The UK government is tightening eligibility for Whitehall internships as part of efforts to make the civil service more representative of the working class. The main internship scheme will be limited to students from lower socio-economic backgrounds, based on their parents' occupations when they were 14.
Pat McFadden, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said Whitehall needed to reflect the broader community. 'We need to get more working-class young people into the Civil Service so it harnesses the broadest range of talent and truly reflects the country,' he told the BBC. 'Government makes better decisions when it represents and understands the people we serve.'
The changes, expected from summer 2026, will give young people experience in writing briefings, planning events, conducting policy research, and shadowing civil servants. The existing paid summer placement, lasting up to eight weeks, is open to undergraduates in their final two years of study.
This move follows plans to relocate thousands of civil servants out of London as part of a broader reform. The government aims to reduce the London count by 12,000, saving £94 million in lease costs by 2032. New regional 'campuses' will be created in Manchester and Aberdeen, focusing on digital innovation and energy respectively.
Other roles will be distributed across Birmingham, Leeds, Cardiff, Glasgow, Darlington, Newcastle, Sheffield, Bristol, Edinburgh, Belfast, and York, expected to bring £729 million to local economies by 2030.
