Office accommodation in the Civil Service

To the general public, the Civil Service is often perceived as an organisational entity: in reality, it embraces a complex network of organisations (the various departments) whose common goal is to further government policies, but whose nature, size and activities mirror the variety and scope of the policy arena itself. The Gowrie Report to the Prime Minister — a review of office accommodation management — synthesised the findings from reviews of eight of these departments. Its terms of reference were clear — ‘to examine provision of office and administrative accommodation and whether it meets current and foreseen needs; to examine departmental arrangements for managing and budgeting for accommodation; to consider the value for money of these arrangements; and to make recommendations’.