Trials with local authorities lead to enhancements in branding for the platforms
The Government Digital Service (GDS) has made the GOV.UK Notify and GOV.UK Pay platforms fully available to service teams in local government.
This follows a series of trials with a number of local authorities that showed the common needs of central government, for which the platforms were originally designed, also apply to councils.
It marks a significant move in the development of the two platforms, which have emerged from the Government as a Platform programme. Notify is used to update the public on the progress of their interactions with public services and Pay to make payments manage financial reconciliations.
According to a blogpost by Peter Herlihy and Till Wirth of GDS, the main change to emerge from the trials was an enhancement of the branding options for the platforms.
“We needed to better support the diverse range of brands that exist in local government to make sure a user’s experience is consistent throughout their entire journey,” Herlihy and Wirth say.
Among the uses of Notify to emerge from the trials was East Sussex County Council using it to send air quality alerts and Kent County Council making its fireworks licensing service easier for businesses to use.
The blog says that Notify is now used by more than 280 services in central government and Pay by 31.
Image from the Cabinet Office, Open Government Licence v3.0
