DTA reviews digital service standard

The Digital Transformation Agency will review the framework used to evaluate all new or redesigned digital government services.

The digital service standard, which was introduced in May 2016 after more than a year in beta, governs whether a project can progress to the next phase of the four-stage service design and delivery process (the latter includes three phases: alpha, beta and live).

All new or redesigned public-facing transactional or informational services are required to be assessed against the standard, with those high-volume services that will have more than 50,000 transactions per year required to be assessed by the DTA.

After 18 months in circulation the DTA is calling for feedback from government service delivery teams to understand any problems with the standard or where it is working well, as well as any barriers agencies face.

“We know that some agencies have been able to use and apply the standard easily,” the agency said in a blog post. “But for other agencies it’s a bit more difficult.”

The standard has previously caught out the DTA’s own digital marketplace and performance dashboard for not meeting one of the 13 criteria.

The decision to review the framework comes as the finance and public administration committee continues to investigate the digital delivery of government services.

It will look at the design and build of platforms, and whether existing and planned programs are properly considering the privacy, security, quality, reliability, and value for money.

The existing standard will continue to apply while it is under review.