The project aims to develop flexible and innovative ways of working while also seeking to:

• Ensure the Civil Service (CS) continues to deliver high quality services to Government, the public and business.
• Deliver on the Programme for Government commitment to move to 20% remote/home working.
• Enable tailored Blended Working approaches that best meet the needs of individual organisations and their employees, within an overarching Framework.
• Ensure the CS remains an Employer of Choice by widening talent pools and improving diversity by providing access to blended working options.
• Support employee engagement, innovation, and productivity by providing options for additional flexibility, alongside the other flexible working options currently provided and by offering options for reduced commutes, more affordable housing choices and improved wellbeing.
• Over time, leveraging digital technology in the way we work, alleviating accommodation pressures and potentially reducing office space costs.

• The Civil Service Blended Working Policy Framework was published in March 2022.
• The National Shared Services Office developed an online application portal and launched it in August 2022.
• Departments and Offices have developed their own local Blended Working Policies and are now in the implementation phase.
• As of September 2022 over 17,000 civil servants had used the NSSO online application portal to apply for Blended Working i.e. 50% of the overall NSSO client case of 34,000 with some organisations using alternative application methods and some yet to start accepting applications.

All Civil Service organisations were involved in development of the Blended Working Policy. Existing networks were leveraged such as: the Civil Service Management Board (CSMB), the People Subgroup of the CSMB, the Civil Service Sectoral Group (CSSG) and the Corporate Assistant Secretary Network. Additional groups were established to supplement the process including a Blended Working Secretary General Sponsor Group, a Blended Working Subgroup of the CSSG and a Facilities Subgroup of the CSSG.

Groups engaged on legal, health and safety, equipment & expenses issues, and the design of a NSSO central application portal, calling in additional expertise as necessary from the CSSO, the Attorney General’s Office, the State Claims Agency, the Health and Safety Authority, OPW, Revenue and DPER legal advisers Byrne Wallace, amongst others. Central IR negotiations were managed by DPER with an Employer Blended Working Advisory Group established to ensure rapid turnaround on policy adjustments.

As of late September 2022, over 17,000 civil servants had used the NSSO application portal to apply for Blended Working this represents 50% of the overall NSSO client case of 34,000. Some organisations that have adapted the Blended Working Framework are using alternative application methods and some are yet to start accepting applications.

The project faced many challenges such as divergent views on required office attendance levels, different approaches to flexi time accrual, health and safety matters etc. owing to the number and diversity of Government Departments involved in the project. These challenges were overcome by high levels of senior stakeholder engagement and leadership, through sectoral collaboration and often rapid response on proposed solutions to successfully deliver a new approach to modern day working with many associated complexities in a timeframe much more ambitious than would traditionally have been the case for such a major innovation across the Civil Service.

Key to success is to ensure high level senior sponsorship and a commitment to appropriate resourcing and deadline driven feedback from stakeholders. Blended Working offers more flexible and innovative ways of working across the Civil Service, within an overarching central Blended Working Framework setting out common principles. The Policy delivers on some key commitments under the Programme for Government, Civil Service Renewal, the Public Sector Decarbonisation Strategy, Ireland’s rural development policy and wider Project Ireland 2040 objectives for sustainable regional, rural and urban development.

The Civil Service Framework has the potential to be adapted and used throughout the Public Sector. In addition, it is a potential template for the development of Blended Working policies in private sector organisations throughout the economy with an overall positive cumulative impact on Government policies mentioned earlier and the UN policies mentioned later in this submission. The agreement of an umbrella framework, dealing centrally with many of the common and more difficult issues, whilst still allowing for local tailoring to specific business needs could be replicated across the Civil and Public Sector for HR and other policies.

While it is still early days for the Policy Framework, Blended Working should, over time, offer opportunities for accommodation cost savings and encourage greater diversity within the Civil Service workforce. The development of the Civil Service Blended Working Framework built on successful fast-track collaboration and networking frameworks already in place, some of them initially introduced to support consistency and knowledge sharing in dealing with the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic. In particular, the Civil Service Management Board, Civil Service Sectoral Group, Corporate Assistant Secretary Network and subgroups formed by them were used to set out the case for change, research best practice, manage differences of opinion and build consensus.