Policy paper

Action 6: ensure all new or redesigned transactional services meet the digital by default service standard from April 2014

Updated 16 January 2015

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

This action forms part of the Government Digital Strategy.

Here’s how departments are responding to this action:

The Attorney General’s Office

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

The Law Officers’ departments have identified their transactional services. Any new or redesigned services launched after April 2014 will meet the Digital by Default standard. They will be working with Government Digital Services (GDS) to redesign the Bona Vacantia Division’s advertisements of the estates that they are dealing with and their case referral process in 2013, and these will also meet the standard.

Progress during 2013

Law Officers’ departments have not developed any new or redesigned transactional services in 2013. The Bona Vacantia Division of the Treasury Solicitor’s department is working with GDS to transition their website to GOV.UK; this includes an existing transactional service.

Planned activities in 2014

Law Officers’ departments will ensure that any new transactional services or existing ones that are redeveloped in 2014 will meet the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Progress during 2014

Law Officers’ departments have not developed any new or redesigned transactional services.

Planned activities in 2015

Law Officers’ departments will ensure that any new transactional services or existing ones that are redeveloped will meet the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Cabinet Office

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

Cabinet Office will audit all transactions, scored against the Digital by Default Service Standard, completed and ranked in order of service standard compliance by April 2013. It will ensure that the user receives a consistently high-quality digital experience and that no new or redesigned service will go live unless it meets the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Progress during 2013

Cabinet Office is creating a digital governance team to audit all transactions.

Planned activities in 2014

Once a digital governance team has been established it will will audit all transactions, scored against the Digital by Default Service Standard, completed and ranked in order of standard compliance.

Progress during 2014

The Honours and appointments service began discovery on digitally redesigning its service.

The Digital Governance Group took on responsibility to audit all transactions and rate them against the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Planned activities in 2015

Public appointments service will develop in line with recommendations following a GOV.UK proposition review.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

As part of the implementation of the digital strategy Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) will establish a team to ensure all digital projects meet the Digital by Default Service Standard. It will engage early with teams across the department, agencies and arm’s length bodies (ALBs) to provide constructive input at the right time and quality assure before launch.

Progress during 2013

BIS has established a team to support projects across the department and its agencies and ALBs to develop sound digital propositions which clearly identify the user need, demonstrate value for money and meet Cabinet Office digital spend control requirements. This function will be extended to support and embed assessments for the Digital by Default Service Standard. Assessments have already been completed by Intellectual Property Office (IPO), Land Registry and Student Loans Company (SLC), providing early insight and assurance.

Planned activities in 2014

BIS will promote the Digital by Default Service Standard through ongoing communications and engagement. It will identify areas for improvement through the spend control process to ensure its agencies and ALBs develop and maintain digital services in line with the standard. Common themes, good practice and lessons learned will be shared across BIS partner organisations from 2014 to help achieve and maintain the standard and encourage a knowledge-sharing culture .

Progress during 2014

BIS promoted the Digital by Default Service Standard across its partner organisations, through newsletters and at the BIS Digital Leaders Forum. All its larger services have been subject to the GDS central assessment process.

BIS put its own Service Assessment Panel in place, with a pool of trained assessors, and conducted 3 Service Assessments in 2014. It shared good practice with other government departments and intends to continuously improve the process through user feedback. It embedded the process within spend approval conditions.

Planned activities in 2015

BIS will continue to support larger services through the Digital by Default Service Standard assessments run by GDS.

Smaller BIS services will continue to be assessed by the BIS departmental panel. Over time, BIS aims to increase the number of services that pass the first time, demonstrating a growth of awareness and capability around the Digital by Default Service assessments.

The department will continue to support BIS assessors, strengthening the community they have built, sharing information with them and continuously improving the process based on their feedback.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

This is not directly applicable to Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) because the department does not provide transactional services. However, it is very much in the lead on electronic communications and internet policy.

Progress during 2013

This action is not applicable to DCMS.

Planned activities in 2014

This action is not applicable to DCMS.

