Government Digital Service announces plans to run a national digital academy
On his first official visit to the Government Digital Service Ben Gummer has announced three projects alongside Director General Kevin Cunnington.
- DWP Digital Academy to be expanded under GDS
- GDS will be moving to Aldgate into new modern expanded premises
- GOV.UK Pay takes first transaction and is ready for business
Speaking to over 500 members of staff at Aviation House, the Minister for the Cabinet Office announced that the successful DWP Digital Academy Service will be moved to GDS to build capability across government, giving GDS a real national presence for the very first time.
He confirmed that staff in Aviation House will be moving to modern and expanded offices to create a new Digital HQ and a digital hub in the heart of Aldgate.
The minister also announced that GOV.UK Pay has now taken its first transaction and is ready for business with services to come online from the autumn. The actual first live payment was made on Till Wirth’s credit card, the product manager of the new service, in front of the GDS senior team and Kevin Cunnington.
Ben Gummer, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, said:
These are significant moments, not just for GDS and the Cabinet Office, but for the millions of people who use Government services every day.
Our message is clear: we are working hard to make life easier for the people of the UK. We want our services to be simple, easy and efficient - I’m here today to reaffirm that commitment.
The Government’s Digital Transformation Strategy is also going to be updated to match the new and larger remit of GDS and to take into account the EU referendum vote and the challenges that the Civil Service now face.
GDS director general Kevin Cunnington said:
More and more we are going to make the work from GDS about transformation - not just digital.
We have a superb team and I want our UK strategy to not only reflect the bold ambition that we have across Government, but the new challenges that now face us. We will have an updated and complete Digital Transformation Strategy before the end of the year.
Further information
- The GDS Digital Academy will continue the good work done by DWP since its inception in 2014
- GDS will be moving to Aldgate before summer 2017 as part of the creation of a new digital hub in the area.