19 Minutes a Day saved by CoPilot, DWP trial finds

Neurodivergent staff among the most positive

Copilot helped participating civil servants at the DWP save an average of 19 minutes per day on routine administrative tasks.

The six-month trial at the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) was conducted from October 2024 to March 2025, and two surveys were conducted: one of Copilot users (1,716 responses) and the other a comparison group of non-Copilot users (2,535 responses).

In comparison with non-users, those using the enterprise version of CoPilot saved time on core work processes such as searching for information, drafting emails, and summarising documents.

Productivity Gains and Work Quality Improvements

The evaluation revealed that nearly nine in 10 Copilot users reported improved efficiency in completing regular tasks, with time savings most pronounced in information retrieval, summarisation, and communication duties. This has traditionally been the kind of work that takes a lot of time in Whitehall, which is why the net time savings of 19 minutes per person on average seems a bit on the low side.

Trial participants reported benefits beyond simple time saving. Approximately 73% of trial participants said Copilot helped them produce higher quality outputs, and 65% felt more fulfilled in their roles, suggesting a positive impact on job satisfaction as well as task efficiency.

Copilot users said they reinvested the minutes saved into more strategic tasks including planning, project delivery, mentoring colleagues, and other work requiring deeper human connection and judgement.

The evaluation also highlighted benefits for neurodivergent staff, including those with ADHD and dyslexia. Trial participants with ADHD reported that Copilot helped them to maintain focus when they might otherwise be distracted whilst those with dyslexia or other communication needs found functionality such as email drafting helpful.

The DWP results align with findings from other government AI trials, indicating that generative AI has the potential to deliver productivity benefits. Earlier pilots such as one by the Government Digital service (GDS) of tools like GitHub Copilot showed similar time savings, with trial participants reporting an average savings of 24 minutes a day.

However, not all public sector AI trials have demonstrated clear productivity improvements. Last year, am evaluation by the Department for Business and Trade of Microsoft Copilot, involving 1,000 staff, found that it saved most users time but that didn’t always translate into improved productivity. Those using Copilot for writing based tasks reported the most positive results, but those using it to generate slide decks or for scheduling found output quality mixed.