Civil service experience library

Browse behaviour statement examples by the type of experience you have. Find scenarios that match your background and see how they map to each of the 9 Civil Service behaviours.

💡 Tip

You do not need experience in the Civil Service to write strong behaviour statements. Examples from retail, care, hospitality, volunteering, and education are just as valid — what matters is how you tell the story using STAR.

Browse by experience type

Click a category to see examples mapped to each of the 9 behaviours.

Customer Service

Examples from retail, hospitality, and call centre roles.

9 behaviour examples

Teamwork

Examples from collaborative projects and team settings.

9 behaviour examples

Problem Solving

Examples from situations where you identified and fixed issues.

9 behaviour examples

Conflict Resolution

Examples from situations where you managed disagreements.

9 behaviour examples

Deadlines & Pressure

Examples from high-pressure situations with tight deadlines.

9 behaviour examples

Managing Change

Examples from organisational or process changes.

9 behaviour examples

Process Improvement

Examples from situations where you made workflows more efficient.

9 behaviour examples

Stakeholder Management

Examples from working with external or senior stakeholders.

9 behaviour examples

Data Analysis

Examples from using data to inform decisions.

9 behaviour examples

Project Work

Examples from leading or contributing to projects.

9 behaviour examples

How to use this library

  1. Find your experience type. Choose the category that best matches your background or the situation you want to write about.
  2. Pick a behaviour. Each category shows how the same experience can be framed for different behaviours.
  3. Adapt the example. Use the structure and language as inspiration, but rewrite it with your own details and numbers.
  4. Check the word count. Most examples are 250 words. Adjust to match the limit in your job advert.
⚠ Important

These examples are for inspiration only. Do not copy them directly — assessors can spot generic statements and they score poorly. Always adapt examples to your own experience.

Experience categories explained

Customer service

Examples from roles where you dealt directly with the public: retail, hospitality, call centres, front-line services. These are excellent for behaviours like Managing a Quality Service, Communicating and Influencing, and Working Together.

Teamwork

Examples from collaborative projects, team tasks, or group work. These work well for Working Together, Leadership, and Developing Self and Others.

Problem solving

Examples from situations where you identified an issue, analysed it, and fixed it. These are ideal for Making Effective Decisions, Changing and Improving, and Seeing the Big Picture.

Conflict resolution

Examples from situations where you managed disagreements or tension. These demonstrate Working Together, Leadership, and Communicating and Influencing.

Deadlines and pressure

Examples from high-pressure situations where you had to deliver quickly. These are perfect for Delivering at Pace, Making Effective Decisions, and Managing a Quality Service.

More resources