Content
Editorial
Pickles confirms plan to change electronic agenda rules
The government has confirmed that it is planning to legislate to allow councillors to be sent agendas for council meetings electronically.
Features
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
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
By students, for students – digital life at the University of Lincoln
Director of digital student life Tom Wright tells PublicTechnology about how the university’s approach to social media is led by students
Interview
In it for the long-run: Why Luton council signed a 10-year ICT deal
Luton Borough Council chose to renew its IT contract rather than go with a new provider. The council’s technology lead tells Gill Hitchcock how it shifted to an outcomes-based approach – and why a flexible 10-year contract can still be a good deal.
‘The skill set for any CIO is the same’: Socitm president Geoff Connell on moving from borough to county
Geoff Connell took up his role of CIO at Norfolk County Council in August last year. Rebecca Hill asks him how he found the change from the London Borough of Newham, and finds out what’s on his to-do list.
News
No way of determining value or efficacy of Universal Credit – but DWP has ‘no practical alternative’ but to press on, NAO concludes
Auditors acknowledge some progress has been made in the last five years and department insists programme is providing value
Online legal aid eligibility checker still runs only on Internet Explorer
No current plans to update service that only works consistently on long-retired browser that cannot be downloaded onto Android and Apple products
Transport for London BYOD scheme accredits more than 3,500 staff devices
Report from Parliament Street think tank shows explosion in number of smartphones and tablets registered as part of programme
Opinion
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
The public sector must be transparent on data use to gain citizens’ trust
While GDPR is right to provide individuals with greater control over how their information is used, the benefits of sharing data should not be overlooked, believes Rose Lasko-Skinner of Reform
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