The ‘unwritten rules’ of getting ahead in the civil service: Latin jokes and a posh accent

Government-backed report says Whitehall has ‘class ceiling’ that prevents upwards mobility

Whitehall street sign
(Image credit: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)

The key to success in the civil service is an arsenal of Latin jokes, received pronunciation and an obsession with Twitter, a new government-backed report claims.

The Social Mobility Commission (SMC), which advises ministers on how to make Britain fairer, has said a series of unwritten rules – including having the “right accent” – prevent many staff from progressing up the ranks in Whitehall.

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 Sorcha Bradley is a writer at The Week and a regular on “The Week Unwrapped” podcast. She worked at The Week magazine for a year and a half before taking up her current role with the digital team, where she mostly covers UK current affairs and politics. Before joining The Week, Sorcha worked at slow-news start-up Tortoise Media. She has also written for Sky News, The Sunday Times, the London Evening Standard and Grazia magazine, among other publications. She has a master’s in newspaper journalism from City, University of London, where she specialised in political journalism.