Life Events Service Design: Sprint 5 Show and Tell

On Tuesday 11 October we held our latest show and tell session for the Life Events Service Design project. In the session we gave an update on what we have achieved in Sprint 5 of the Alpha phase of the project and what we are planning to cover in the next Sprint. If you couldn’t attend and want to catch up, a recording of the session is available.

We gave a quick recap of the work we have done on the Council Tax Reduction service prototype as part of the solution idea of the Library of Services. We explained that while the prototype was well received following user testing and we had proved that we could design services better than those in use by some councils, there were barriers for councils to adopt the service prototype. These centred around supplier arrangements and platforms currently in use. These issues restrict councils from making changes based on user centred design and the platforms limit the options to implement new style front ends. As a result, the project has parked the Library of Services solution idea for the time being and instead we have focused on a new area of work to test in Alpha.

The Team have revisited the outputs from Discovery and have chosen to look at the area of ‘Easy to Find’.  This is to try and devise solutions that address the following challenge: “As a citizen entering a life event, I want to be able to find, understand and locate the entirety of the support services available to me. So that I can focus on what will best help me improve my immediate and longer-term situation.”

The Team looked again at the user research findings and analysis from Discovery in this area. Plus we have conducted some new desk based research looking at what information pages currently exist across council websites, that give help and guidance to citizens seeking support for the cost of living crisis that people are experiencing. This also included an initial review of the content and how it makes use of best practice and is accessible for citizens to use.

As part of this new workstream for Alpha, the Team have set up a Steering Group which has representatives from Welsh councils, Citizens Advice and Welsh Government bodies, CDPS and WLGA. The Steering Group will be meeting for the first time on 17^th October and will act as a forum to help shape and inform the work the project team will be doing.  We are looking to collaborate and understand from other similar activities already taking place across the local authority and public sector space within Wales. The Group will also be able to advise us in terms of development work, what is feasible for councils to adopt.

Our next Show and Tell will report back on what specific areas of work we are taking forward within the Easy to Find idea. We’ll also feedback from the discussions we are having at the Steering Group, with local authorities and public sector organisations to support cost of living support services. The next Show and Tell will be on Thursday 10 November. If you have attended previous sessions, we’ll include you on the invite. Otherwise, email the team at digitalteam@wlga.gov.uk to be added, or for any questions and comments.