Civil Service - Post Lockdown - Blended Working?

Not in the CS, but we have a few people who prefer to be in the office. So they happily come into the Office.

I know one person in another job who quit when they went fully remote.

I think most people like a hybrid. With common anchor days for teams and units.

I think many places can accommodate different working practices. But a lot will just return to the old ways.

Hi, still waiting on the dept of Education policy re wfh and flexi. Anyone have any insight?

Has anyone implemented flexi yet?

DECC also

Hi All! I have just stumbled across this thread & I am hoping someone here can advise! I recently applied for Revenue AO (Audit & Compliance) position. I have also applied for EO Position via PAS (hoping for Rev Comm but I have not heard anything back on this yet!). I am just wondering if anyone here can advise on the current work situation at Revenue? Do most Revenue depts (or specifically EO & AO's) still work from home? Or If blended, is there generally a minimum amount of days required in the office? .. I currently work remotely & have absolutely no desire to ever return to an office 5 days a week! Looking back now it was soul destroying & ridiculous driving in just to look at a computer screen! I certainly value my time with family a lot more since Intro of WFH!!!

It depends on the section/division. Borders, customs, etc., are hands on so fully rostered on site (but I don't think they recruit from the open panels, anyway).

I'll post up a new survey at the weekend to try and get a comprehensive read available for everyone on what departments/offices/local authorities are doing. I think the official blended working trial should be kicking in for most departments from 1st October.

The portal for applying for blended in Revenue opened at beginning of September…

Blended due to start next Monday but no communication about it, could see it being on put back again…

Our Dept was originally to be 1 day per month but will now be 1 day per week in the office

Out of interest, are you not able to do the PQs etc between 8-4? Or do you have to have flexi for that to happen ?

Very short sighted, if the AP gets sick of this nonsense and decides flexi time isn't working for business needs and makes you all work until 5.30 every evening there will be plenty of time to crack on with PQs and press queries while those who are prepared to be flexible when required are out the gap 90 minutes before you most days.

@maneno Why should anyone be made to work later if they're not getting paid and not going to get time off in lieu for that work?

If shortsighted management policies are causing problems, then those policies need to be changed.

@Foggy Jew

How does the flexi system permit you to clock in and out on wfh days without affecting the balance?

If you worked less than 7 hours on a wfh day would it reduce your balance?

Why is everyone doing themselves out of 30 mins a day? 0800-1600 with only a half hour lunch is 7:30.

OP said that they are not allowed to accumulate flexitime on wfh days.

Which civil servants? It's reasonable to assume the OP is a general service grade unless they say otherwise.

I'd argue the opposite? The time to set out the consequences of a regressive, rigid policy to senior management is surely right now, in the trial period. Compromise and precedent now will bite staff in the ass in the longer term. Admittedly, though, this will be somewhat dependent on the AP and PO too, I'd say.

* "So the no-flexi-on-WFH-days isn't working out - bizarrely, people won't work past their 7 hours for free. This is effecting PQ response times, etc. We therefore need to make everyone work set hours where their 7 hours a day keeps them there until later in the evening, 9:15 to 13:00 and 14:15 to 17:30"

versus

* "So the no-flexi-on-WFH-days isn't working out - bizarrely, people won't work past their 7 hours for free. This is effecting PQ response times, etc. We therefore need to let people work up their flexi on WFH days, too - if they can work up until 7pm and get credit for it, and don't have to commute home after, either, then we get flexibility from them. They'll happily work late when needed, say when we're on oral PQs - and I won't have to work until 11pm again!"

Some of Revenue are to be in the office 1 day a week from Monday. It was originally mooted as 1 day a month but someone higher up the chain didn't like that.

Hi! Long time lurker, first time poster. Our dept are looking for a minimum of 2 days in the office. Flexi is in a trial, we are only allowed to work up flexi hours on days in the office. A new clockwise system was installed in September that separates out wfh hours and flexi hours.

I think this blended working is turning quickly into a tool that will actually demotivate people who work in the civil service. That the adding of hot desks it's gonna be a **** show.