Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom
The Government of the United Kingdom is divided into departments that each have responsibility, according to the government, for putting government policy into practice. There are currently 24 ministerial departments, 20 non-ministerial departments, and 422 agencies and other public bodies, for a total of 465 departments.
Ministerial departments
Ministerial departments are generally the most high-profile government departments and differ from the other two types of government departments in that they include ministers. A list of all ministerial departments is shown below.Non-ministerial departments
Non-ministerial departments are headed by civil servants and usually have a regulatory or inspection function. A list of all non-ministerial departments is shown below.Agencies and other public bodies
Government departments in this third and final category can generally be split into five types:- Executive agencies, which usually provide government services rather than decide policy
- Executive non-departmental public bodies, which do work for the government in specific areas
- Advisory non-departmental public bodies, which provide independent and expert advice to ministers
- Tribunal non-departmental public bodies, which are part of the justice system and have jurisdiction over a specific area of the law
- Independent monitoring boards, which are responsible for the running of prisons and the treatment of prisoners