LEGISLATION.GOV.UK & THE DISCOVERY PHASE

TEACAMP 5TH DEC

Dr Rebecca Gill

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A BIT ABOUT THE PROJECT…

The new site replaces two very different legislation websites that delivered overlapping

content to different audiences. The new single site had to bring these services

together and provide a user interface that met the varied needs of the diverse key

audiences. It was imperative the design be driven by focussing on the customer, and

not the internal processes associated with the publication of legislative content.

Right from the start it was recognised that legislation is inherently complex, so

delivering something easy for the general public to digest was always going to be a

challenge (and at the start we didn’t even have an understanding of how palatable to

the public it needed to be).

The project brought together teams from TNA, TSO and Bunnyfoot. The discovery

phase took place in 2008.

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THE BEGINNING: STAKEHOLDER WORKSHOPWhat was the point?

• Galvanise the team and get everyone on the same

page

• Extract knowledge, ambitions, constraints

• Understand objectives, constraints, what success

would look like and how it might be measured

Everyone was so engaged that the session ran to a whole

day instead of a morning! Make sure you plan for this.

Why did it work so well?

• The right people in the room, and their total

commitment

• The right ‘atmosphere’ – everyone’s opinion was

valued equally

• Open minds – this was the first time this team had

undertaken a large UCD project

• Preparation in advance – sow the seeds that get the

team thinking before they enter the room

• We did not have to split the stakeholders into multiple

workshops

• This team was brought together at multiple review

points and workshops along the way

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RESEARCH

We carried out a range of activities to get to know the

users:

Reviewing analytics

Help desk queries – talk to staff

Surveys:

SLD 773 people started the survey

OPSI 6504 people started the survey!

In-depth interviews over the phone

User testing on existing sites (and of course later

on wireframes and prototypes)

Card sorting / terminology testing

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IF YOU WANT INSIGHTFUL PERSONAS, DO SOME QUAL RESEARCH AND USER TESTINGIf we had paid attention to surveys alone, we would have thought that most

visitors to the existing sites clearly understood how legislation works.

Watching real users of the site revealed some pretty surprising results! Even the

‘experts’ did not necessarily really understand what they were looking at.

This of course had massive implications for the design of the interface and how it

should promote a greater understanding of how legislation works and what is available

online.

Introducing your personas

PRIMARY PERSONA

Mark Green: Environmental Enforcement Officer, Birmingham City Council

Regular user, more so of OPSI. Needs to quote legislation. Uses a handful of Acts regularly. No access to subscription services. Web savvy.

Brian Hedges: Frustrated by his neighbour’s fence. an anti-persona?

First time user. A beginner when it comes to using the internet. Vague search terms. Needs signposting.

Heather Cole: Member of public seeking to defend her rights.

First time user, does want to view legislation, but needs support and advice too. Needs to understand what she is seeing. Web savvy.

Jane Booker: Law Librarian

Regular user, more so of SLD. Likely to use all the features SLD site offers. Expert web researcher and confident researcher of legal documents. Time pressured to respond to queries. Uses subscription services and other sources.

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“I need to quote legislation as part of my job and so it is essential that the legislation I access is up-to-date”

“I want to prove to my local council that they are not providing the services they are obligated to provide”

“I need to respond the solicitors’ requests for information in a timely manner and it is absolutely essential that what I provide is up to date”

“It seems I am in the wrong place – I cannot understand this legal speak – I just want an answer”

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PERSONAS

All of the research findings were used to build a set of personas. These personas were

critical in driving all of the design work that followed, and they are still alive and well

today.

So why, on this project did they work so well?

The persona review process brought all the stakeholders together again and

included activities to really help them get to know them

They were based on evidence

We only had 4! (Including 1 anti-persona)Remember they are tools to drive design –

too many and they become a difficult tool to use

We had a clear primary persona that everyone was involved in deciding upon

The team was prepared to put aside the user they knew best

The team USED them

Mark Green: Non-Law professional working in Local Government

Profile Mark Green, 32, Environmental Enforcement Officer, Birmingham City CouncilStudying part-time for a masters in Environment Health to progress his career.

GoalTo ensure businesses are adhering to health and safety regulations. To get my Masters degree.

