UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 02/10/2026Government departments are often huge complex beasts and even within one organisation there's different level of maturity for different skills. Everyone's on a journey. 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 02/10/2026While still having some learning to do in others. www.gov.uk/service-stan...gov.ukAssess and manage your council's cyber resilience alpha assessment reportMHCLG's Assess and manage your council's cyber resilience alpha service assessment report 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 02/10/2026MHCLG doing a great job of demonstrating that you can be excellent in some ways (such as blogging almost every working day recently!) mhclgdigital.blog.gov.uk/2026/10/02/l...mhclgdigital.blog.gov.ukLearning, growing and feeling valued as a developerMHCLG Digital has launched early-career opportunities for 5 Junior Developers to join our teams in Manchester. Mohsina, one of our developers, shares how support from colleagues has helped her build h... 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 02/10/2026HMLR excellently demonstrating that blogging isn't just for digital related topics. hmlandregistry.blog.gov.uk/2026/10/02/w...hmlandregistry.blog.gov.ukWhat owning land or property near a public highway can meanThis guide explains how public highways can affect property boundaries, ownership and responsibility for land. 010
Reposted by UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT)Martin Jordan @martinjordan.com · 02/10/2026We finally have definite guidance on how to name a service well in German. I wrote it over the summer, and it went live in the #ServiceStandard handbook this week. We still see a ridiculous amount of acronyms and animal names, so I had to write it. ⬇️ servicestandard.gov.de/handbuch/anl... 142
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 01/10/2026MHCLG's high quality blogging feels so standard now it's just becoming business as usual over there and not even worth commenting on *IF* it wasn't such an exemplar difference to how most of the rest of government works. mhclgdigital.blog.gov.uk/2026/10/01/m...mhclgdigital.blog.gov.ukMy journey from communications to delivery managementMHCLG Digital has launched early-career opportunities for 5 Associate Delivery Managers to join our teams in Manchester. Find out from Pippa, Senior Delivery Manager, what she has learnt since moving ... 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 30/09/2026What a weird way to communicate with that kind of community rather than a blog post or newsletter (never mind somewhere that would enable discussion). Turns out that the medium is the message. www.gov.uk/government/p...gov.ukEdition 7: Making Tax Digital for Income Tax — software developer newsletterHMRC's newsletter for software developers for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. 000
Reposted by UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT)Frankie Roberto @frankieroberto.com · 29/09/2026It’s not an alternative to GOVUK Notify, it’s a whole different proposition and layer of abstraction (it uses GOVUK Notify to send SMSes, emails and letters). (That they share the same name is unfortunate and not ideal) 031
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Just discovered this exists and, y'know, I'm just too damn tired to even be angry right now. notify.nhs.uknotify.nhs.uk 101
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Nice post from GDS, would have been better with some examples. Would be even better if there was a place where prototype creators could record what they've done and how successful they were as a way for other people to learn from. designnotes.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/29/w...designnotes.blog.gov.ukWhat are the principles of prototyping?An evolving set of prototyping principles to help people use prototypes to learn and improve their products or services. These principles were contributed to by people across government during Service... 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Sure, this is good but the obvious undercurrent that it's just easier to do this within one organisation than it is to work collaboratively across government to build resources and tools that support everyone highlights everything wrong with how we work now. defradigital.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/29/t...defradigital.blog.gov.ukTurning existing knowledge into AI-enabled learningNathan O'Gara explores how, in Defra, we’re finding new ways to share our expertise, using AI to make learning easier to create, reuse and access. 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Blimey, I don't know if MHCLG is doing more good work than other government organisations or just better at being open about it. Either way - bravo! mhclgdigital.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/29/a...mhclgdigital.blog.gov.ukALIGN: a new national infrastructure spatial tool for evidence-based planning and growth decisionsALIGN is a new national infrastructure spatial tool bringing together data, models and AI to identify local infrastructure needs and constraints. Supporting both central and local government, it will ... 001
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 28/09/2026When I was this young lady's age apprenticeships had almost completely died out. It's great to see how they're returned in the last 20 years. cddo.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/28/h...cddo.blog.gov.ukHow TechTrack helped Sophie start a digital careerSophie Metcalf explains how a TechTrack apprenticeship helped her move from education into a software development career in government. 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 27/09/2026I genuinely believe that if user research was done across a set of varied LAs (urban/rural, wealth/deprived) on core LA functions (social care, social housing, etc) there is enough commonality for government to build systems that will eliminate the LA software market cartel completely. 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 27/09/2026This is really excellent work (especially architecture.cddo.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/gds-local) but there's still an underlying assumption that councils will continue to procure the majority of their digital systems. technology.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/25/g...technology.blog.gov.ukGDS Local: helping local government buy and use tech betterGDS Local is on a journey to tackle fragmentation in local government technology. Find out about what we've learnt and what comes next! 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 26/09/2026Also, it must be going on for a year since I pointed out to I.AI that their blog doesn't have a working RSS feed... 010
