Matt Hancock urges schools to ban phones
Culture secretary says evidence shows that outlawing the use of mobiles is effective
Whitehall tech policy advisor rocks up on Love Island
Civil servant Zara McDermott has joined the ITV reality show
Sally Meecham unveiled as GDS interim COO
Civil servant returns to organisation to take operational reins
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GDS offers £87k for four new head of product roles
Newly created leadership posts will cover responsibility for individual products or portfolios
Liam Maxwell: ‘Transformation is nothing to do with tech – it is about a change of business model’
Government's national technology adviser discusses why getting digital reforms through the machinery of government may require some help from Jason Bourne
Ordnance Survey opens up MasterMap data to boost UK tech sector
More data likely to be made available under government licence in due course
Ofsted looks to turn reports into web content
Schools inspectorate seeks supplier for 12-month project to make reports more accessible
Interview: government DDaT skills chief on her work to recruit and develop digital leaders
PublicTechnology talks to the head of capability for the civil service’s DDaT profession, Holly Ellis, about how the mantra of ‘do things once’ is being applied to help departments hire and train digital talent
Four councils turn to open data to improve services
Open Data Institute seeks more public sector partners with which to invest its £6m spending pot
Civil Service HR looks to develop library of online psychometric tests
Government looks to create up to 50 different tests for candidates
Why peer support, not a grand vision, is the key to shared services
Richard Blanford of Fordway believes there is scope for much more growth in shared services if local authorities focus on working with each other
Buckinghamshire appoints digital leader to work across local government and NHS bodies
Balvinder Heran will serve as ICT director for county council, NHS trust, and clinical commissioning group
Collaboration, data, connectivity, skills, and ethics – London CDO previews five core policy areas of smart-city plan
Theo Blackwell discusses how the soon-to-be-published Smarter London Together strategy document will promote common standards and skills, and help councils use planning powers to promote connectivity
HMRC cites success of automated telephony despite criticism of increased call-waiting times
Figures show a rise in time taken to answer calls, but department claims time spent in automated platform is ‘valuable’
CCS starts building first Crown Marketplace portals
Supply-teaching and facilities-management frameworks will be among first to be hosted on new web store, as procurement agency also looks to refresh underlying e-sourcing technology
Loughborough University seeks £1m supercomputer
Institution issues prior information notice announcing imminent replacement of existing Hydra platform
Full-fibre rollout will sweep through two million properties each year, chancellor pledges
Philip Hammond vows that every building in the UK will have access to an FTTP network within 15 years
We all have something to hide – and the government must let us
The public sector needs to be careful it does not fall foul of citizens’ growing disquiet about how their data is used and by whom, according to PublicTechnology editor Sam Trendall
Police chiefs look to address ‘inconsistent’ use of social media with nationwide strategy
National body looks to draw up an ‘evidence-based strategy’ for forces’ use of social platforms
Ending the ‘brogrammer’ culture – how to close the gender gap
Lucy Hocking of RAND Europe looks at the three main barriers preventing women from thriving in the STEM sector – and how they can be overcome
Voice activation, service transformation, and deliberately delayed mortgages – six things we learned at Sprint 18
The relaunched annual GDS event shone a light on the government’s key digital-transformation strategies and initiatives for the coming months and years. PublicTechnology went along to find out more
DWP offers £105k for leader to drive digital recruitment and development
Department advertises for vacant post as head of digital capability
The core mission of GDS is to help government work better for everyone
Ahead of next week’s Sprint 18 event, GDS director general Kevin Cunnington outlines the organisation’s focus areas for the coming months, and its achievements of the past two years
Ministry of Justice seeks duo of digital leaders
Senior managers sought for Whitehall department and arm's-length agencies