Public administration and defence; compulsory social security (SIC division 84)
Division 84 of the UK SIC 2007 list. It holds 6 codes, listed in full below with the number of active UK companies filed under each.
What sits in division 84
It is odd to find public administration and defence on the companies register at all. Most public bodies are not registered companies. The entries that do appear use codes such as 84120, regulation of health, education and social services, and 84250, fire service activities. They tend to be arms-length bodies, community interest companies, outsourced providers, and private firms doing statutory-adjacent work such as fire safety training or inspection. Some are simply businesses that liked the sound of the description. Check entries here one by one.
Selling into this division is niche, but not pointless. Fire safety consultancies and training providers under 84250 buy certification, equipment and e-learning platforms. Accreditation bodies chase them in turn. Suppliers who sell to the public sector sometimes use these codes to find delivery partners or subcontractors that already hold public contracts. The population is small and mixed, so qualify by hand rather than sending volume. Read the filings and the website before you make contact. Treat community interest companies differently too. Their spending follows grants and procurement, not impulse.
How to read a division 84 code
A UK SIC code is five digits and division 84 is the first two of them. Everything filed under 84 shares those digits: all 6 codes below begin 84, then the third digit narrows to a group, the fourth to a class and the fifth to the subclass a company actually picks. Division 84 sits inside section O, public administration and defence, which is the broadest tier of the classification. So a code is read left to right, from an industry down to a specific activity.
More on how division 84 codes are built
Companies choose their own codes at incorporation and can change them on any confirmation statement, and Companies House does not check the answer. A company may list up to four. That is worth knowing before you treat any division total as a headcount: the numbers here are what companies said about themselves, on the August 2026 register, and the largest single code in this division is 84120, regulation of health care, education, cultural and other social services, not incl. social security.
Working division 84 as a list
Division 84 holds 6 codes and 13,103 active companies between them. 84120 is the largest at 43 per cent and the top three take 76 per cent, with the rest spread across the remaining 3 codes. That is balanced enough that the division is a reasonable unit to work, though the leading code alone will usually give you a cleaner list.
More on working division 84
A caveat that matters more in some divisions than others: a company may register up to four SIC codes, and the figures below count every position, not just the first. A business filed under two codes in this division appears under both. Treat the totals as reach rather than a headcount, and if you need a clean list, filter to companies whose FIRST code sits in the division. Every company you pull carries the Companies House record, the director's name, a verified website and a verified email, and the ones we cannot complete are not charged.
Every SIC code in division 84
84110, General public administration activities84120, Regulation of health care, education, cultural and other social services, not incl. social security84130, Regulation of and contribution to more efficient operation of businesses84220, Defence activities84240, Public order and safety activities84250, Fire service activitiesProspecting this division
Division 84 companies, as leads
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Division 84 questions
Why do private companies appear under public administration SIC codes?
SIC codes are self-selected and nobody gatekeeps them. Any director can pick a division 84 code at incorporation or on a confirmation statement (CS01). Some picks are deliberate, such as a fire risk assessment firm choosing 84250. Others are simple misreadings of the code description. Real government departments and most councils are not Companies House entities. So this division is mainly private and third-sector organisations.
Can a CIC or company limited by guarantee use these codes?
Yes. Community interest companies and companies limited by guarantee follow the same SIC rules as everyone else. That means up to 4 self-declared codes, set at incorporation and updated on the confirmation statement, with no approval step. Division 84 codes are common among CICs doing community safety, regulation-adjacent or public service work. Keep that in mind when you read what a registration here really means.
Find companies across division 84
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