City of Edinburgh Council is preparing to launch a secure platform for access to its intranet, provided for frontline employees without regular access.
It has developed the platform under the Gateway project with provider Jadu and its ICT partner CGI. This has led to the provision of Jadu Central Gateway to provide a portal, alongside the existing one, for access to the council’s Orb intranet.
A key feature is that it provides access to crucial information for employees and partners who do not have corporate email addresses or do not regularly use computers in their roles.
The council is planning to go live with the platform by the end of this month, beginning with the provision of access to a small number of frontline workers who have already signed up to use it.
It has also written to employees who have not yet signed up encouraging them to do so. Its HR consultants have begun to engage with workers and will review any questions from a pilot group before a wider roll out.
The project derives from the council’s experience during the Covid-19 pandemic, which highlighted the need to ensure all its workers could access the same information at the same time, and there was a need for some to be replicated on the public facing website. The council did not want to create another externally created or reduced version of what was already in place, preferring to provide secure access to what was already well established.
Internet access
The platform can be accessed via the internet on any device, with users who do not have corporate email accounts using their own email addresses. The Gateway function enables users to click on a link, receive an authentication code then access the intranet securely.
The IP addresses of partners such as trade unions can be whitelisted.
Key features include two-factor authentication, invitation management and IP address range control, which makes it easy for the team managing access to add new users and remove leavers.
This solution is expected to provide an asset for workers in areas such as social services, waste management, parks and housing.
Cammy Day, leader of the City of Edinburgh Council, commented: “This is an important project that will allow us to provide frontline workers with secure access to important information and services. Jadu Central Gateway will provide access to information they need to do their jobs more effectively and is a great example of how Edinburgh is leading digital innovation that can support their employees.”
The council said the project aligns with its People Strategy and Workforce Plan by helping to keep the workforce more engaged and better informed.
