GOV.UK blogs

RPC publishes Corporate Report for 2023-24

We have today published the RPC Corporate Report for 2023-24. The report summarises trends in our opinions on Impact Assessments (IAs) and Post Implementation Reviews (PIRs). It highlights a decline in the quality of analysis by government departments – with only 59% …

Online consultation events, factsheets and video now available

Book your place on one of our online consultation events- If you can’t make one of our in-person events, this is your chance to give your feedback of the five FMPs being consulted on.

Factsheets and an overview video are now available for these five FMPs - find them on this blog post!

We are simplifying the registration of personal covenants 

We are standardising references to personal covenants, with documents available for immediate download via the portal.

Supplementary codes: enhancing trust framework rules where needed

What supplementary codes are We’ve designed the trust framework to be as flexible as possible, so it shows what good digital identity services look like right across the UK economy.  But in some areas, those who rely on digital identity …

Assessing the viability of housing development sites  

How to speed up the pace of housing delivery? By appraising potential development sites in minutes, not months. So says co-founder of Viability, Henry Mayell.

West Penwith Moors and Downs (Halow ha Gonyow Pennwydh West) SSSI – an update on nature recovery in West Cornwall

By Julian Donald – Natural England Senior Officer for West Penwith Moors and Downs The prosperity and wellbeing of the people of Cornwall relies on a healthy natural environment with farming, fishing and tourism driving the local economy. This blog …

Keeping ICT Sustainability on the agenda

Chris Howes shares his hopes for this year’s COP event and the opportunities it might bring to help us drive digital transformation.     It’s that time of year again when climate change and sustainability rise to the top of the …

How geospatial AI can help inform our land use choices 

Mehul Doshi, Head of Land Use Programme, explains the role geospatial AI is playing in helping to address land use challenges. The UK has finite land that is under increasing pressure.  To meet our energy, housing, and food security needs, …

National Engineering Day 2024

Today is National Engineering Day and this year the focus is on making the UK’s engineers and engineering more visible, and to celebrate how they improve everyday lives and shape the world around us. One such engineer is James Ryan, …

Understanding climate change risk to Namibia’s diverse fisheries sectors

In this Q&A, Georg Engelhard Principal Marine Climate Change and Fisheries Scientist at Cefas, discusses a new One Ocean Hub paper titled “Climate risk assessment of the fisheries in Namibia” and its associated policy paper. It is the outcome of …

Our enforcement options to stop waste criminals

To carry out our regulatory responsibilities to protect the environment, we have a range of powers at our disposal. The severity of waste crimes varies greatly and our response to each incident is proportionate to the permit breach or offence …

From AI to underwater microphones: improving the evidence base for marine mammals 

By Samantha Parker and Emma Milner, Natural England marine mammal senior specialists  Why are seal population numbers changing so fast along our coasts? How are porpoise feeding patterns changing as our seas become increasingly crowded? And how does the health …

Coverage following launch of consultation on bathing waters reform

Today we are looking at media coverage following the launch of our consultation on Bathing Water reforms.

GOV.UK One Login: celebrating 50 services 

50 services are using GOV.UK One Login for authentication and identity verification for millions of users.

Natalie Jones OBE, Director of Digital Identity at the Government Digital Service, reflects on this milestone in our latest blog post.

Evidence to support your Council Tax band challenge

We look at the evidence you need to support a Council Tax band challenge.

The benefits of mosses, liverworts and lichen

Find out how these often-overlooked plants play their part in woodland ecosystems.

Reporting water pollution to get easier with new online service 

We’re piloting a new digital service to provide more ways for the public to report environmental problems.  Public reporting of water pollution, odours, flooding or wildlife concerns is an important way that we are alerted to environmental incidents.  Our national …

Reflections on Biodiversity Net Gain: 9 months after going live

In this post, Rachel Fisher, Deputy Director for the Land Use policy team at Defra, shares her reflections on Biodiversity Net Gain 9 months after the policy went live for major developments.

Data Pipeline Challenges of Privacy-Preserving Federated Learning

This post is part of a series on privacy-preserving federated learning. The series is a collaboration between the Responsible Technology Adoption Unit (RTA) and the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Learn more and read all the posts …

Designing a user-centred cyber assessment service for local government

We’re taking an iterative, user-centred design approach to building and introducing the cyber assessment service for local government.

