A new civil service performance management policy
Think tank: Re:State
Author(s): Matthew Feeney; Joe Hill; Charlotte Pickles
September 3, 2026
This report from UK think tank Re:State provides a series of ready to implement products
that can be used to rewire Whitehall.
Re:State’s A New Civil Service Performance Management Policy argues that Whitehall’s approach to managing performance is too weak at dealing with persistent underperformance. Drawing on departmental policies obtained through FOI requests and Re:State’s 2025 Alternative People Survey, the paper finds wide variation in ratings, objective-setting and review processes across departments. Only 8 per cent of survey respondents in a sample of 1,265 civil servants collected in 2025 agreed that the Civil Service manages poor performance well.
The paper outlines a single performance management framework for civil servants in core Whitehall functions below permanent secretary level. This policy, which is ready to implement, introduces common objective-setting requirements, regular performance conversations, formal mid-year and end-of-year reviews, and four ratings: Exceptional, Above Expectations, Meeting Expectations and Not Meeting Expectations. Performance would be assessed against delivery, Civil Service values, and government priorities.
The framework requires departments to identify the lowest-performing 10 per cent of staff for additional scrutiny, while making clear that this would not automatically classify them as poor performers. Persistent underperformance would trigger formal Performance Improvement Plans lasting 30–90 days, with clear objectives, weekly progress meetings, and the possibility of dismissal where performance does not improve.
Re:State also recommends dedicated departmental Performance Units to support managers, mandatory management training, stronger accountability for managers and Accounting Officers, and annual publication of performance data.
A clearer, fairer, and more rigorous system would improve productivity, reward exceptional talent, create a Civil Service characterised by excellence and deliver better value for money for taxpayers.