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 26/09/2026I popped over to I.AI (which, by the way, falls squarely fowl of the "impossible to google for" problem) and there it says they're still part of DSIT. Does anyone know if they're off to DCMS with GDS or somewhere else? 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 26/09/2026As always playing catch-up. This is good in that it highlights both that often the only way to secure moving something forward is with very senior support and also the system issues with how data is used in government. public.digital/pd-insights/...public.digital3 lessons from 3 years spent building AI inside the UK government — Public Digital 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 26/09/2026The extra-level of devolution promised by Burnham may lead to an impressive way of restructuring government but it massively relies on many kinds of reusable platforms (digital and otherwise) instead of each new organisation just shifting public money to the likes to Capita, Fujitsu and McKinsey. 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 26/09/2026Things like the Early Years Innovation Challenge are also good but they're chipping away at small parts of a colossal government-wide systemic issue of how we acquire and use data. There instead needs to be a plan for government-wide revolutionary change. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 26/09/2026This is obviously great but I wish there was more information. Specifically publishing the outputs of the 21st September workshop. gds.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/25/d...gds.blog.gov.ukDigital devolution: what’s been happening and what’s coming up?Explore how we're working with local government to build capability and support innovation. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 24/09/2026MHCLG is the absolute poster-child of excellent public comms these days. Whatever's in the water there please share it around! mhclgdigital.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/24/w...mhclgdigital.blog.gov.ukWhat good delivery means to usThe digital delivery community in MHCLG is thriving. Across different teams, professions and directorates, we found ourselves returning to many of the same conversations about what good delivery looks... 011
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 23/09/2026Sounds like a lot of really good stuff here. I hope there are relevant communities of practice to support the folks going on these courses after they're done them. mailchi.mp/e074b77447db...mailchi.mpGovernment Digital and Data Hub - Newsletter - September 2026 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 23/09/2026Sounds like a lot of interesting people saying a lot of interesting things (although I suspect the level of "radical honesty" might not be the same as mine). However, will the sessions be recorded for people who can't attend? Doesn't look like it. cddo.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/17/t...cddo.blog.gov.ukTake a look at what’s in store at DataConnect 26Join public sector data, digital and AI professionals to share learning, explore real-world case studies and build valuable connections. 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 23/09/2026@richardpope.org (Author of the excellent Platformland) really highlighting the failure of Government as a Platform in the UK. Common infrastructure for wide-sector services (schools, GPs, etc) should be the absolute basis of how we design government services. richardpope.org/2026/09/15/n...richardpope.orgNationalise Parent Pay? 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 23/09/2026Really mixed feelings about this. Perhaps the best / only way to drive change in a complex organisation is to (at least metaphorically) spin out a new sub-org to do it. That said, the idea that that team is "special" really drives against genuine whole-org change. gds.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/17/c...gds.blog.gov.ukCreating the conditions for transformationCustomerFirst shares early lessons from its work with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 20/09/2026One more. Excellent this is happening but it's chipping away at the edge of a huge whole-government issue (national government data architecture) that no-one senior enough wants to spend the political capital to really tackle head-on. gds.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/15/w...gds.blog.gov.ukWhat the ‘Early Years’ Innovation Challenge showed us about data-sharing and collaborationWhat would seamless, trusted data-sharing mean for young children and their families? At a recent Early Years Innovation Challenge, we explored how better data-sharing could support earlier interventi... 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 20/09/2026Is GDS the "GDS of AI" or is it someone else. I can't even keep track. 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 20/09/2026Still at MHCLG but only highlighting the same systemic issues. It's insane that each separate department is spending multiple tranches of money doing this rather than there being one central team in government responsible for this. mhclgdigital.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/15/t...mhclgdigital.blog.gov.ukThe MHCLG AI Gateway: enabling more effective and safer adoption of AI in our digital servicesAI is becoming an important part of how we design and deliver digital services. To help product and delivery teams across MHCLG adopt AI more safely and effectively, our Technical Architecture team de... 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 20/09/2026Oh - realised I forgot to include the URL at the top. Excellent service btw. Great job having this working - it's the grand context that's broken, not any particular service team. mhclgdigital.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/18/m...mhclgdigital.blog.gov.ukMoving Share Homes for Ukraine data’s code to open sourceShare Homes for Ukraine data, our in-house system for managing Homes for Ukraine data turned one this week. In this blog post, we talk about how we recently open-sourced the code for the system and wh... 001
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 20/09/2026The whole model is wrong, Software engineers across government should be working on a single common platform not building huge amounts of service bespoke code that's then "opened" in a way that's not meaningfully useful. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 20/09/2026Of course, the real question is whether anyone will reuse this code. GDS has mandated open sourcing code since 2013 but I've never seen any investigation into reuse. Apart from things designed to be libraries (the Design System) I imagine any actual re-use is slim to nil. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 20/09/2026If nothing else that would enforce ongoing cyber and redaction checks rather than, again, having to do them in a big tranche each time. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 20/09/2026It's nice that MHCLG has blogged about their process for this but it's not like it's something they've chosen to do. It's mandatory step 12 in the service standard. Really code should be open from the *start* and iterated in the open - not just done in a big drop at some gate. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 16/09/2026These are the kind of excellent small incremental improvements I wish far more teams in far more departments would blog about. gds.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/16/h...gds.blog.gov.ukHow we made it easier for millions of users to sign into government servicesUsers can now sign in to GOV.UK One Login with a passkey using their face, fingerprint or passcode, without remembering passwords or entering security codes. 020
