Here are some of the things we're working on over the next couple of weeks:
Prioritisation
The team is continuing to prioritise the transition timeline for all 330+ agencies and arm’s length bodies (AALBs).
With department leads, we are prioritising AALBs by considering the number of users that visit a site, its complexity and whether there is a pressing contractual need to move the site elsewhere. Discovery questionnaires are vital to this process. If you've not yet completed yours you'll be at the back of the queue, so please speak to your transition manager.
Our support and training for agencies is dependent on where they are in the prioritisation queue. Over the next few weeks, we'll be holding user needs training for:
We’re reviewing the priority list every 2 weeks, and expect AALBs to move up and down it as we progress through the transition process. We'll be sharing the priority list in the future.
User needs workshops
In her post on testing and trialling, Brooke mentioned the progress that has been made in developing the user needs workshops.
Thanks to those involved in our trials (particularly UKBA and MHRA), the workshops have evolved and now focus on the top user needs for the organisation. This requires those attending to do some preparation, particularly to categorise what their organisation does, and to do some analysis of visits to their website.
Further workshops are being scheduled in order of transition priority, so we’ll be holding workshops for the Department for Education, Land Registry, Companies House and the Youth Justice Board over the next fortnight.
Training
The training team has completed trial sessions on ‘Writing for the Web’ and ‘Publisher’ (the system for publishing content to GOV.UK).
These are now being extended to other agencies that have completed their user needs workshop. Brij Thakrar (our Publisher trainer) makes a guest appearance in a video for the GDS blog published today, where he outlines what we’re doing to train AALB staff to use the GOV.UK publishing tool.
Meeting agencies
Transition managers are meeting and visiting colleagues at AALBs over the next few weeks.
I will be visiting the Education Funding Agency in Coventry, the European Social Fund team in Sheffield and Valuation Office Agency in London. This follows visits in the last few weeks to Defence Technology Science Laboratories, the Department for Work and Pensions in Leeds, the Military Aviation Authority and Department for Transport in Bristol.
These sessions are to share knowledge about GOV.UK and the transition process, to address any concerns and for GDS to capture any issues as they arise.
Tell us what you think
We really do value your feedback about our blog posts - and thanks to the suggestion of Katie at the Valuation Office Agency, we'll shortly be blogging about Google and GOV.UK search, which seems to be a hot topic. If you have other suggestions, please tell your transition manager.
2 comments
Comment by Sheurie Warner posted on
Writing for the web and publisher course sounds great. Please can departmental publishers like us in MOD be invited to attend when spaces are available.
Comment by Mark Hazelby posted on
Hi Sheurie
Thanks for your comment - totally understand the point you are making. The focus of the transition team is on agencies and arms' length bodies but as spaces allow, we will do our best to include departmental publishers as you suggest.
Mark