The United Kingdom has revised its Digital Service Standard, which describes the components for building eGovernment services. The update came into effect on 1 June, and is to be used for new and redesigned external-facing services.
The standard is to help public administrations in the UK build digital services that support the government’s “digital by default” policy. All new digital services from the government must meet the Digital Service Standard.
The new Digital Service Standard has 18 criteria, 8 fewer than its predecessor. According to an announcement, the criteria have been re-ordered and grouped by theme. The changes aim to make standard clearer, GDS explains, adding that “the Service Manual, prompts and evidence document, and other related documents have been updated to reflect the changes made.”
Each of the criteria looks at different aspects of a digital service, GDS explained in 2014. “These criteria are the building blocks for making a user-focused service that is safe and changes over time based on feedback.”
The 18 criteria are part of the Government Service Design Manual, providing guidance and advice about how to design and build digital services from teams across government. The two documents are to https://www.gov.uk/service-manual/start help public administrations service managers and digital delivery teams to provide eGovernment services.
The first version of the Digital Service Standard was published in April 2013. It came into effect one year later.