In January, the Government announced its vision for a digital reform across public sector services. 

With the release of the research report the State of digital government review and the policy paper A blueprint for modern digital government, the DSIT announcements highlight key achievements in digital – such as the widespread adoption of the NHS app and GOV.UK platform. They also identify challenges such as outdated processes and infrastructure, and policies not suited for a digital-first approach. A newly formed digital centre of government has been created to drive and enable this vision for change. 

Our team has explored the key themes of the new publications and shared some thoughts on the Government’s plans to harness digital capability.

The current UK digital landscape

The Government’s vision for digital transformation in the public sector is ambitious. In an increasingly digitally enabled and interconnected world, expectations for seamless, efficient and accessible services amongst citizens is growing.  

There are several areas of excellence and innovation across the public sector. Many services have excelled at creating and distributing digital services to serve citizens efficiently, e.g. the NHS account. Public sector digital teams have rapidly adopted and embraced cloud technology – in many cases more swiftly than private sector organisations. Furthermore, there is significant innovation in the use of data and AI to enhance clinical outcomes across the NHS.

“The Government’s commitment to continuing to prioritise user-centred services and delivery is great to see, ensuring that public services remain accessible, efficient and responsive is paramount. As artificial intelligence revolutionises the way services are designed and delivered, its true potential will only be realised if it continues to serve end users, enabling a more efficient and effective government. 

By leveraging AI to enhance decision-making, streamline processes, and improve service delivery, the focus must remain on meeting the needs of citizens and businesses, ensuring technology is used as a tool for empowerment rather than an end in itself.”

Mike Tattersall, Chief Delivery Officer at Hippo 

The report highlights a series of digital weaknesses across public sector organisations, including: institutional fragmentation leading to duplication efforts; legacy systems and potentially vulnerable outdated tech; data isolation preventing effective sharing across the public sector; and various other themes we’ll explore in more detail.

Alongside its strengths and weaknesses, the report also outlines various root causes for the current landscape, including:

• Leadership: Lack of support for digital leaders to drive service digitisation.
• Structure: Tech systems are often built independently, limiting standardisation and scalability.
• Measurement: Consistency in digital performance metrics is lacking, limiting strategic decision-making.
• Talent: The public sector has found it difficult to attract and retain digital talent.
• Funding: Funding is often awarded to new programmes, often leaving critical legacy systems behind.

A blueprint for modern digital government: Key themes 

The Government has laid out a Six-Point Plan for Public Sector Digital Reform. Ultimately, through this plan, it wants to deliver easier lives for people, faster growth of the economy, more secure foundations and infrastructure, smarter working, and higher productivity in public services. Let’s take a look at the six key areas where the Government plans to focus activity and drive transformation across digital services.

1. Join up public sector services

The Government aims to break down silos and improve cross-organisation service delivery. While many public services have embraced digital solutions, many are still under-digitised, often creating inefficiencies or friction with users. While successes like GOV.UK One Login, a service which Hippo developed, demonstrate progress, a key challenge will be addressing uneven digital maturity across government. 

The introduction of a GOV.UK Digital Wallet will allow users to store various government credentials, starting with digital driver’s licenses later in 2025. The wallet is set to expand to every credential issued by Government by 2027, potentially marking a key step towards a unified, user-centred approach to simplifying interactions with public services. However, open standards for interoperability will ensure that users can utilise credentials in multiple scenarios, which will lead to more compelling reasons and wider adoption. This should be a key consideration for Government in the implementation of this technology.

Our white paper Digital Wallets: How to build for an emerging identity landscape explores these topics in detail – putting a spotlight on our work on NHS England’s Digital Staff Passport, a wallet enabling movement of staff.

Another core consideration for this theme should be the role that a user-centred approach can play in institutional collaboration. Hippo’s work on resettlement passports for the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) highlighted the importance of collaborative principles and stakeholder engagement across business analysis and user research to deliver impactful outcomes. The case study is also a key example of how user-centred digital solutions can enhance the effectiveness of UK policy – a theme outlined in the State of digital government review. In this case adapting the Prisons Strategy White Paper commitments into two powerful digital products. 

2. Harness AI for public good

In addition to the new documents discussed in this blog, the government also recently introduced its new AI Opportunities Action Plan – we explored the plan in detail in our recent blog post. The upshot? AI technologies have a lot of revolutionary potential for public services, however this must be balanced with responsible frameworks and a user centred approach. 

Our work with Mid Yorkshire NHS Trust showcased how to make artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning concepts accessible in a healthcare setting, and the importance of building trust with stakeholders. Our case study also explores how collaboration, experimentation and iteration were key to developing data assessments and modelling that ensured patient safety was at the heart of decision making.

3. Strengthen digital and data infrastructure 

Robust infrastructure is central to effective digital government services. The fragmentation across public sector departments creates a challenge for implementing joined-up, personalised services for citizens, alongside making it more difficult to realise efficiencies and opportunities for collaboration. Addressing the challenges around unifying and sharing of data will be key to achieving these policy goals.

“As technology evolves, we’re seeing groundbreaking innovations that are reshaping the way we think about services. At the same time, many critical legacy systems remain deeply embedded in our infrastructure but aren’t always receiving the support they need. This presents a unique challenge for government—balancing innovation with the maintenance of essential systems. I’m encouraged by the commitment of using risk modelling as the way to apply new technologies and budget for legacy technology problems. This approach will be crucial in preventing today’s innovations from becoming tomorrow’s legacy burdens.”

Kayliegh Sugden, Client Director for Public Sector

Also key to this point in the plan is the importance of bolstering cyber resilience across government. By adopting a secure by design approach to service delivery, public sector organisations can bridge the gap between users and technology, ultimately delivering more robust platforms. You can learn more about user-centred cyber security and secure by design at Hippo here.

4. Elevate leadership, invest in talent

The Government’s plan for transformation will require digital leadership and a skilled workforce. The plan lays out goals to invest in the profession, attract talent and enhance skills across the public sector – recognising that this will be essential for driving the necessary innovation and ensuring the long-term success of digital initiatives. 

Initiatives like the Government Digital Academy, initially the DWP Academy that was followed by the Government Digital Service Academy, established back in February 2014 led to over 10,000 civil servants being trained in digital skills over a period of years. It played a key role in the growth of digital capability across the public sector and was influential in Hippo’s formative years. Mike Tattersall is a graduate of the Academy and shared its impact on his career below. The transformational impact that the initiative had during its tenure demonstrates the importance of skills investment – something that will be crucial. 

 

5. Fund for outcomes, procure for growth

In order to drive growth and innovation, the Government outlines its plans to reform funding approaches for digital projects and optimise public procurement. The report outlines plans to shift focus to outcomes-based funding and strategic procurement to stimulate economic activity within the digital sector. A value-based procurement strategy, applied consistently and efficiently across public services like the NHS could support procurement teams in achieving this goal.

6. Commit to transparency, drive accountability

The blueprint recognises the importance of transparency and accountability when building public trust with digital services. The Government outlines its plans to publish performance data and encourage public engagement in shaping government services. This approach can help to ensure that end users are involved in the implementation of both policy and technology. 

Achieving the vision

The Government’s blueprint policy paper presents an ambitious vision with many opportunities for public sector services in the UK. The document also highlights the many challenges that lie ahead. The journey towards a truly digital government will require continuous collaboration and innovation, but crucially a core focus on user needs. By embracing this approach, the public sector can build a digital future that truly services the public good.