Department for Education

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

Digital by default service standards now form part of the design requirements for any transaction or information service being designed.

Progress during 2013

Department for Education (DfE) has communicated the Digital by Default Service Standard widely across the department, with particular focus on all service managers.

Planned activities in 2014

DfE will promote the Digital by Default Service Standard during its digital month in February 2014.

Progress during 2014

DfE piloted its digital by default assessment panel with beta assessments of the Education Funding Agency’s Information Exchange programme and Get Into Teaching website.

Planned activities in 2015

DfE will extend the use of its departmental digital by default assessment panel. It will promote digital spend controls and governance processes. To support implementation and raise awareness of digital services and skills DfE will run a digital month in February.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) welcomes the new Digital by Default Service Standard, which will be used as the basis for all its digital development from April 2014.

Progress during 2013

Defra’s 2 exemplar developments are being developed with close involvement of Government Digital Service, taking into account the Digital by Default Service Standard. Defra is including assessment against the standard in its internal review processes, linking to the formal Cabinet Office spend controls.

Planned activities in 2014

Defra will continue to apply the Digital by Default Service Standard to new or redesigned services.

Progress in 2014

Defra’s 2 exemplar projects were developed in line with the Digital by Default Service Standard. It carried out departmental service assessments for other service developments, like Rod Catch Returns and Fish Quota Register.

Planned activities in 2015

Defra is including assessment against the service standard in its internal review processes, linking to the formal Cabinet Office spend controls.

Department for International Development

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

Although Department for International Development (DFID) does not currently have many transactions, this is still a priority area in which to achieve efficiencies. Any redesigned services will meet the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Progress during 2013

DFID’s Development Tracker has been designed following the principles of the Digital by Default Service Standard. The tracker enables the public to find and explore details and results from international development projects that are funded by the UK government. All the data is in a standard format known as International Aid Transparency Initiative which makes it easier to compare data between countries and to trace aid funding through the delivery chain.

DFID has been participating in the cross-government grants efficiency programme, with the aim of redesigning and streamlining the process of applying for DFID grants and funds. The first milestone was to improve the user experience of finding and applying for grants online and work is underway with GDS to achieve this.

Planned activities in 2014

DFID will continue to develop the process of applying for DFID grants and funds with GDS.

Progress during 2014

DFID’s Development Tracker met the Digital by Default Service Standard, and changes are assessed against it.

DFID worked with GDS to develop a funding finder which has improved user experience of finding grants online. It continued to engage with the Cabinet Office as the grants efficiency programme proceeded.

Planned activities in 2015

DFID will continue to engage with the Cabinet Office as the grants efficiency programme proceeds and it will continue to assess internal systems against the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Department for Transport

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

All new digital services will meet the service standards and be accessed through the GOV.UK platform. It will also develop plans to increase use to at least 80% wherever possible.

Progress during 2013

The exemplar services are being designed in line with the Default By Default Service Standard. Experience from these will be taken into the redesign of the other high-volume Department for Transport (DfT) transactions.

Planned activities in 2014

DfT will ensure that all new or redesigned services will meet the Digital by Default Service Standard from April 2014.

Progress during 2014

The Drivers and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) View driving licence went live in July. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s Practical driving test booking service also went live.

Planned Activities in 2015

DVLA’s Vehicle management and Personalised registration services will go live in the new year, having passed all service standard criteria.

DfT will continue to work with its agencies to ensure the service standard is embedded into all services and will look at implementing the standard for the department’s internal transactions.

DfT’s MoT Service is expected to go live by autumn. This covers 22,000 garages.

Department for Work and Pensions

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will work closely with GDS to develop the Digital by Default Service Standard and ensure it is applied to all new and redesigned services from April 2014.

Progress during 2013

GDS now assesses new services with more than 100,000 transactions per annum against these standards prior to go-live.

Planned activities in 2014

DWP will ensure that all new or redesigned services meet the Digital by Default Service Standard from April 2014.

