Government Digital Service

Services Week 2026 is almost here! From 29 June to 3 July, we’ll be showcasing the fantastic work being delivered across the UK public sector to improve lives for citizens. It’s not too late for you to get your sessions added to the agenda for the week. You have one week left to fill out this session proposal survey 👉 https://lnkd.in/dCbGHQ4P We can’t wait to see what great sessions you all have in store! If you’re a digital or data professional looking to collaborate with fellow civil servants and explore how tech-powered services and stronger community connections can drive change, this is a great opportunity for you. Join us in our opening session to launch the week by registering here 👉 https://lnkd.in/eyRN3g32 Hear from Emran Mian (Permanent Secretary, DSIT) along with GDS director generals and more!

What have we learned from the Prime Minister’s AI Exemplars programme — and what comes next?   Over the past year, teams across government have been testing how AI can improve public services, from supporting frontline decision-making to increasing productivity.   The AI Exemplars programme has shown that: departments can successfully pilot AI in real-world settings collaboration across government helps surface shared challenges central support is most effective when it tackles common barriers   It has also highlighted what needs to change.   Scaling AI across public services remains challenging, with common issues around data readiness, commercial constraints and duplication of effort.   That’s why we are shifting our approach.   Building on these lessons, government is now focusing on a smaller number of large, transformational AI programmes, delivered in close partnership with departments, alongside targeted action to remove system-wide barriers to adoption.   The Exemplars programme has provided the evidence base for this next phase.   Read more about what we’ve learned and how this is shaping the future of AI in government: https://lnkd.in/ecXZyDGp #DigitalGovernment #GDS #AIExemplars

Too many children are arriving at school without the skills they need, and too many parents have had to navigate complex, disconnected public services to get the support they deserve. Nearly 1 in 3 children start school without the basic skills they need, and unconnected public services are one of the reasons why.    Currently, services can operate in isolation with paper-based processes, meaning support is less well-coordinated and too often doesn’t arrive in time, if at all. Today we are launching the Early Years Kickstarter. A project to explore how safely connecting health, education and childcare data can help professionals act earlier and get the right support to children faster.  This work will help shape our approach to making more data available through the National Data Library, which will provide a trusted gateway for public sector data to tackle national challenges. We’re asking parents, carers, health visitors and education professionals to share their experiences to help shape this work 💬 👉 Please take part and complete this form:  https://lnkd.in/e2t7Qq4m #EarlyYears #DataForGood #PublicServices #BestStartForLife #GovTech 

At GDS, we’re always looking for ways to improve GOV.UK, and this includes for the 3,000 civil servants who publish content to the government website’s 800,000+ pages. We’ve rewritten our GOV.UK Content and publishing guidance to make it easier and quicker to publish to GOV.UK, all while maintaining the high content standards of the site. Find out how we made it better: 👉 https://lnkd.in/gqxiGjvb Read our new guidance: 👉 https://lnkd.in/geNZA2Tg #ContentDesign #GDS #DigitalGovernment

Today we're launching the National Data Library (NDL), transforming data.gov.uk into a single trusted gateway to curated, high-quality public sector data for researchers, innovators, public servants, and citizens. Kickstarter projects will show what better-connected public sector data can do in practice. The Early Years Kickstarter is the first project, working with Leeds City Council, London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham, and councils across the Liverpool City Region, will explore how safely connecting data across health, education, and childcare services can help professionals spot developmental needs earlier and get families the right support faster — with robust safeguards throughout. It's a practical demonstration of what a modern digital government looks like: one public sector, joining up data and services around the people who use them. Fewer silos. Better outcomes. Data that works for people. #DataForGood #PublicServices #GovTech #NationalDataLibrary #EarlyYears https://lnkd.in/eJNNCqvv 

We recently released GOV.UK Chat into the GOV.UK app, enabling users to find essential information they need, when they need it, using an AI-powered chatbot. Over the last couple of years, we’ve used the insights from live pilots and user testing to guide improvements and iterations, leading to the version now available to all app users. Our recent blog post explores the data science and AI engineering details behind GOV.UK Chat’s development and our work ensuring we continue to meet user needs responsibly and balance accuracy, trustworthiness and scalability. Find out more 👇 https://lnkd.in/eJKFNCAi #DigitalGovernment #GOVUKChat #DataScience #AIinGovernment

GOV.UK Pay has a new provider for non-Crown card payments and pay by bank.     As part of the next stage of Pay's near 10-year journey, local authorities, armed forces, police forces and other organisations will migrate to Adyen as their card payment provider. This change also paves the way for the introduction of a pay by bank feature in the future.    Learn more about this change and what it means for service teams as we begin migrating around 1,000 services, whilst ensuring GOV.UK Pay remains safe, secure and accessible for all throughout.  Blog post 👉 https://lnkd.in/e293ZWvY

Since launching CustomerFirst earlier this year, we’ve formed a joint “NewCo” team with Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) - bringing together expertise from across policy, operations, technology and service design to improve the Drivers Medical service end to end. The Drivers Medical service is how hundreds of thousands of people tell DVLA every year about a medical condition that could affect their ability to drive. GDS and DVLA are:  ⏱️ reducing delays and uncertainty for customers 📲 improving how people are kept informed about their case 🔗 exploring how information flows across DVLA and with medical professionals   We’ll start small, test what works, and scale improvements carefully. Read more about how CustomerFirst and DVLA are working together to improve Drivers Medical 👇 https://lnkd.in/ennTwY9k

Following an afternoon of outstanding presentations, we are delighted to announce Casework Compliance Assistant as the winner of the Civil Service AI & Data Challenge 2026. The winner was announced at the grand finale at Church House, Westminster and was presented by Minister for Digital Government and Data, The Rt Hon Ian Murray MP. The winning idea was put forward by Marlon Woodley from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), who said the tool would “enable caseworkers to make better decisions more quickly, reducing waiting times and ensuring that people receive the benefits they are entitled to.” Congratulations to the team for a practical, high‑impact solution with real potential to scale across government.

📱GOV.UK Chat is officially live in the GOV.UK App 📱 You can now use GOV.UK Chat, the government’s AI powered chatbot, to find out the essential information you need, when you need it, through your trusted GOV.UK App. Instead of navigating pages and links, you can now ask a question and get a clear and conversational response, grounded in the trusted GOV.UK information. Ahead of go live, GDS has undertaken extensive user research and pilots, as well as a soft launch over the past 4 weeks. We’ve already seen:  👉7,800 people use GOV.UK Chat 👉15,000+ questions answered Find out more about GOV.UK Chat in our blog post: https://lnkd.in/eV_EeBR7 Download the GOV.UK App to try GOV.UK Chat here: https://lnkd.in/emQKWYFi