Public Sector Leadership Development
Events courses and programmes to develop skills, knowledge and networks for the most senior leaders in public service.
We offer a selection of events, courses and programmes to the top tiers of the largest public sector and civil service organisations (CEO equivalents). More information about eligibility can be found at the bottom of this page.
These are designed to help leaders:
- enhance their practical, evidence-based knowledge and expertise around facing complex systems challenges
- build strong networks between peers and break down silos between the Civil Service and wider public sector
- inspire and encourage measurable improvements in public service delivery.
From April 2025 our offer has changed and will pivot to being primarily focussed on CEO provision for 2025-26, as we prepare to launch a new programme specifically for CEOs. Subject to funding approvals, we hope that our offer will expand after 2025-26. The ambition is to offer a wider breadth at the most senior level and to expand to include middle management. Coffee Connect will remain available for Deputy CEOs for 2025-26.
CEO Community Calls
We invite you to register for our CEO Community Calls, a series hosted by Civil Service Chief Operating Officer and Permanent Secretary to the Cabinet Office, Catherine Little.
Register for the next call on 24 September
During this event, we will reflect on the progress of mission delivery over the past 12 months and delve into the recent fiscal events, exploring their implications for public services.
This is an opportunity for you to engage and share insights with fellow CEO-level leaders, and be a part of the conversation on mission delivery, enhancing our collective efforts in public service.
National Leadership Forum
Our annual CEO Conference takes place in London on 13 November 2025. This exclusive one-day event is designed specifically for public sector CEOs.
Register for the National Leadership Forum 2025
Event Highlights:
- inspiring speakers - hear from thought-provoking speakers offering fresh perspectives on the challenges and innovations shaping our country
- systems leadership - join discussions focused on addressing the collective problems you face as leaders across the public sector
- relevant insights - gain insights from fellow leaders navigating complex challenges, and equip yourself with actionable insights and strategies
- networking opportunities - connect with fellow leaders across the public sector and build valuable relationships to enable collaboration and innovation
Previous events have received enthusiastic feedback, and you can get a taste of what to expect by watching the following video from our November 2024 event.
Watch the highlights from NLF 2024 here
Public Leaders Programme
The new Public Leaders Programme, set to launch in January 2026, is a 12-month leadership programme designed for individuals in public sector CEO-level roles.
The Public Leaders Programme aims to address key challenges faced by leaders and will focus on:
- building relationships and networks across the public sector
- improving core skills for systems leadership at the executive level
- enhancing capabilities to make principled, ethical decisions aligned with public service values
- improving knowledge of factors strategically shaping the UK
- enhancing the capability to innovate and lead modernisation in a rapidly changing world
This will be an opportunity for leaders to build their knowledge, connect and work together.
Peer Mentoring Programme
In collaboration with the College of Policing we are piloting a cross public sector peer mentoring programme. A limited number of places will be available; please express your interest via leadershipcollege@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
Coffee Connect
This programme focuses on building your personal network. Once a month, we pair participants with a leader from a large public sector organisation or Civil Service department. Participants get in touch with each other to arrange a convenient time to meet either over the phone or by video-conferencing platform. Each month, participants are offered the opportunity to opt out if they aren’t available.
We run two schemes, one for CEOs and another for Deputy CEOs (or equivalent level roles).
Leading Collaborative Organisations
We are not currently delivering this programme as we refresh our programme offer.
Participants of this programme will broaden their understanding of collaboration across three programme elements; two residential modules and a webinar.
The programme will include several different types of learning sessions with a strong personal reflective element running throughout. From presentations, experiential visits and facilitated discussions, to cross-sector panels and real-life case studies, participants will identify the challenges and enablers, and the impact they have on their own motivations, structures and relationships as public service leaders.
Eligibility requirements for our courses
The Leadership College for Government (LCG) works with representative bodies from across the public sector to agree and review the criteria we use to determine eligibility for our programmes.
CEO leaders (and equivalent level roles) of the largest public sector and civil service organisations in the UK are eligible to participate in our programmes*.
The following is a list of the roles which would typically be eligible for our public sector leadership development programmes.
- CEOs in the National Health Service, including NHS Trusts, Ambulance Trusts, and Integrated Care Systems
- Vice-chancellors of universities with over 10,000 students, or 5,000 students where higher education isn’t represented in that region
- Principals or CEOs of large further education colleges (turnover of £30m+)
- CEOs of academy chains (25 or more linked schools or 10,000 or more students)
- Local authority CEOs
- Chief constables of police services
- Chief fire officers of fire and rescue services
- Civil Service Permanent Secretaries and Directors General (SCS3 and 4)
- Three star military officers
- CEOs of the largest Arms Length Bodies and Regional Transport Authorities (SCS3 and 4 equivalent level roles)
- Chief Executives of Crown Dependencies
- Permanent Secretaries/ equivalents of Overseas Territories
All applications are non-selective but the LCG reserves the right to ensure that there is a reasonable distribution of different sectors across the organisations attending. Where courses are extremely popular, the LCG will look to repeat them as soon as possible.
*The exception to this is for Coffee Connect which offers two separate schemes; one for Chief Executive Officers and another for Deputy Chief Executive Officers (and equivalent level roles) from eligible organisations.
Updates to this page
-
Updated the sections: CEO Community Calls Public Sector CEO Leaders Programme (Changed to Public Leaders Programme)
-
Updated the eligibility section
-
Updated the section: CEO Community Calls
-
Added the following to the eligibility criteria: Chief Executives of Crown Dependencies Permanent Secretaries/ equivalents of Overseas Territories
-
First published.