Progress during 2014

DWP established a transformation hub in Leeds to co-locate digital specialists to work on transformation projects.

Working closely with the Cabinet Office and in line with the objective to make the UK cyber-secure and resilient, DWP has been building its cyber-security capabilities to ensure its systems are protected and secure.

Planned activities in 2015

DWP will continue to ensure that all new and redesigned services are built:

• in the right way
• by the right people
• in the right place
• following the GDS Service Standard

Department of Energy and Climate Change

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) intends to comply with the Digital by Default Service Standard once it is published, although this will require approval once the contents of the standard has been finalised.

Progress during 2013

A workstream has been established within DECC’s digital by default programme to focus on following the published Digital by Default Service Standard, and guiding all new or redesigned transactional services to meet it by April 2014.

Planned activities in 2014

DECC will ensure that all new or redesigned transactional services meet the Digital by Default Service Standard from April 2014.

Progress during 2014

DECC set up a cross-departmental digital assessment panel in April to ensure all new and redesigned services meet the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Planned activities in 2015

DECC’s panel will continue to assess all projects against the 26 service standards.

Department of Health

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

Department of Health (DH) does not currently directly transactional services to the public. Should this change in future, it will ensure these services are designed to meet the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Progress during 2013

DH has worked with internal teams and with all its ALBs to promote the Digital by Default Service Standard and has ensured that all proposals for new or redesigned services provide details of how they will meet it. Early engagement with ALBs on this means that it has been factored in at the beginning of the process for all new projects. There will be a requirement for all teams working on smaller transactions or web applications to demonstrate progress against the standard where appropriate. It is incorporated into the DH approvals process.

Planned activities in 2014

DH will carry out internal assessments of new or redesigned services, including NHS services, against the Digital by Default Service Standard. This will be done as part of the DH approvals process and will incorporate lessons learnt from the exemplar services into plans for any new services.

Progress during 2014

Most health transactional services are provided by DH’s ALBs. All proposed spend on new or redesigned services is assessed against the service standards, with regular checkpoints put in place to ensure that these are being met.

DH set an example by volunteering to have its own internal services checked against the service standards, with the new intranet becoming the first civil-service-facing product to pass the service standard assessment in October.

The digital team trained each director-general on the standard itself, common pitfalls, and areas that commonly require greater input from the digital team.

Planned activities in 2015

The digital services portfolio in DH will be brought together with the department’s informatics portfolio to ensure that all services reflect a consistent approach to assurance, incorporating the Digital by Default Service Standard at each checkpoint.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) will work actively to transform its services to digital by default and enhance its online customer service. It will begin this work by digitising important standard elements around its diverse range of transactions, including application, appointment booking and payments. It will ensure that all redesigned services meet the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Progress during 2013

FCO has been redesigning and digitising a number of its services. It has been working to:

• expand online registration of birth and deaths to overseas customers
• develop an online payment system for the highest volume transactional services
• redesign the academic technology approval scheme

FCO has also:

• digitised the process of verifying an ‘apostille’ issued by the UK government within the last 5 years
• developed an internal Crisis Hub to support its crisis response (the team responsible were nominated for a 2013 UK Agile award)
• redesigned the provision of travel advice online, improving accessibility of key information
• moved to provide more services on social media, with FCO consular staff now directly responding to questions from British nationals about travel overseas via the @fcotravel Twitter channel

Planned activities in 2014

FCO will ensure that all new or redesigned services meet the Digital by Default Service Standard by April 2014.

Progress during 2014

FCO assessed all its new services against the Digital by Default Service Standard, including an external assessor from the Department of Health on its assessment panels.

Planned activities in 2015

FCO will continue to assess its services against the Digital by Default Service Standard. It will also begin to roll out that standard to new internal services.

HM Revenue and Customs

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

From April 2014, all new or redesigned HMRC transactional services will meet the government’s Digital by Default Service Standard.

Progress during 2013

HMRC has supported the development of the Digital by Default Service Standard.

