From: NHSX
Assessment date: 28 April 2021
Stage: Beta
Result: Met
Service provider: Public Health England
Service description
The UK National Screening Committee (NSC) is an independent scientific advisory body to the 4 UK governments. They advise on all aspects of population health screening and make UK policy recommendations.
The digital service comprises a canonical list of health screening policy recommendations and information, consultations, subscription services, a dedicated public help desk function and a highly skilled team of GOV.UK writers and bloggers.
The UK NSC website is visited by a diverse range of members of the public, professionals and stakeholder organisations who take part in UK NSC consultations and contribute to help shape UK policies.
Service users
- Evidence Review Managers: Responsible for managing UK NSC policy review projects and associated national communications. Responsible for publishing content and documents.
- Interested members of public: Accesses screening information from the UK NSC digital service, partake in national consultations when they have been affected by the condition, send enquiries to the UK NSC via online form, register to receive email alerts for conditions of interest.
- Policy stakeholders: Charity organisations, academic institutions, professional clinical organisations, pressure groups, GPs and local authorities. Take part in UK NSC consultations, review screening information, send helpdesk enquiries, register to become an official stakeholder for UK NSC policies of interest.
Report contents
- Understand users and their needs
- Solve a whole problem for users
- Provide a joined-up experience across all channels
- Make the service simple to use
- Make sure everyone can use the service
- Have a multidisciplinary team
- Use agile ways of working
- Iterate and improve frequently
- Create a secure service which protects users’ privacy
- Define what success looks like and publish performance data
- Choose the right tools and technology
- Make new source code open
- Use and contribute to open standards, common components and patterns
- Operate a reliable service
1. Understand users and their needs
Decision
The service met point 1 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has conducted ongoing exploratory research and usability testing with their user groups, both public and professional
- the team has demonstrated a commitment to ensuring the service meets the needs of user groups across the UK, and have recruited participants from across the UK Nations
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- continue with their planned accessibility testing, with users with a variety of needs
2. Solve a whole problem for users
Decision
The service met point 2 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team are trying to provide a service from the point of registering interest all the way through to notifying users about the outcomes of consultations
- the have iterated their designs to ensure
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- explore the possibility of using a taxonomy for the search, to support users being able to find medical conditions more easily
3. Provide a joined-up experience across all channels
Decision
The service met point 3 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the service team is building an information and consultation service which will sit in one place on GOV.UK
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- explore if there are opportunities to link the service with NHS.UK
4. Make the service simple to use
Decision
The service met point 4 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team is using common GOV.UK design components, and have iterated the design of the service in line with user feedback
- the team has iterated the design of the service in-line with feedback gathered during moderated usability testing, to improve the experience of using the site
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- review the content of email notifications that the service sends, and iterate as necessary in line with user feedback and other changes to the design of the service
- undertake user research focussing on the end-to-end service with both end users, and reviewers. This should include the full life cycle of public consultation
5. Make sure everyone can use the service
Decision
The service met point 5 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has undertaken moderated usability research sessions with users who have a variety of access needs, to ensure they are able to use the service
- the team has also widened their testing with users across the UK, to ensure the design and content is meeting the needs of all countries in the UK
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- continue to undertake user research with users who have a variety of access needs
- undertake usability testing across a variety of end-to-end journeys through the service, to ensure that these work for all users
6. Have a multidisciplinary team
Decision
The service met point 6 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has engaged suppliers to build a team with a wide variety of skill sets
- the team has secure funding for the medium term to continue to deliver the service
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- explore how they will transition to live running, and what service management will look like in the long term
7. Use agile ways of working
Decision
The service met point 7 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team appears to be using agile methodologies to deliver the service
8. Iterate and improve frequently
Decision
The service met point 8 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team were able to demonstrate the progress of their service
- the team has been building an evidence base in order to iterate the service
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- incorporate their next rounds of accessibility testing into the design of the service
9. Create a secure service which protects users’ privacy
Decision
The service met point 9 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team is engaged with their departments Data Protection Office to ensure they are following best practice
- the service’s privacy policy has been drafted drafted with Information Governance Officer
- penetration testing has been completed no critical or high level issues were identified
- steps have been taken to mitigate risks associated with file uploads
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- consider implementing automated testing in addition to regular penetration tests
10. Define what success looks like and publish performance data
Decision
The service met point 10 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has thoroughly considered what metrics they will use to measure the performance of the service
- the team has thought critically about which of the GOV.UK KPIs are relevant for their service, and included their own where applicable
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- implement their metrics on a suitable analytics platform as soon as the service is launched, to immediately start collecting performance data for the service
11. Choose the right tools and technology
Decision
The service met point 11 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- several alternative solutions were considered during the development of service, including some commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) solutions. Based on the user needs the team selected the technology stack which best met user needs
- the team has chosen a technology stack which is well supported by the PHE, reusing components where possible. The team has deviated from PHE standard tools where it has been appropriate and the alternative tools have been agreed
12. Make new source code open
Decision
The service met point 12 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the code for the service is hosted on the PHE git repository
13. Use and contribute to open standards, common components and patterns
Decision
The service met point 13 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has made good use of GOV.UK components
- the service is hosted on PHEs infrastructure
- the team has developed a Django framework for use with the GOV.UK front end kit which they have shared and integrated on based on community feedback
14. Operate a reliable service
Decision
The service met point 14 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the service has resilience provided by PHE openshift infrastructure and distributing the service over multiple nodes
- appropriate application monitoring in place
- offline channels will be available in the event of an outage
- plans are in place for how to support the service in the event of an extended outage