Beginning
Our team is funded by the Welsh Government and is proud to sit within the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA).
The WLGA is a politically led cross party organisation that gives local government a strong voice at a national level. The Association is a membership organisation that represents all 22 local authorities in Wales, the 3 fire and rescue authorities and the 3 national park authorities.
The WLGA is full of people who work incredibly hard to make Wales a better place for everyone, so it is fantastic for us to be able to work with colleagues whose main aim is the same as ours.
Purpose
Simply put, our purpose is to help and support local authorities to provide the best digital services for all residents and visitors in Wales.
Firstly, we are here to support. We help local authorities to overcome various challenges that make it difficult to design and implement digital services. We do this in various ways, such as encouraging collaboration between local authorities, helping with resource, and by hosting training and events to increase the digital skills across Wales.
Secondly, we are here to innovate. We believe in Outcome Driven Innovation, so we want to make sure that our services are centred around humans. To do this, we draw on the expertise and enthusiasm in our team and of our partners to create innovative solutions to answer the needs of the residents of Wales.
Finally, we are here to make sure our services are inclusive. This means that services within Wales are accessible to all. Everyone in our team strongly believes that every service needs to be for everyone. We will make sure to live by the principle of creating the best services for all of the people all of the time.
Policy Context
Our team makes up one quarter of the digital landscape in Wales. The other teams, which we will continue to work closely with, are NHS Digital Wales, the Centre for Public Digital Services, and the Welsh Government Digital Team.
Below we have listed the Welsh Government policies in which the idea for our team emerged from:
- The First Minister’s Manifesto sets our ambition to adopt a ‘Once for Wales’ approach.
- The System Reboot report (December 2018) identified a need for a renewed emphasis on improving public servants’ digital skills and designing services based on customer needs.
- The Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act provides an essential context in which we must ensure that everyone can access public services.
Lindsey Phillips
Head of Agile Delivery
Lindsey has worked in the digital and IT arena for many years having previously worked as Technology and Innovation Manager at the former Welsh Development Agency, and as Development Manager for Qatar Science & Technology Park. Lindsey also has extensive public sector experience and has previously coordinated a significant European funded collaborative digital project across several local authorities in Wales. More recently, she has worked in the private sector and in local authority transformation, including developing new services for schools.
Lindsey is passionate about Wales and the future of the Welsh language. As a fluent Welsh speaker, she is committed to the availability and accessibility of Welsh language services for citizens. She is excited to take on the role of Head of Agile Delivery at the WLGA, and to work with the Local Authorities across Wales to deliver effective digital services.
Email: lindsey.phillips@wlga.gov.uk
Emma Willis
Content Designer
Emma has worked in the digital space for the last 12 years, delivering compelling content across a wide range of channels and formats. With experience managing the end-to-end content lifecycle, Emma uses analytics and research insights to shape and iterate solutions and works with stakeholders to maintain a focus on the user throughout.
As a Content Designer, Emma is a passionate advocate for clear, accessible content, and is committed to helping improve standards and support knowledge transfer within local government, to benefit citizens and visitors. She’s excited to see the difference clear and accessible content can make to end users of digital services across Welsh local authorities.
Email: emma.willis@wlga.gov.uk
Twitter: @emmwillis
Chris Carter
UX Designer
Chris has worked in local government for several years in a digital role for Torfaen Council, creating a variety of digital services such as websites and elearning. This has given him insight into some of the challenges faced by local authorities online. He has also previously worked in the private sector as a graphic designer.
As a User Experience Designer, Chris is passionate about user centred design as well as improving services and making them easy for citizens to use. Whilst ensuring that accessibility is at the heart of everything he does.
Email: chris.carter@wlga.gov.uk
Sheena Thomas
Agile Delivery Support Officer
New to the public sector, Sheena has previously worked in education and brings years of experience of administration and coordination. Past experiences enable Sheena to support the projects and the team by ensuring all are on track to deliver. Sheena is looking forward to meeting new people and excited to work with local authorities across Wales in a collaborative approach.
Coming from a rural part of Cornwall, Sheena understands the barriers that some citizens face and is thrilled to be part of a digital team that focuses on user needs to support the citizens of Wales.
Email: sheena.thomas@wlga.gov.uk
Paul Owens
Agile Delivery Manager
Paul’s role is to work with digital and technical leaders across local government to help identify, understand and prioritise service improvements for our citizens – ensuring end user perspectives are fully considered throughout.
He has 25 years’ digital experience in the private sector working for organisations ranging from Global 500 multinationals to fast grow start-ups. Paul has worked within a variety of sectors including health, energy, education and retail. He is an agile champion, having worked on a wide variety of successful digital developments throughout his career.
Email: paul.owens@wlga.gov.uk