Civil service start date

[Cornercandy]

Accepted a job offer as an admin officer in the civil service 5 weeks ago. No start date yet. So far, I received my DBS certificate through the post 2.5 weeks ago, answered a medical questionnaire about the same time. Then 2 days later, got a call from Optima Health, that do the medical screening, asking was I able to discuss the questions I answered yes to or make an appt. I did the former. As some of the broad questions I answered yes. Such as have you had surgery in the past X years. Those questions I answered yes, I gave more info such as surgery, medical conditions, medications etc.

Just wondering when I will hear of a start date. I know it can be 10 weeks, so I'm halfway through the waiting period. I am getting rather bored as been unemployed for almost a year.

Hopefully someone here has been through the same rigmarole or knows a friend, relative etc.

Notoriously slow, in my experience.

In fact when managers try and speed it up the system cannot cope.

It takes about 6 weeks at least to complete pre employment checks for the Civil Service. They won’t discuss a start date until all the checks have been carried out.

I took 3 months from provisional offer to checks complete. Then my formal offer and start date were given to me that day which was to start almost 2 months later.
It will probably depend on your level of clearance too. But don’t say what level you are on here as that can’t be stated.
Hopefully it won’t be long now.