Virtual event
STAR Storytelling for UK Civil Service Applications
Exclusively for public servants and policymakers
Thursday, Mar 12, 2026
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Speakers
What to do next
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Resources
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Event Description
Not sure if your STAR examples are hitting the mark? Join this event to learn how to make your experience shine.
Great experience isn’t always enough. How you tell your story is what sets you apart. In the UK Civil Service’s competency-based system, clear and confident storytelling can be the difference between moving forward or missing out.
This event will demonstrate how to best use the STAR technique (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to bring your experience to life in job applications and interviews across the UK Civil Service. You’ll learn how to translate everyday work into compelling, confident examples that meet competency frameworks without feeling forced or formulaic. Whether you’re applying for your first promotion or your next step up, this session will offer methods to strengthen your application’s clarity, structure and impact.
Led by expert speakers who have experienced Civil Service applications first-hand, you’ll leave with a stronger sense of what makes a STAR response work and how to make your own stand out.
Image Credit: Unsplash
Speakers
Adam Towers
Principal Transport Strategy Officer, Tameside Council
UK
Jessica McEvoy
Former Deputy Director, Government Digital Service and Director of Delivery, Apolitical
UK
Adam Towers, is responsible for shaping and delivering the transport pipeline, policies, and partnerships that will drive sustainable growth across the borough. He is passionate about total place transformation and tackling spatial inequalities through better connectivity and integrated transport. Adam brings experience from working with local authorities across the North West and was a contestant in the Local Government Association’s 2024 LG Challenge.
Jessica McEvoy, who is known for combining strategic thinking with hands-on delivery. Jessica has worked across government, consultancy and civic technology in the UK and internationally, including in senior roles in the UK Government as Deputy Director at the Government Digital Service (GDS), where she led major national platforms such as identity, GOV.UK Notify and Pay. Jess has also worked extensively with governments and multilateral institutions including the World Bank, UN and OECD. She is Director of Delivery at Apolitical.












