Senior Welsh Government civil servants are working from overseas

Martin Shipton

The Welsh Government’s “remote working” policy has resulted in some senior civil servants working on a full-time basis from England and even from overseas, we can reveal.

In some cases teams are being managed from outside Wales, we understand.

Nation.Cymru was tipped off about the practice and told that the arrangement is not universally popular with civil servants, some of whom believe it inappropriate that senior management colleagues should be steering policies that affect the people of Wales while living elsewhere.

We wrote to the Welsh Government stating: “We’re being told that since working from home became commonplace during the pandemic, quite a lot of Welsh Government civil servants, some of them very senior, are working from homes outside of Wales. Cornwall and Germany have been mentioned to us as examples of the locations.

“What is the Welsh Government’s policy on working from home – is there any requirement to spend a minimum amount of time in the office, for example?

“Is the Welsh Government content for people to be working from home outside Wales?

“Is there any estimate as to how many are doing so?

“Has any assessment been made on the impact of working from home on the efficiency of civil servants?”

Hybrid working

A Welsh Government spokesperson responded: “Our hybrid working approach allows staff to work from locations within and outside Wales according to business need. There are some very rare occasions where staff work from abroad, either because of their role in overseas teams or because they are accompanying their partners who have been posted overseas by the military or other UK Government departments. Having the flexibilities of office, remote and hybrid working can increase productivity, improve work life balance, and deliver carbon reduction benefits.”

In March 2024 the Welsh Government produced a report summarising the experience of senior civil servants participating in hybrid working when they engage with their key external stakeholders and Ministers. The exercise was conducted between December 2023 to January 2024, with responses from 109 members of the Senior Civil Service.

The report painted a mixed picture, stating: “Respondents were generally positive about the impact of hybrid working on their ability to effectively engage with stakeholders and interact with Ministers. Although respondents did not frequently report difficulties in engaging with stakeholders and Ministers whilst working in a hybrid way, and the majority of stakeholders and Ministers had not communicated a preference for in-person engagement, it was clear that there were certain tasks and activities that were felt to be more effective to do in person.

“Engagement activities and tasks thought to be more effective to do in person were reported as being similar for both stakeholders and Ministers. These included activities and tasks that helped to build and maintain relationships such as networking and informal discussions, where sensitive or complex discussions were required, group activities or events where collaboration was necessary and more formal meetings and activities.

“Overall, hybrid working was felt to facilitate effective engagement with both stakeholders and Ministers in a wide range of ways, including:

* Meetings were easier to arrange, which facilitated more frequent and focussed engagement and allowed respondents to be more flexible, agile and responsive in their engagement.

• It increased the reach and therefore quality of engagement activity by improving access to stakeholders both within and outside of Wales, as well as to a wider group of staff and Ministers. It was noted that an additional advantage of hybrid working for Ministers was that more staff could attend meetings or briefing sessions so that wider expertise and knowledge could be drawn upon instantly if required.

• It reduced the need for travel, as well as the ‘dead time’ often experienced waiting for meetings because engagement no longer had to be in-person, so respondents could use their time more effectively.

• The technology available to support hybrid working was thought to support effective engagement through chat functions and the ability to share resources more readily. It also gave respondents access to information instantly if Ministers asked for any points of clarification in meetings.

• However, as hybrid working has resulted in fewer in-person activities or tasks, it was suggested that it could hinder some aspects of effective engagement.

Challenging

Respondents suggested that it was more challenging to build and maintain strong working relationships because of fewer opportunities for informal conversations and networking. It was noted that this was a particular disadvantage for those who were new to their role. There were also challenges around ensuring hybrid engagement activities were effective and inclusive with participants being fully engaged, as well as ensuring that those leading engagement activities are equipped to do so.

“In addition, hybrid meetings require support to ensure technology is functioning appropriately and used effectively by both meeting Chairs and participants to facilitate full engagement by all.”

A survey of Welsh Government hybrid workers undertaken in 2023 showed that 71% of respondents reported that they spend at least some time in an office, with 29% working remotely or from home all of the time.

FOI

According to a Freedom of Information disclosure in July 2024, the Welsh Government has 5,756 full time equivalent employees, of whom 122 are officially designated as full-time formal homeworkers.

A Welsh Conservative source said: “Nobody has any issue with people working a couple of days a week from home, but it is ludicrous that some senior civil servants are working full-time from outside Wales, with some of them even working overseas when doing so is not their remit.

“It’s entirely reasonable that people involved in making and implementing decisions that affect the people of Wales should live here themselves.”