On 12 August, the Stockton office welcomed Jane Harbottle, the new Cabinet Office Director General, just eight days into her role. Jane was joined by her Chief of Staff, Hilary Tabita, along with UKSBS Shared Services Director Nathan Moores and Shared Services Deputy Director Jenny Sime.
The visit gave the UKSBS Executive team the opportunity to introduce the organisation, discuss Jane's new remit and explore the immediate challenges and priorities across her portfolio. This includes civil service pensions and government shared services, within OneGov, the new Cabinet Office arm's-length body created by the Prime Minister in July.
Led by CEO Clive Maxwell, OneGov will manage shared operational and administrative services across government departments to drive efficiency. It will include the Government Recruitment Service, civil service and public sector pensions, shared services strategy, the Government Car Service and national security vetting.
Jane and her team also met UKSBS colleagues in Stockton over lunch and shared their thanks for the warm welcome, the engaging agenda and the professional slides. Jane joins the Cabinet Office having previously served as Chief Executive Officer of the Legal Aid Agency.
Two days later, on 14 August, the Swindon office hosted Harriet Aldridge, the new Cabinet Office Chief Operating Officer, who started in her role on 1 May.
The Executive team gave Harriet an overview of UKSBS, followed by a productive discussion about the future of the Cabinet Office family, particularly the role of OneGov, which will host government shared services strategy.
Harriet was enthusiastic about working closely with UKSBS going forward. The first joint challenge will be planning and delivering the changes needed as the Cabinet Office onboards to Neo and UKSBS.
"These visits were an important opportunity to introduce UKSBS to new senior colleagues in the Cabinet Office, showcase the expertise and professionalism of our teams, and start building the strong working relationships we'll need for the future. As shared services continue to evolve across government, conversations like these help us align early, understand priorities and work together with confidence."