iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 14/08/2026

You could always switch severe alerts off?

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 03/08/2026

Spotted in the magazine rack of a supermarket.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 17/03/2026

Spotted this on the Elizabeth Line today. To opt out, you need to turn Wi-Fi on your device off.

Wi-Fi data collection

TfL collects Wi-Fi connection data at some stations on the Elizabeth line to better understand journey patterns and improve TfL services. TfL will not identify individuals. You can opt out by turning off your device’s Wi-Fi. For more information visit tfl.gov.uk/wifi-data-collection

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 13/11/2025

Hello Leeds, it's been a while.

A sign reading Welcome to Leeds Station.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 18/10/2025

This week: ▶️ Went to Taunton to talk with officers at Somerset Council. ▶️ Presented at the Technical Design Council; spoke about the pressures on councils and some of the positive things happening with technology. ▶️ Took part in a GOV.UK App workshop for #localgov.

The outside of the Firepool Centre for Digital Innovation

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 30/09/2025

Hello Birmingham.Just passing through on my way to Sheffield today.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 24/09/2025

Do you notice anything new on this list of teams at the Government Digital Service stand at #DigiGovExpo today?

List of GDS teams, reading I.AI, GOV.UK App, GOV.UK Chat, GOV.UK Wallet, One Login, Government Cyber Unit, GDS local government, Digital Backbone, Digital Commercial Centre of Excellence, National Underground Assets Register.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 27/07/2025

My most prolific chilli plant this year is also one that's been outside since May. Definitely a result of the hot weather this year, and perhaps a sign of things to come.

A Hungarian Wax chilli plant with many chillies of various colours.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 01/07/2025

Interesting to see the GOV.UK App already has a your local services section, albeit just a link to council websites at the moment.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 13/05/2025

I was delighted to be able to able to give evidence in Parliament today to the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee's inquiry on the Digital centre of government. I hope I represented #localgov #digital well. You can watch and make your own mind up here: parliamentlive.tv/event/index/...

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 11/05/2025

Really enjoyed the Are you Listening Festival in Reading yesterday. A huge variety of acts at venues across the town, which were really busy (but not uncomfortably so) even at 4pm.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 06/04/2025

Great win for Newbury RFC against Chichester RFC yesterday to avoid relegation, in the final league match of the season. What brilliant weather too; the contrast of being huddled under the shelter of the clubhouse from the wind and rain just a few weeks ago is amazing.

Newbury RFC playing Chichester RFC. The photo is taken from a high vantage point near the half way line of the pitch. It's a bright sunny day and the majority of the players in the middle of the field. The clubhouse can be seen on the other side of the pitch, left and middle of the picture, with the car park on the right.

The scoreboard at Newbury RFC. It reads Home 37, Visitors 5, Time 40.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 18/03/2025

Post your favourite Doctor Who. Wrong Answers Only

Lisa Kudrow as Penelope in the 2024 remake of Time Bandits.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 09/03/2025

An interesting proposal to boost the proportion of #digital roles in the UK Civil Service from 5% to 10%. Source: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... It's worth noting that the State of Digital Government Review published in January estimated digital roles in #localgov make up around 2% of staff.

Higher number of digital and data apprenticeships
The proposals will also see one in 10 civil servants employed in a digital or data role within five years, to be delivered through apprenticeships and retraining staff.

Currently there are 25,000 digital and data civil servants, making up 5% of the civil service workforce.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 02/03/2025

The first week of spring coincided with the best weather of the year so far. I took the opportunity to dig in compost and manure to my small vegetable patch, ready for some of the seedlings which are already growing.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 16/02/2025

This is either an accidental or awful pun. Either way, I like it.

A scented candle. The scent is named MELON MUSK.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 24/01/2025

First chilli plant seedlings of 2025.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 24/01/2025

Looks good. The only thing I might add is the ability to create threads, and therefore have conversations using previous interactions as the context to respond to the next question. I'm being super fussy though.

An image showing the process flow for how a user's message runs and returns a message in a thread, using an Assistant created using OpenAI's API.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 02/01/2025

Should there be a loyalty scheme, so if you visit the beach when it's 5°, you get first dibs on a good spot when it's 25°?