Emotional Motivation I want to be aware of current legislation, and gain an understanding of the law behind the policies. I don’t want to start quoting out of date legislation and look a fool in court or in front of colleagues!

Rational Motivation I need to keep up-to-date with legislation, it is part of the remit of my job role.

Web Interaction Style I use the internet everyday for personal and work use, and my favorite website is eBay. I use the internet mostly for work and consult sites such as OPSI and SLD a few times a week. A lot of the time, I use HSE or Environment Agency sites, but they usually link to OPSI. It is important that I read legislation first hand – I don’t want to rely on guidance. I visit forums related to work such as Morphehs, especially if I can’t find answers I’m looking for on websites, however I tend not to contribute to them. I access the internet from home when studying for my Masters.

Responsibilities Carry out inspections of

business premises to ensure they are complying with environmental law

Some visits need to be made outside working hours, especially when monitoring noise

Inform businesses if they are in breach of legislation, and if necessary, take part in court prosecutions

Ensure I am acting within the law

Keeping up-to-date with what is in force now, I rarely need historical versions of legislation

Update colleagues on new versions of legislation

“I need to quote legislation as part of my job and so it is essential that the legislation I access is up-to-date”

Mark Green: Non-Law professional working in Local Government

Perceptions of OPSI / SLD

On the whole I’m satisfied with OPSI and SLD. I think it’s brilliant that those services are there and that they are freely available. They are professional and formal, easy to use. I can find individual sections quickly, and it is more convenient than accessing books or hard copies.Visual design is not very impactful, but I’m not bothered.I nearly always find what I am looking for; usually if I don’t, it’s because it has not been updated. I must admit I probably have used as enacted in the past when I should not have.I am getting better at understanding how things work, but it would be easy for someone to make a mistake when looking for the most recent legislation.I use SLD to a lesser extent as I see it for the more advanced user. OPSI is improving all the time, for example by adding more older legislation top the site.

Triggers I am preparing to interview and inspect

a business premises. I want to keep abreast of what’s new ,

specifically any changes to Acts that affect my job.

I need to quote legislation in a letter I’m drafting to a business which is in breach of that legislation.

A colleague has asked for advice about what legislation is being broken by a company he interviewed.

I’m looking for SI numbers or chapter and verse to reference in my Masters dissertation.

Tasks I go to my bookmarks to deep link to pieces of

legislation (the key ones I use). I regularly cut and paste extracts of legislation into

correspondence. I’ll try using the site search, usually quick search, if I’m

looking for a piece of legislation that I have not bookmarked. I usually know the act name and year.

I look for revised legislation as I am interested in up to date information. If I see the warning that a piece of legislation is not up-to-date, I’ll check the table for legislative effects (SLD) – or at least try.

I rarely print – it’s a waste of paper and space – but if I do, its only a small amount.

I share information with colleagues by emailing them PDFs or I cut and paste extracts of legislation in an email.

Often I will just make notes or read and digest legislation so I canto answer a query.

I read and reference legislation for my Masters.

Frustrations OPSI is not complete – some of the

legislation I need is not on OPSI. Not all amends that have been made to

legislation are on the sites. Having to use hard copies sometimes. No links between affected AND affecting

legislation. Navigating through an act can be slow

because I have to keep going back to the index – I can’t go straight to the next section.

There is no way of being able to find SIs by scanning. It can be impossible to find an SI unless you know the year and number .

Not all are available in PDF form. Some large pdfs can be difficult to download. On the odd occasion I have used a search

(OPSI) I have not found what I wanted easily.

Information Sources Websites

• HSE (official and unofficial)• Environment Agency• OPSI /SLD

Would very rarely look at hard copy legislation – easier to get it up on screen

Specific Acts• Environmental protection Act 1990,

Highways Act 1980, Refuse Disposal Amenity act 1978, etc.

