A lightening talk on 5 of the most valuable lessons we can learn from the evolution of the GOV.UK service Originally presented at 300 Seconds in 2013

1. design lessons
from gov.uk5

2. gov.uk
design lessons
from5Single domain to house all government information
and services

3. gov.uk
design lessons
from5Single domain to house all government information
and services
Recently won Design of the Year award

4. gov.uk
design lessons
from5Single domain to house all government information
and services
Recently won Design of the Year award
Taking an agile, iterative approach to
designing services

5. start with
useful
1

6. Font size comparision between gov.uk and bbc.co.uk/news
1
Font size and legibility are often secondary design
concerns for minority groups such as disabled users.

7. Gov.uk uses white space to allow users to focus on text
1
Increasing legibility can improve the experience for all
user groups

8. small touches
make a big
dif
2 ference

9. Normal, hover and on-click button states for gov.uk
Seemingly minor interactions like button behaviour can
have a real impact on user understanding
2

10. Gov.uk typeface; a variant on Transport which was developed for UK road signs
Careful selection of typeface aid clarity as well as subtly
highlighting brand or messaging
2

11. design can
help or hinder3

12. Two versions of the search box from earlier iterations of gov.uk
Aesthetically pleasing doesn’t mean usable
3

13. An earlier iteration of the Gov.uk page footer
Overuse of elements intended to create clarity can be
confusing for users
3

14. access and
availability4

15. Gov.uk uses responsive design to accomodate a range of devices
With an increasing amount of mobile or tablet users, it’s
now more important than ever to think about how, when
and why we access online services
4

16. The layout shifts between tablet and mobile to best utilise available space
Simplify pages, don’t remove information
4

17. release first,
refine later5

18. An alpha release of the Gov.uk homepage
An imperfect but useful site is worth a hundred perfect
sites never used
5

19. The current Gov.uk homepage
The best and most informed decisions you make, design
or otherwise, will come from user input
5

20. @lily_dart
lily@dxw.com
thank you