17 March 2025
The Government of Jersey has welcomed the Comptroller and Auditor General’s, C&AG, report
as an opportunity to reinforce its commitment to improving public service delivery for Islanders.
While acknowledging areas for improvement, the Government has also stressed that key issues
in the report were in the process of being addressed when it was compiled.
A new and updated People Strategy was launched at the end of 2024 which outlines the
organisation’s long-term ambition for developing a high-quality public service, while investing in
the development and skills of staff, creating opportunities for growth and progression, and
fostering a culture where people feel like they belong.
Additionally, the Strategic Workforce Plan, which is a collation of outputs of all department
level plans, has since been published, which provides an overview of priority areas for
improvement that we are working to address.
The Government is also improving recruitment processes with a new careers site set to re-launch this year and is attracting and developing local talent via its apprenticeships and annual
intern programme.
Structured training programmes are in place to address skills shortages and innovative
recruitment processes have already been used to fill teaching assistant and primary teaching
vacancies.
A pledge announced last year to curb the growth in the public service, with a recruitment freeze
on non-frontline roles, is also helping to address issues around vacancy numbers highlighted in
the report. The recruitment freeze has enabled the recruitment teams to focus on essential
front-line service recruitment.
Deputy Malcolm Ferey, Vice-chair of the States Employment Board said: “We welcome the
report produced by the Comptroller & Auditor General and will review findings and make
progress on the necessary actions.
“However, this report is a snapshot in time and a number of the issues raised have already been
addressed. Since the audit was conducted the frameworks, policies and processes needed to
ensure we have a safe and effective recruitment process are in place.
“Last year, we saw a drop in turnover, with more employees staying in employment with the
Public Service.
“As the largest employer on the Island, the organisation is also working on a number of plans to
develop and nurture our talent to ensure we provide effective public services to Islanders.”
The Comptroller and Auditor General’s audit of Staff Recruitment and Retention​. ​
gov.je