Understanding the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) rotational actions declaration

There are some Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) actions in the SFI 2023 offer which are ‘rotational’. As explained in the handbook for the SFI 2023 offer, in the second or third year of an SFI agreement these rotational SFI actions …

How generative AI is accelerating outcomes in DBT

How our Redbox trial showed us how generative AI can improve our ways of working.

Timely detection of thousands of cancers underlines benefits of a national lung cancer screening programme

More than 5,000 lung cancers have been detected since the launch of the Targeted Lung Health Check programme, which will become a national lung cancer screening programme.

Harnessing Innovative Technology for Nature-Based Solutions in Norfolk & Suffolk

In celebration of World Science Day (10th November), we’re taking a look at the surprising ways Natural England uses technology in its day-to-day operations. In Norfolk & Suffolk, a number of projects are using innovative technology to improve efficiency and …

Using AI to apply for Digital jobs 

Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should…..why you should be careful in your use of AI when applying. 

Celebrating 10 years of DVLA’s STEM programme

Our STEM volunteer programme turns 10 this year. STEM ambassadors Mark Jones and Karen Pitt look back on the programme’s success.

Natural England's role in High Speed 2

There has been inaccurate coverage about Natural England’s involvement in the development of HS2's bat tunnel. Natural England has not required HS2 Ltd to build the reported structure, or any other structure, nor advised on the design or costs. The …

Pricing algorithms and competition law: what you need to know 

Do you use an algorithm to guide your pricing decisions? Maybe you get pricing recommendations using software or an external supplier that uses an algorithm?  Or perhaps you sell pricing software solutions?  The use of pricing algorithms is widespread these days …

Turning the page: understanding the barriers to library use and how to encourage engagement

Earlier this year Ipsos UK carried out research on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to understand barriers to public library use in England and help identify the factors that could support increased engagement.  With data showing …

International use of England's biodiversity metric having global impact

By Nick White, Principal Adviser on Biodiversity Net Gain, and Steve Panks, Principal Specialist Biodiversity Net Gain and Biodiversity Metrics, at Natural England, explore the global significance of the biodiversity metric and its role in nature recovery across the world.  …

Take part in a consultation on drought management in England 

After a very wet September for some parts of the country, drought may be the last thing on your mind. However, dry weather can come unexpectedly – as we saw in the summer of 2022. Our changing climate means we …

HPValidate cervical screening self-sampling study publishes final results

The HPValidate study has published its final results and found that 4 combinations of HPV self-collection device and test worked well – these can now be used to help find out how self-sampling could be introduced into cervical screening.

From manual to automated: enhancing reporting for the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping team 

Discover how MHCLG's Digital Process Improvement team transformed reporting processes for the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Accommodation team, enhancing efficiency and support for vulnerable communities.

£10 Million Winter Fund Launched to Protect Rough Sleepers

Yesterday we launched an emergency £10 million fund to support rough sleepers this winter. As the coldest months of the year approach, this funding will go direct to councils with the highest need and support thousands of the most vulnerable …

GOVERNMENT VETERINARY SERVICES (GVS) AT THE LONDON VET SHOW 2024

The Government Veterinary Services (GVS) are really excited to be exhibiting at the London Vet Show on Thursday 14th and Friday 15th November. We will be on stand N70, so do stop by to say "hi" and learn more about …

Making leadership more visible: Senior Civil Service roles are now on the Digital and Data Capability Framework

Last month we updated the Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework to include Senior Civil Service (SCS) roles.

The significance of Remembrance and the Festival of Remembrance to the UK military community

Glen Hymers, Chief Information Security Officer, at Cabinet Office Digital shares his personal reflections on Remembrance and its significance to the veteran community.

Greater transparency in valuation information 

We explore our future approach to sharing information on business rates valuations, and what it will mean for our customers.

Alternative Student Finance – how we’re making student finance accessible to everyone

Some people feel unable to use existing student loans due to their faith. This is most common among some Muslims because their religion prohibits engagement with interest, which is applied to all student loans. We support the goals of every …

Discovering the secrets in the ground underneath Western Europe’s most hazardous building

John Heneghan, one of our contaminated land specialists, explains what pioneering ways him and his team are discovering, in order to manage ground contamination work.