An English beach in winter, with the coastline in the distance and a low winter sun reflecting in the sea on the right.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 25/12/2024

I had some great gifts this year, but amongst my favourite is this crocheted Alligator Loki variant.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 19/12/2024

Lack of time or knowledge can't be claimed as disproportionate burden to not meet the accessibility regulations. This is great to see and emphasises there should only be a very limited set of circumstances to opt-out of accessibility. HT to my colleague Elena for highlighting this.

Disproportionate burden can be claimed where fully meeting the accessibility regulations costs too much for an organisation to reasonably complete. Lack of time or knowledge does not constitute a disproportionate burden and the majority of digital content should be fully accessible.

Organisations are legally required to carry out an assessment of the extent to which compliance with the accessibility regulations imposes a disproportionate burden.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 29/11/2024

I'll bring the paint, you bring the engine oil. Seriously though, bringing recycling facilities to neighbourhoods is a great idea. The easier you make something to do, the more likely people are to do it. I took a picture of this mobile recycling lorry on holiday; yes I really am that sad.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 19/11/2024

Amazing venue for #thinkdidigov. Opening keynote from Christine Bellamy, CEO of GDS.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 12/11/2024

Is this anything to do with you @radiobeartime.com? 😉

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 12/10/2024

I've seen Copilot and Gemini shortcuts appear on the taskbar on my Windows and ChromeOS devices respectively in the past 48 hours. Has anyone else noticed this and is it coincidence?

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 05/10/2024

New reading material. Would anyone like to give me a no spoilers review?

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 05/10/2024

It's good, but service design needs to take a many channels, one service approach to digital services. We need better integrated forms, but we also need services to be accessed by voice and other channels. All channels need to take account of the needs and circumstances of the user too.

A many channels, one service approach to delivering digital services, showing many channels to access one service.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 01/10/2024

Presented an overview of our work towards Open Digital Planning to some planning folk today, and flew over a virtual Folkestone on a magic VR carpet. Also sat through the now obligatory "This is how can AI can be used in [insert service]" presentation.

ID badge from a Royal Town Planning Institute South East event.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 25/09/2024

All ready to go on Day 1 of #localgovcamp at STEAMhouse in Birmingham, our AI Hack Day.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 22/09/2024

Do you have Amazon Prime Video? What's the first channel you see when you select Live TV?

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 19/09/2024

Late to the party, but still in the first five million users.

A virtual certificate with text "Celebrating 10M users on Bluesky, #4,441,615, Phil Rumens ‪@philrumens.bsky.social‬, joined on Feb 9, 2024"

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 17/09/2024

There are some great prospective band names on here.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 07/09/2024

Fight songs? www.google.com/search?q=eng...

Information about the England men's football team, including "Fight songs".

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 03/09/2024

Second and probably final crop of chillies for 2024.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 02/09/2024

If you see this quote post with a beach from your gallery.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 21/08/2024

Not far from the original.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 20/08/2024

I'm already part way through it and there's a moment where events in the DiY book and the Spiral Tribe book intersect, which of course isn't that surprising.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 19/08/2024

That's seven now. I think I should probably stop.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 17/08/2024

It's been a great year for growing chillies.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 16/08/2024

I love the budget supermarkets but I sometimes wonder how they get away designs and branding like this!

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 16/08/2024

I suspect it's the direction of travel for their search engine, although for now I think it's possible to write something to hide them.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 16/08/2024

It should be relatively easy to write a plug-in or extension to hide this, until as you say it becomes not just an addition to their search, but the new search model.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 16/08/2024

It's supposed to be available with people with access to Search Labs, but I don't have that.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 16/08/2024

Is anyone else seeing these AI Overviews in their Google search results?

An AI Overview in a Google search result on the search term "substantial assurance".

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 14/08/2024

Post-Its, stickers, Blu Tack, and pipe cleaners. (other brands are available!)

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 13/08/2024

Magic Beans! To prototype speech analysis with GenAI, we've created a tool that assesses people's views of beans and other vegetables. It's not entirely serious, but it does provide a practical example of how it could work for more sensitive topics, and what's involved in getting it running.

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Phil Rumens @rumens.uk · 11/08/2024

Five gallons of wine on the go made from fruit we picked ourselves, and possibly another two gallons to come.

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