Government Commercial Function

The Government Commercial Function (GCF) is made up of commercial professionals and supported by colleagues from a variety of disciplines. They are connected through knowledge-sharing systems and common operating standards.

Most of the function (about three-quarters) sits in government departments and delivers the commercial strategy for their particular department. The rest sit in either the Government Commercial Agency (GCA), which buys common goods and services, or the Central Commercial Teams in Cabinet Office, who support commercial capability, market intelligence and strategic supplier relationship management, complex transactions and continuous improvement.

Commercial staff play a crucial role in delivering the priorities of the government. Across central government, around £50 billion is spent each year buying goods and services, with the demand for public services growing more complex in needs and scale year by year. New service models are driven by changes in technology, lessons learnt, and rising public expectations. These often require commercial input and collaboration between multiple public organisations.

When commercial staff with the right skills are involved at the right time in the right way, they can make a massive difference to the quality of the services and projects delivered by Government.

The GCF aims to improve the commercial capabilities of the Civil Service. This will make significant savings for the taxpayer and deliver improved public services.

For more information visit the gov.uk pages for the GCF and Contract Management.

All training must be booked by 31 January 2027 and completed by 31 October 2027. Training of 12 months duration or less is available to book now on the Booking Portal. Training that is longer than 12 months may be available on a case-by-case basis, provided it is complete by 31 October 2027. Find out more about affected courses.