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 09/09/2026Plus commitment to at least share with other departments if not publicly. 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 09/09/2026This is nice but it would be good if part of the programmes to introduce major changes in IT in government organisations was some ongoing user research with users to (1) share best practice and (2) investigate ROI. defradigital.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/09/c...defradigital.blog.gov.ukCopilot and me: What’s made a differenceIn the third part of our series looking at the ways Defra colleagues are using AI, Zoe Wilson reflects on how Copilot empowers her as a form of assistive technology. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 06/09/2026OMG - I'd never even *heard* of this until you mentioned it. Heroic work from someone keeping that version up all this time. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 04/09/2026I love the level of detail in both of these that almost no-one will care about but will be really important for those that do. This team are champions of open working. More of this please. enablingdigitalidentity.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/03/u... enablingdigitalidentity.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/03/c...enablingdigitalidentity.blog.gov.ukCommencing transition from 0.4 to 1.0The transition period from the 0.4 and versions of the trust framework and supplementary codes has started One of the conformity assessment bodies that are approved to certify against the UK digital v... 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 04/09/2026Is that the kind of thing you have filed away somewhere @ntouk.bsky.social ? 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 03/09/2026The Digital Devolution programme sounds fascinating and an excellent way to build on GDS Local. However, it'll be interesting to see how local gov officials react to central gov folks being parachuted into the offices as "advisors". gds.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/01/s...gds.blog.gov.ukSupporting devolution through digital, data and AIAcross government, there is a growing focus on how powers, funding and decision-making can be exercised closer to the places they impact. We're pleased to be working with Mayoral Strategic Authorities... 011
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 03/09/2026Foundational Data and "refernce spines" does sound a lot like the old GDS Registers project I still have the scars from so I hope they've learned a lot about how we did that wrong. 110
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 03/09/2026I'm definitely looking forward to reading the Strategic Data Roadmap (especially for the implications for the "Digital Backbone") and to continue to see updates on the Person Data Standard. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 03/09/2026Really great post. Lots of good stuff coming out of GDS these days. I hope this means the comms restrictions are loosening. I only wish we could have public week notes or show and tells from this group. dataingovernment.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/03/c...dataingovernment.blog.gov.ukConnecting data to enable modern digital governmentThe Foundational Data team in the Office for the Chief Data Officer explains how better-connected data could support simpler, more joined-up public services. 100
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 02/09/2026One more excellent thing to see. Not just the achievement but the blogging too. The only thing I would love to see is a timeline of feature introduction and a list of things asked for but not implemented (for good reasons). Both would be valuable insights. gds.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/02/g...gds.blog.gov.ukGOV.UK Pay at 10: how it started and how it's going10 years ago, GDS launched GOV.UK Pay, one of its flagship platforms used by public sector service teams. To mark this milestone, we look back at an incredible first decade and some exciting developme... 011
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 02/09/2026This is excellent and I so wish there was even more detail. It'd be great to see the actual interaction maps and understand the related incentives. Also what patterns for change that emerged that could be replicated elsewhere. technology.blog.gov.uk/2026/08/28/l...technology.blog.gov.uk 010
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 27/08/2026This is excellent of course but I'd kinda hope that most central gov organisations had been doing this since at least 2015. mhclgdigital.blog.gov.uk/2026/08/27/a...mhclgdigital.blog.gov.ukAdopting a user-centred design approach to our internal content landscapeThe Content Improvement team in MHCLG focuses on making sure internal content across our platforms is accessible and user-friendly, and meets the needs of all colleagues. By treating content as critic... 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 27/08/2026Ahh... What you actually mean is improving the digital and data platforms inside the ONS. That's great - but it's a lot less than what the title of the article is implying... blog.ons.gov.uk/2026/08/27/b...blog.ons.gov.ukBuilding the digital backbone behind the UK’s statisticsSecure technology and data products are the foundations upon which the ONS delivers modern statistics. One month into his new role as Director General, Luke Ashton gives his early thoughts on how his 000
UK Gov Comms (NON GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT) @ukgovcomms.bsky.social · 24/08/2026Very nice - but we do wish more was accessible to non-civil-servants of course. There's no reason why UK gov can't host an online discussion platform where you have to nominated to a couple of existing members to join. gds.blog.gov.uk/2026/08/24/s...gds.blog.gov.ukServices Week 2026 Wrap UpThis year's Services Week saw an incredible 4,000 attendees across 80 sessions, delivered by over 30 different government departments. We reflect on the event's success and how to stay connected to th... 000