Cabinet Office unveils plans for hundreds of jobs to be created via various initiatives targeted at those in the early stages of their career, while applications open for secondment scheme

The government will create 2,500 new technology roles by June 2025 through apprenticeship and other early-career recruitment programmes, the Cabinet Office has announced.

The programme will provide the opportunity for both civil servants and new entrants to be recruited into the “most in-demand” data and technology roles, such as cybersecurity technologists and software developers, the Cabinet Office said.

A total of 1,800 people – including 500 this financial year – will join government as part of a cross-government digital apprenticeship programme.  A further 700 roles are being created through an expansion of existing departmental digital programmes.

To reflect this, the Central Digital and Data Office’s recent update to its government-wide roadmap, includes a new target that, by June 2025,  “at least 2,500 new entrants to the HM Government digital, data and technology profession will be introduced via apprenticeships and early-career talent programmes”.

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The Cabinet Office has also confirmed its pilot secondment programme dedicated to DDaT roles, which was also announced in July, is now open for applications.  

The government is seeking “some of the UK’s best technical minds from industry… to work on the country’s biggest challenges, such as cyber security and new emerging technology”, the Cabinet Office said.

The digital-secondment programme and the apprenticeship recruitment drive will also support a new target for 6% of the overall civil service workforce to be members of the DDaT profession.

Minister for the Cabinet Office Jeremy Quin said: “Today’s announcement drives forward our plans for a modern civil service equipped with the skills and capabilities needed to harness the power of digital, data and technology. By attracting and retaining the best talent, we will keep pace with technological change and deliver more efficient services for the British public.”

Alex Burghart, who is parliamentary secretary for the Cabinet Office and has responsibility for digital government, added that the apprenticeships will “build great new digital careers and capabilities both in Whitehall and across the country”.

The civil service DDaT profession grew by 19% between April 2022 and April 2023, according to the CDDO’s updated 2022-25 roadmap for digital and data. In the same period, more than 600 senior civil servants were upskilled on digital and data essentials, the roadmap states.