Working Together:
Civil Service examples by grade
What sifters look for at EO, HEO/SEO and Grade 7, three worked example statements, and the phrasing that separates a 3 from a 6.
What Working Together means
“Form effective partnerships and relationships with people both internally and externally, from a range of diverse backgrounds, sharing information, resources and support.”Civil Service behaviour framework, gov.uk
This behaviour is about working across boundaries: building relationships outside your own team, sharing information and resources, and supporting colleagues, including their wellbeing. It also includes making sure bullying, harassment and discrimination are not tolerated. The strongest examples show a result that no single team could have achieved alone.
What sifters look for at each grade
EO (Level 2)
Building contacts outside your team, supporting colleagues, and contributing to an inclusive environment.
- Developing contacts outside your own team to share knowledge
- Listening with genuine interest
- Helping create an inclusive environment where all opinions are valued
- Making it clear that bullying, harassment and discrimination are unacceptable
- Offering support to colleagues and considering their wellbeing
- Changing how you work to help cooperation between teams
HEO / SEO (Level 3)
Encouraging joined-up teamwork across groups and building relationships with a range of stakeholders.
- Encouraging joined-up teamwork within your team and across groups
- Building professional relationships with a range of stakeholders
- Collaborating to share information, resources and support
- Putting support in place for team wellbeing
- Actively seeking input from people with different backgrounds and perspectives
Grade 7 / Grade 6 (Level 4)
Building networks for shared objectives, challenging assumptions, and staying approachable.
- Building and maintaining a network of colleagues and contacts to achieve shared objectives
- Challenging assumptions while being willing to compromise
- Building strong relationships and showing genuine care
- Understanding different needs so that everyone is supported
- Staying available, approachable and open to ideas
Summarised from the gov.uk behaviour descriptors. Read the full indicators for the grade in your advert.
Working Together example statements
Joining up two teams so customers stop falling through the gap
In my role processing housing benefit, I noticed that some claims were delayed for weeks because my team and the council tax team each waited for the other to confirm a household’s income. Customers were getting two sets of letters and phoning both teams.
I contacted a colleague in the council tax team whom I had built a relationship with on a training course, and I compared 25 recent delayed cases with her. I found that most of the delay came from information both teams already held but did not share.
I suggested a shared spreadsheet where each team could record income evidence once, and agreed a simple process with my counterpart. I checked with the information governance lead that sharing the data this way was lawful. I also set up a short fortnightly call so staff in both teams could raise problems, and made sure newer colleagues felt able to contribute.
Within three months, the average delay on joint cases fell from 19 days to 6, and duplicate customer calls dropped by around 40%. Both team leaders have kept the process, and I now support new starters in both teams to use it.
Why this would score well
- Built a contact outside their own team
- Shared information across teams, and checked it was lawful
- Changed how they worked to help cooperation
- Made space for newer colleagues to contribute
- Result: delays 19 days → 6, duplicate calls −40%
Bringing four organisations together on a joint pilot
As an HEO project manager, I led a pilot to help prison leavers find housing on release. The work depended on four organisations that rarely worked together: the prison, the probation service, two local councils and a housing charity.
I met each partner separately to understand their priorities and pressures before bringing them together. I set up a joint working group, agreed shared objectives, and created one shared case tracker so information was not held in five places. I asked the charity to bring people with lived experience of leaving prison to the planning sessions, which changed several of my assumptions.
When one council fell behind because of staff shortages, I arranged for the charity to support its caseworkers for six weeks rather than let the pilot slip. I also noticed the council caseworkers were under real strain, so I agreed with their manager to reduce the number of weekly meetings and check in with them individually.
Over the 12-month pilot, the proportion of prison leavers with accommodation on release rose from 52% to 79%. All four organisations have kept the joint working group, and the model is being extended to two more areas.
Why this would score well
- Built professional relationships with a range of stakeholders
- Encouraged joined-up working across organisations
- Shared information and resources to keep delivery on track
- Sought input from people with lived experience
- Supported partners’ wellbeing under pressure
Resolving tension between two teams with a shared objective
I am a Grade 7 leading a data team that provides analysis for a policy directorate. When I joined, relations between the two teams had broken down: policy colleagues saw analysts as slow, and analysts felt their advice was ignored. Two ministerial deadlines had been missed in six months.
I met the policy deputy director and each team lead to understand both sides, and challenged some of the assumptions I heard, including in my own team. I agreed a shared objective with the deputy director: no missed ministerial deadlines, and every submission to include analyst advice. I was willing to compromise, accepting shorter turnaround times for urgent requests in return for earlier notice of planned work.
I set up joint planning meetings, placed an analyst in each policy team for one day a week, and made myself available to both teams when problems arose. I checked in regularly on my team’s workload and wellbeing, as the new arrangements added pressure at first, and adjusted rotas for two colleagues with caring responsibilities.
In the following nine months, no ministerial deadlines were missed. A joint survey showed trust between the teams increased from 41% to 77%, and two other directorates have adopted the arrangement.
Why this would score well
- Built relationships to achieve a shared objective
- Challenged assumptions, including in their own team
- Willing to compromise to reach agreement
- Stayed available and approachable to both teams
- Supported wellbeing and different needs
These illustrate structure and pitch. They are not statements to copy: Civil Service guidance treats presenting someone else’s or AI-generated content as your own as plagiarism, and applications can be withdrawn for it. Write about your own experience.
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Weak vs strong phrasing
Scores low
“I am a good team player.”
Scores higher
“I set up a shared tracker with the council tax team and cut joint-case delays from 19 days to 6.”
Scores low
“We all worked well together as a team.”
Scores higher
“I met each of the four partners separately, then agreed shared objectives in a joint working group.”
Scores low
“I support my colleagues.”
Scores higher
“I noticed caseworkers were under strain, reduced weekly meetings and checked in with each of them individually.”
Working Together interview questions
If you reach interview, expect the panel to ask about this behaviour again, often with follow-ups on the same example.
- “Tell me about a time you worked with people outside your team to achieve something.”
- “Describe a time you had to build a relationship with someone who was difficult to work with.”
- “Give an example of when you supported a colleague’s wellbeing.”
- “How have you made sure everyone in a team felt able to contribute?”
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Working Together: FAQ
More Civil Service behaviours
→ All 9 Civil Service behaviours — levels by grade, 1–7 scoring and how to write a statement.
→ Making Effective Decisions examples — example statements at EO, HEO/SEO and Grade 7.
→ Delivering at Pace examples — example statements at EO, HEO/SEO and Grade 7.
→ Leadership examples — example statements at EO, HEO/SEO and Grade 7.
→ Seeing the Big Picture examples — example statements at EO, HEO/SEO and Grade 7.
→ Changing and Improving examples — example statements at EO, HEO/SEO and Grade 7.
→ Communicating and Influencing examples — example statements at EO, HEO/SEO and Grade 7.
→ Developing Self and Others examples — example statements at EO, HEO/SEO and Grade 7.
→ Managing a Quality Service examples — example statements at EO, HEO/SEO and Grade 7.
→ Civil Service behaviour interview questions — questions for all nine behaviours with a model answer.
→ Civil Service Success Profiles — the 5 elements, how each is assessed, and all 36 strengths.
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