Centre for Working with Ministers and Parliament
Programmes | On Site | Tailored and ConsultancyClick here for a downloadable copy of the Centre for Working with Ministers and Parliament brochure.
Trust and confidence in learning
How well Ministers can perform in all they do depends heavily on the quality of drafting and advice they receive from officials. It's no exaggeration to say that good government depends on it. As an organisation that is part of government, the National School understands the central importance of this work, which is why we have created the new Centre for Working with Ministers and Parliament to give you the skills, confidence and understanding to give Ministers and Parliament what they need. We offer training programmes, consultancy, e-learning and books, all based on our unique access and insight into government. The wide, practical experience of our tutors is visible in the quality and flexibility of the training we offer.
Although there are examples of excellent practice across the Civil Service, many officials don't receive the supervision, guidance or training this type of work requires. Poor work is often used as a reference and copied, perpetuating bad practice. Small wonder Ministers report that materials written or prepared for them by civil servants leave much to be desired. Their most common complaints are that drafts are too long, miss the central point, are pitched at the wrong level of detail, riddled with jargon and management speak and don't sound human.
The new Centre for Working with Ministers and Parliament offers:
Programmes
A complementary set of programmes designed to help civil servants understand what Ministers need, and why and showing them how to do it.
Programmes cover:
Ministerial Work
Communication, Briefing and Writing
How to Work with Ministers
Parliamentary business
Parliamentary Questions
Select Committees
Broader programmes spanning the ministerial and parliamentary environment
A - Z of British Government: Westminster and Whitehall
The Government Framework
Parliament, Government and the Civil Service
Consultancy and Tailored Programmes
Our experience working with Ministers, particularly in exploring how they are served by their departments, together with our experience of having performed the job of the people we are teaching gives us a unique perspective to see it from both points of view.
E-Learning
A resource of knowledge and advice that can be tapped into from your desk. It's entitled Understanding the Civil Service.
Books
Five indispensable reference guides, written by National School of Government staff and a serving, senior civil servant, who have distilled their professional experience into books that will be used time after time.
Working with Ministers
A book that will help any civil servant, irrespective of seniority, who is involved in briefing or drafting for Ministers. It explains and demystifies what Ministers need and what officials can do to make sure they get it.
Finding your Way Around Whitehall and Beyond
A book for people who want to understand the government environment, especially those that are new to the Civil Service and for those about or newly appointed to working with and around Ministers.
Joining the Civil Service
A book for all new entrants to the Civil Service - what it's for, what civil servants do and why they do it.
Speechmaking
A guide for all who write speeches for others.
How To Be A Civil Servant
The first book about the British Civil Service published by a serving civil servant.