The government is seemingly back on course to meet the training targets set by Cabinet Secretary and head of the Home Civil Service, Sir Gus O’Donnell, according to the latest round of capability reviews.

The reviews, published at the end of last week by the Cabinet Office, outline the progress made by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, Communities and Local Government and the Cabinet Office itself since their performance was first assessed two years ago.

The 2006 reviews flagged up the serious gaps in continuity training between the departments, with O’Donnell commenting that there was "clearly a widespread problem with leadership." However, according to the latest report, the BERR, CLG and the Cabinet Office all showed overall improvement, with a particularly strong showing in evidence-based decision making while the recently formed Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) performed well in its baseline review, with good scores in the majority of areas.

"As times change so does the nature of public services and the Civil Service has to be ready for the new challenges we will face," said O’Donnell. "All four departments that have been reviewed have much to be proud of. This is especially true of the three departments being re-reviewed, which have all taken great steps to implement the findings of the 2006 reports," he said.

However, he added a note of caution, warning the departments to avoid complacency. "As well as highlighting our successes, the reports have also identified areas where we can improve, in an environment which will undoubtedly get more challenging," he said.