Ministry of Defence: Conditions of Employment
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many staff in his Department (a) did not retain employment following the completion of their probationary period and (b) had their probationary period extended in each of the last five years.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones
Ministry of Defence probation policy and guidance advises managers on the steps to take to assess a new employee’s suitability for the post and to provide support to enable them to succeed. It also advises on the steps to take where performance, attendance or conduct are not satisfactory. This can include exiting the employee or extending their probation to provide further evidence for a final decision on their suitability.
The table below shows the number of probations which were extended, and the number of staff who did not retain employment following the completion of their probationary period for the last five years:
Year | Extended Probations | Not retained after probation |
2020 | * | 91 |
2021 | * | 216 |
2022 | 84 | 274 |
2023 | 175 | 322 |
2024 | 157 | 238 |
2025 (up to 31 Oct) | 47 | 131 |
Total | 463 | 1272 |
*The number of probations extended in the year 2020 and 2021 is not centrally held.
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