Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (UK)

We lead the UK’s diplomatic, development and consular work around the world.

We employ around 17,000 staff in our global network of 281 offices worldwide. Our UK-based staff work in King Charles Street in London, Abercrombie House in East Kilbride and in Milton Keynes.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), or Foreign Office is the ministry of foreign affairs and a ministerial department of the government of the United Kingdom.

The office was created on 2 September 2020 through the merger of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for International Development (DFID). The FCO was itself created in 1968 by the merger of the Foreign Office (FO) and the Commonwealth Office, with the Foreign Office itself initially being established in 1782. The department is responsible for representing and promoting British interests worldwide.

The head of the FCDO is the secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, commonly abbreviated to “foreign secretary”. This is regarded as one of the four most prestigious positions in the Cabinet – the Great Offices of State – alongside those of Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Home Secretary. Yvette Cooper was appointed Foreign Secretary on 5 September 2025 following the 2025 British cabinet reshuffle.

The FCDO is managed day-to-day by a civil servant, the permanent under-secretary of state for foreign affairs, who also acts as the Head of His Majesty’s Diplomatic Service. Sir Oliver Robbins took office as permanent under-secretary on 8 January 2025 until his dismissal on 16 April 2026.

The expenditure, administration and policy of the FCDO are scrutinised by the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.