[1] He joined the Commonwealth Public Service in the Postmaster-General's Department at the age of 14.
[2] Between April and December 1948, Sutcliffe was Secretary of the Department of Shipping and Fuel.
[3] He was then appointed a Commissioner of the Public Service Board, and moved to Canberra.
[1] He retired from the Public Service Board in 1960,[4] and was appointed Commonwealth Coordinator of the Good Neighbour movement.
[1] Sutcliffe was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1956 Queen's Birthday Honours for his public service.