The Insolvency Service has launched the first online form to be developed on the new GOV.UK Forms platform.
The form to amend a redundancy claim is the first to emerge in public from a private beta partnership with the Government Digital Service (GDS), which has developed the platform to enable departments and arm’s length bodies to create accessible online forms themselves.
GDS said this will give the forms a consistent look and feel along with meeting government accessibility standards.
The holiday claim accrued amendment form will allow people who have previously made a claim for redundancy pay to provide updated information regarding their applications.
They will no longer have to download and submit a Word document or call the Insolvency Service’s helpline, which should make it quicker and simpler to process claims.
More to come
The new form is one of six for amendments used by the Insolvency Service’s Redundancy Payment Service. The agency and GDS are looking to create digital versions of the other forms in the future.
John Wheatle, director of the business services division for the Insolvency Service, said: “The new online holiday claim accrued amendment form is an exciting development for the Insolvency Service and will help boost our levels of customer service. Customers who are already in difficult personal circumstances will be able to easily amend their redundancy claims and notifications will be sent straight to the relevant people, reducing errors and speeding up the process.
“We are very proud to have worked with GDS on this innovative project and hope that the new form provides a good launch pad for us to transition other forms online, as well as other areas of government to develop their own forms in due course and provide excellent customer service.”
Clara Barnett, deputy director of digital service platforms at GDS, said: “We’re also improving the quality of data which the government collects, through simple validation and better form design, as well as speeding up processing times.”
The organisation has said it is working with a number of private beta partners to create more accessible online forms.
No tricky features
“This is a straightforward form that doesn't use any trickier kinds of question types or features - things like marking questions as optional or allowing users to upload files or add multiple responses to a question,” GDS said.
“These are all features our private beta partners require, so they’re the next ones we’re planning to design, build and test. And the Insolvency Service will be working on digital versions of the remaining RPS forms soon too.”
It added that the platform is web based with no coding required and will be made available as open source.
In its development there has been an emphasis on using tried and tested components and patterns, such as a confirmation page advising an applicant what happens next after completing a form, radio buttons to select an option and email validation.
GDS said it is aiming for at least 60% of its partners to have published a form by the end of the private beta phase and to launch it for use around central government in 2023.
Other partners include the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and HM Revenue and Customs.
