- Jo Faragher
A Freedom of Information (FoI) request submitted by software company Bullhorn has revealed that the Cabinet Office spent three times more on recruitment in 2012/2013 compared with the year before.
Nine government departments responded to the company’s FoI requests, which revealed increased spending on recruitment in seven ministerial departments. The increase was highest in the Cabinet Office, up 302% from £63,050 in 2011/12 to £253,463 in 2012/13.
The second highest increase occurred in the Department for Education, where recruitment spend went up 254% to £383,291 over the same period.
Departments where recruitment declined, based on the FoI responses, were the Department of Health and the House of Commons (down 33% and 38% respectively). In total, Bullhorn requested recruitment data from 24 ministerial departments.
The figures show that government recruitment spending is on the rise, on the whole, which suggest departments could make more effective use of technology to ensure public money is spent efficiently.
“As government departments increase their recruitment spend, it is essential the money is spent efficiently,” said Peter Linas, Bullhorn’s International MD. “There’s room for improvement and recruiters servicing the public sector need to make sure they’re using the latest techniques to attract the best candidates.”