Planned activities in 2014

HMRC will ensure that all new or redesigned transactional services will meet the Digital by Default Service Standard after April 2014.

Progress during 2014

The service standard was aligned with the HMRC Change Framework, to check projects meet the department’s internal standards at each stage of progress.

A new head of design was appointed to improve the consistency of content for users.

Planned activities in 2015

The department will develop the role of product lead, a position which strengthens links between service development, related content and products. HMRC will continue to develop the role of service managers and the structure of teams within the department.

HM Treasury

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

This is not applicable to HM Treasury as it is not a transactional department.

Progress during 2013

This action is not applicable to HMT.

Planned activities in 2014

This action is not applicable to HMT.

Progress during 2014

This action is not applicable to HMT.

Planned activities in 2015

This action is not applicable to HMT

Home Office

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

From January 2013 (following publication of this strategy) digital services must be approved by the Digital Leader, who will ensure engagement with GDS at the earliest phase in the service design process.

Progress during 2013

Home Office has established a pipeline of digital projects to ensure early engagement with both GDS and internal digital experts. All transactional services are formally assessed against the Digital by Default Service Standard and specific actions identified where required. It has been formalising the process to ensure that actions are followed up so that services meet the standard from April 2014, and to support the internal assessment of services undertaken as agreed by digital leaders.

Planned activities in 2014

Home Office will continue working to the designated pipeline in order to meet its targets of meeting the service assessments for their transactional services.

Progress during 2014

All transactional services were assessed internally against the 26 criteria of the Digital Service Standard during their development before being formally assessed against it.

Planned activities in 2015

Home Office will continue to prepare services to pass a service assessment at each stage of development.

Ministry of Defence

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

The Service Personnel and Veterans Agency (SPVA) will be the trailblazing part of Ministry of Defence (MOD) in the redesign and digitisation of services (replacing old services where necessary). It will focus on the needs of our veterans and their families, in keeping with GDS standards and criteria.

Progress during 2013

Work on service transformation has been delayed until appointment of the Digital Transformation team.

Planned activities in 2014

A service manager will be appointed to support the redesign of new services for veterans run by the SPVA when the Digital Transformation team is established.

Progress during 2014

MOD briefed commissioners of transactional services to ensure that new and redesigned transactional services met the service standard wherever appropriate.

Planned activities in 2015

MOD will support its services to meet the standard.

MOD will ensure government online services and information fulfil the Armed Forces Covenant.

Ministry of Justice

Departmental digital strategy commitments (December 2012)

Ministry of Justice (MOJ) will digitally redesign all its services to meet the new Digital by Default Service Standard. It will adopt agile development to design, deliver and continuously improve digital services at pace, applying user insight at every stage.

Progress during 2013

MOJ has used its strong working relationship with GDS to ensure all the services it works on meet the Digital by Default Service Standard, adopting agile as the sole approach for the digital portfolio. The department continuously iterated its services in public beta based on real service user feedback, and used the strength of ‘demonstrating by doing’ to build support for the approach. MOJ built capability by establishing a dedicated user research team, and has conducted extensive user testing throughout the product development cycle.

Planned activities in 2014

MOJ will ensure its services continue to meet the Digital by Default Service Standard, and factor its requirements into delivery and development processes. This will include making formal assessments before launching live services in the forthcoming year. The department will:

• scale up user testing capacity by designating a user-testing environment in its working space
• continue to iterate frequently and improve live products based on user feedback
• be responsive to changes in policy that require changes in tools and services

Progress during 2014

MOJ continued to use the Digital by Default Service Standard as a framework to develop existing exemplars and new transactional services. The department took responsibility for the self-certification of services handling fewer than 100,000 transaction each year.

Its projects were based on user-led approaches, supported through agile user research in prototyping, iterative development and user testing. For products in beta, it explored what live support looked like, allowing iteration against ongoing user needs and adaption where needed.

Planned activities in 2015

MOJ Digital Services will assess all internal services against the service standard before any service goes live.