Colleagues Internal sites / intranet Counterparts in other L.A.s

Mark Green: Non-Law professional working in Local Government

Requirements To find what I am looking for quickly and be sure it is the right version / it is up to date. Complete content, i.e. fully revised local acts and legislation pre 1988. Make it very clear what the sites offer. I want clearer a distinction between enacted and revised versions, and cross-linking

between affected and affecting legislation – I have made mistakes before. I want a quick and simple way of getting to legislation of interest. For example, allowing me

to search the database by subject for times I don’t know the year. Links to relevant sites where I might get up-to-date versions of legislation (SLD) or to

advice. Make it easier for me to navigate quickly through a piece of legislation – especially on SLD. Effective searches with ability to refine/filter search results. More information in table of effects – titles. Show revisions without having to click into the Act (as is currently the case with the warning

on SLD). Clarification that repealed / revoked legislation is available on the site. Alphabetic listing of SIs. If I haven’t got a number or year, I haven’t got a chance of finding

an SI. I like the new legislation pages on OPSI, especially how they are split by geographic

location. It would be good if I could filter new legislation like this on SLD. It would help me keep up to date.

A way of finding out what SIs have been made under powers in Acts. I wish SLD had PDF versions. Ability to print out individual sections. I now understand the legal language used on the sites, but it would be helpful for new

people to have an area which explains terminology. For example to understand the difference between primary and secondary legislation.

Interweaving explanatory notes is a good idea. I haven’t used help desk or help pages but it is important they are there.

“ I’m pretty familiar with these legislation sites now so I know to look out for the fact that something might not be completely up-to-date. A new user might not know to do that...could be made clearer”

Mark Green: Non-Law professional working in Local Government

I investigate offences relating to all areas of environmental & health and safety legislation. I spend a large proportion of my time inspecting a variety of businesses and facilities, sometimes having to visit unpleasant and potentially dangerous places. I receive and investigate complaints and make visits to decide whether the complaint is justified. Sometimes it is in response to a report from a technician who has made a routine inspection and referred a problem to me. Often it is in response to complaints made by local residents or employees.

We received a complaint from an employee about his working conditions at a warehouse, so I went over and examined the situation. I have to observe the offence being committed first hand rather than simply relying on somebody else’s word.

I interviewed the manager and it was obvious that company really need to work on their health and safety procedures, they really need to look at the law! I had given this company a warning beforehand to put the matter right, however they ignored this. Now I am drafting a letter – a legally enforceable order – and need to quote the specific Acts they are breaching. If we are unsure whether legislation is being breached, my colleagues and I will discuss the situation. We keep each other up-to-date on legislation. The ability to quote legislation is essential, and also quite useful as most people cock their ears up when they hear someone saying “well under the Waste Management Act 1996, section 34...”. You sound a lot more authoritative if you can do this.

I have no access to paid-for services, and so I am reliant on hard copies, OPSI and SLD and the myriad of other websites for legislation information. There’s an awful lot of legislation I’m required to enforce, so I can’t know it all off by heart. I regularly consult a handful of Acts (such as Environmental protection Act 1990, The Environment Act 1995, Highways Act 1980, Refuse Disposal Amenity act 1978, London Local Authorities Act 1990, Controlled Waste Regulations 1992, Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005, RIPA 2000). I have these bookmarked but if I am unsure of the title or year of legislation, I will usually do a Google search, which usually points me to OPSI. If I can’t find what I’m looking for on OPSI, or if I want to see what the revised version is, I’ll look on SLD. I did a search today on OPSI and SLD but they weren’t up-to-date, so did a search in the table of legislative effects. I wish there were links between affected and affecting legislation because it was difficult to find all of the effects.

If the company do not start complying with Health and Safety regulations, we will take them to court. In this case I’d have to prepare the evidence for the council’s legal department and may also appear as an expert witness. So I’ve got to make sure I’m completely up-to-date with the relevant legislation – I’d get laughed at if I started quoting out of date law in the courtroom!

Mark’s story

Other similar job roles Environmental Traffic Planning Highways maintenance Environmental Health NHS Roles where they need to

know what legislation is to ensure they’re complying with it

Often communicating to people not complying, or colleagues who need similar information

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AVOID FALSE ECONOMY AND HAVE FUN

The discovery phase is often where clients will look first to make cuts to meet their

budgets, but our experience tells us this is really can be a false economy, leading to:

Slower decision making

More revisions after user testing

More research required later on when important questions about the user remain

The other potential for false economy is less tangible – it is about the time made

available, the commitment, the preparation efforts and the attitudes of the

stakeholders involved. Compromises in these early on make for a less satisfying

journey for everyone involved.

An inspired team, enthusiastic leadership, making it fun - these sound corny, but they

make all the difference!

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