Public Sector Employment: Employment by organisation: 2019 Quarter 1 to 2025 Quarter 3

Supporting information

Background

Public Sector Employment: Employment by organisation: 2019 Quarter 1 to 2025 Quarter 3 presents employment figures (headcount and full-time equivalent) for a subset of organisations in the devolved public sector in Scotland, on a quarterly basis from 2019 Q1 to 2025 Q3.

The figures are consistent with those used to produce the Accredited Official Statistics publication Public Sector Employment in Scotland.

The Public Sector Employment in Scotland publication presents quarterly headcount and full-time equivalent data for public sector employees in Scotland.

This publication presents these figures at the level of individual organisations to improve understanding of the size and shape of public sector employment in Scotland, to strengthen the Scottish Government’s approach to pay and workforce management, and to align with the principles of Intelligent Transparency.

The scope of this publication is the devolved public sector in Scotland.

Organisations included are those classified to the devolved public sector in Scotland at 2025 Q3 for which consent was granted to publish individual headcount and full-time equivalent employment figures by, or on behalf of, their relevant leaders.

Note that calendar quarters are used here, rather than financial (Quarter 1 is January to March; Quarter 2 is April to June, Quarter 3 is July to September; Quarter 4 is October to December).

The figures presented here are at the level of individual organisation on a quarterly basis between 2019 Q1 (March) and 2025 Q3 (September), to provide a pre-pandemic baseline.

Figures of 5 or greater are rounded to the nearest 5, and those less than 5 are suppressed, to reduce the risk of disclosing sensitive information.

Organisations for which the Scottish Government does not have consent to publish are excluded. Additionally a small number of organisations which did grant consent have had their figures suppressed, to prevent potential secondary disclosure of organisations that did not consent to publish, through differencing against published category totals.

Classification

The public sector is defined by the Office for National Statistics based on UK National Accounts definitions. The National Accounts are compiled based on an internationally comparable framework and describe activities in the National Economy. 

Table 1: Classification of organisations

More information on how public sector bodies are classified is available alongside the Public Sector Employment Statistics publication.

In this publication, classification reflects how organisations were classified in 2025 Q3; previous reclassifications are not taken into account.

Similarly, where organisations have merged or been absorbed during the time period covered by the publication, this will be reflected as an increase in employment for the successor organisation, while the absorbed organisation will not be included.

Headcount and full-time equivalent

This publication includes headcount and full-time equivalent estimates.

Headcount estimates are based on the number of employees with an employment contract who are being paid by the organisation. Employees can be permanent, on a fixed-term contract or employed on a casual basis. Self-employed, contract workers, and agency workers are excluded.

Number of employees on a full-time equivalent (FTE) basis are based on converting part-time employees' hours into a full-time employee equivalent. This provides a better indicator of total labour input than a simple headcount.

Data collected through the ONS Quarterly Public Sector Employment Survey (QPSES) ask organisations for total headcount estimates and full-time equivalent (FTE) estimates based on an employee’s contracted hours, regardless of contract type. However, some data collected by other agencies include FTE estimates based on an employee’s actual worked hours during the survey reference period.

Coverage

Public Sector Employment: Employment by organisation: 2019 Quarter 1 to 2025 Quarter 3 covers those organisations included in the public sector based on National Accounts definitions, see: Public sector classification guide and forward work plan - Office for National Statistics. Only public organisations for which the Scottish Government has obtained consent to publish this data are included.

Data Sources

The statistics published here are collected from the relevant departments and devolved governments plus comprehensive quarterly surveys of Scottish Civil Service, Non-Departmental Public Bodies, and Public Corporations, carried out by ONS. The following list shows the main data sources used to calculate total public sector employment. Further details with regard to each source are available in the relevant sections below.

Table 2: Data source and reference date, by sector

Figures for individual organisations may not sum to totals in the Public Sector Employment in Scotland publication for various reasons, particularly due to incomplete coverage, classification changes over time, and revisions.

Quality Assurance

The accuracy of the estimates produced within this series rely on HR departments reporting accurately employment to SG and ONS (who collect estimates for the majority of public organisations). The data is validated to ensure it is as accurate as possible. More information on data validation is available alongside the Public Sector Employment in Scotland publication.

A copy of the questionnaire and the guidance issued to data providers are available here.

Where missing or incorrect information has been provided, organisations are asked to amend and resubmit the data or explain why the data is correct. Data providers are supported to revise any incorrect data to ensure the ongoing accuracy of the Public Sector Employment in Scotland series.

Seasonality and trends

This series is not seasonally adjusted and therefore it is not recommended that quarter on quarter comparisons are made.

The statistics published here include a diverse range of organisations with differing functions and responsibilities. Some participating organisations have operating models and delivery responsibilities that involve increases in seasonal or otherwise temporary staff in order to carry out their functions. Users of these statistics should refer to the output of the organisations in question (such as published organisational annual reports and accounts) which often contain further context and explanation, in order to understand seasonal patterns or apparent departures from trends. Users should exercise caution in drawing conclusions about any particular organisation in the absence of this kind of additional information.

Rounding and suppression

Figures of 5 or greater are rounded to the nearest 5, and those less than 5 are suppressed, to reduce the risk of disclosing sensitive information.

Figures for some organisations have also been suppressed to reduce the risk of secondary disclosure.

Comparability

Figures are collected and processed for the production of public sector employment statistics consistent with National Accounts definitions. For this reason they are consistent with the headcount figures already published on the National public bodies directory, and with the statistical products listed below:

• Public Sector Employment Statistics (Scotland)
• Scottish Government Workforce Statistics (Scotland)
• Police officer quarterly strength statistics (Scotland)
• Social Security Scotland workforce statistics (Scotland)
• NHS Workforce Statistics (Scotland)
• Public Sector Employment Statistics (UK)

Figures may not be consistent with workforce figures published by public organisations themselves due to differences in timing, inclusion criteria, or definitions. For example, QPSES data compiled under National Accounts definitions may exclude on-call personnel where pay is irregular or availability‑based, whereas some organisations include these staff groups in their own reporting. For more information on ONS QPSES criteria see Quarterly Public Sector Employment Statistics inclusion criteria.

As the scope of this publication is devolved public sector organisations at 2025 Q3, the set of included organisations does not change over time as it does in the Public Sector Employment in Scotland statistics for example. For this reason, summing the data in this publication to obtain a total employment figure for a particular sub sector or category is generally not meaningful; the Public Sector Employment in Scotland publication provides a better source of this information.

Publication Policy

This publication is an Official Statistics publication. Data for this period were first published in the Public Sector Employment in Scotland Statistics release in December 2025.

This publication lags the Public Sector Employment Statistics published by the Scottish Government; as such it is not considered market sensitive.

Pre-release access is granted prior to publication in accordance with the Pre-release Access to Official Statistics (Scotland) Order 2008

The figures included in this publication are consistent with those used for Public Sector Employment Statistics in Scotland for 2025 Q3; however some organisations may have subsequently revised their data. Such revisions are not incorporated here.