turn that ambition intoreality.
Drawing on a new report finding that only 1% of SMEs in most UK cities meet the threshold for investment readiness, Alan explains why capital continues to follow familiarityand existing networks rather than potential, and what needs to change. Theconversation covers blended finance, devolution, and the skills gap betweenpublic and private sectors. Plus, we hear a concrete example of how innovativefinancing models are being used to retrofit ageing housing stock in Glasgow.
Alan calls on civil servants to be bolder, and get muchsmarter about  supporting – and challenging – places to collaborate as they drive growth.
Hosted by Suzannah Brecknell, Editor-in-Chief, Civil ServiceWorld.
Recorded and produced by Podot.

From October, the UK takes on the chair of the Open Government Partnership, a global network of over 70 countries committed to more transparent, accountable and participatory government. In this episode Suzannah Brecknell speaks to Kevin Keith, chair of the UK Open Government Network and the UK Multi-Stakeholder Forum, about how the civil service can make the most of this moment.
From the lessons of a psychological experiment from 1950s Oklahoma, to what open government means in practice and why it matters right now, Kevin explores what all of this means for policy and delivery, and how the agenda connects to some of the biggest forces reshaping politics: from the collapse of public trust, to the rise of populism.

Useful links and contacts mentioned in this episode:
UK Open Government Network: opengovernment.org.uk
Contact:[email protected]
Open Government team, Cabinet Office Strategy Unit: [email protected]
Open Government Partnership: www.opengovpartnership.org

Hosted by Suzannah Brecknell, Editor-in-Chief, Civil Service World.
Recorded and produced by Podot.

Why is it so hard to do government well – and who’s trying to change that?
In this episode Suzannah Brecknell speaks to Derek Alton, founder of Civic Punks and former public servant, about his global quest to find the people who are building the future of government.
The conversation explores why governments struggle to adapt at the pace they need to, what history and even ecology can teach us about renewal, and how change can happen through the people who make the system work.
And, of course, we meet the Civic Punks - people with a passion for public service and a determination to change the system from within and without.
You can meet more Civic Punks on Derek's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@CivicPunks

Hosted by Suzannah Brecknell, Editor-in-Chief, Civil Service World
Produced by Podot

The latest Civil Service World Podcast discusses the extraordinary week we've just seen in Westminster and Whitehall.
CSW's editors-in-chief Jess and Suzannah are joined by Hannah Keenan from the Institute for Government to reflect on the sacking of cabinet secretary Sir Chris Wormald, the unprecedented nature of the situation - given how recently Wormald was appointed, and the impact of the turmoil on civil service morale.

Presented by Jess Bowie and Suzannah Brecknell.
Recorded and produced by Podot.

In this episode, we speak to Megan Lee Devlin – DG for Service Transformation at the Ministry of Justice – about practical, responsible AI adoption in government.
Megan shares how she uses AI day-to-day, from making the most of the general tools licenced by her department to the no-code tools built by civil servants themselves. She also tells us about bespoke, large-scale tools like Justice Transcribe, which has halved the time probation officers spend on admin.
She offers advice on building capability, overcoming challenges like hallucinations, and how leaders can support a wider adoption of AI through curiosity, connection and responsible championing.

Hosted by Suzannah Brecknell, editor-in-chief, Civil Service World.
Recorded and produced by Podot.