Departing Land Registry chief Simon Hayes talks lockdown, hybrid working and fighting the perfect storm of staff shortages and record demand
03 Sep Digital, Data & Technology

Departing Land Registry chief Simon Hayes talks lockdown, hybrid working and fighting the perfect storm of staff shortages and record demand

Hayes reflects on transformation, choices and challenges at HMLR as he departs after six years in post to become chief exec at Sports England
by Jess Bowie
Government to create data protection team to boost cross-department compliance
28 Oct Digital, Data & Technology
Government to create data protection team to boost cross-department compliance
MPs grill Legal Aid Agency over cyberattack that prompted system shutdown
24 Oct Digital, Data & Technology
MPs grill Legal Aid Agency over cyberattack that prompted system shutdown
Cabinet Office given responsibility for Digital ID policy
24 Oct Digital, Data & Technology
Cabinet Office given responsibility for Digital ID policy
DWP signs £1.4m deal to tap LinkedIn for recruitment
20 Sep 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
DWP signs £1.4m deal to tap LinkedIn for recruitment
Contract covers a range of licence subscriptions to be used across department
Headhunter fees for second fruitless attempt to hire government digital head revealed
15 Sep 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Headhunter fees for second fruitless attempt to hire government digital head revealed
Department releases information on appeal under FoI rules – 18 months after request was made
Cabinet Office using staff IT and wifi logins to monitor office attendance
13 Sep 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Cabinet Office using staff IT and wifi logins to monitor office attendance
Privacy notice reveals computer surveillance used to check "compliance to office working"
Union postpones courts strikes following Queen’s death
12 Sep 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Union postpones courts strikes following Queen’s death
Week of industrial action was in protest at HMCTS’s Common Platform IT system
DIT told to improve ‘unacceptable’ Freedom of Information delays
09 Sep 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
DIT told to improve ‘unacceptable’ Freedom of Information delays
ICO also tells BEIS to improve disclosure practices as part of new willingness to act on poor performance
Ex-NHSX head Gould tipped as next top dog for London Zoo
01 Sep 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Ex-NHSX head Gould tipped as next top dog for London Zoo
Reports have claimed the long-time civil servant will shortly be unveiled as the director general of ZSL
DBS set for more strike disruption over pay
26 Aug 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
DBS set for more strike disruption over pay
Contact centre workers announce six additional days of walkouts
DWP opens recruitment for £200k digital chief
22 Aug 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
DWP opens recruitment for £200k digital chief
Incumbent Simon McKinnon will step down in March 2023
Legacy costs take spending on digital border programme to £700m
11 Aug 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Legacy costs take spending on digital border programme to £700m
But Home Office clams there ‘has been no increase or acceleration’ in underlying cost of scheme
Home Office buys thousands of ‘migrant tracker’ wristbands as it expands monitoring
10 Aug 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Home Office buys thousands of ‘migrant tracker’ wristbands as it expands monitoring
Use of barcode-scanning system comes alongside GPS ankle tags and biometric tracking
Passport Office processing up to one in four applications by outdated system, minister admits
03 Aug 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Passport Office processing up to one in four applications by outdated system, minister admits
The new digital application processing platform was originally due to be fully implemented by 2019
'We’re here to lock up the bad guys': using forensics to foil fraudsters
02 Aug 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
'We’re here to lock up the bad guys': using forensics to foil fraudsters
A huge diversity of people and roles make up the modern civil service. Colin Smith started out as a police officer before moving into the private sector. Now he leads forensics at HMRC
'My visual impairment has informed our pandemic recovery planning': the work of a deputy chief exec
02 Aug 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
'My visual impairment has informed our pandemic recovery planning': the work of a deputy chief exec
A huge diversity of people and roles make up the modern civil service. Paul Arnold has helped to ensure data is safely used and stored for 24 years at what is now the Information Commissioner’s Office
'Chief design officers are pretty rare in government – here's why my role matters'
02 Aug 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
'Chief design officers are pretty rare in government – here's why my role matters'
A huge diversity of people and roles make up the modern civil service. Cat Macaulay ensures that officials – in partnership with citizens – design the right solutions to the right problems
'Mask-wearing and remote working were very tough for deaf officials – but there are positive Covid-19 legacies too'
02 Aug 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
'Mask-wearing and remote working were very tough for deaf officials – but there are positive Covid-19 legacies too'
A huge diversity of people and roles make up the modern civil service. Here, Lisa Baldock tells us how her own experiences help her make the DWP’s tech as inclusive as possible
Nadine Dorries appoints Tory donor to broadband delivery role
21 Jul 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Nadine Dorries appoints Tory donor to broadband delivery role
Simon Blagden and companies he is associated with have donated more than £370,000 to the party
Suppliers see progress in government tech-savviness, research finds
19 Jul 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Suppliers see progress in government tech-savviness, research finds
But tech firms also see continued challenges, including overlapping frameworks and lack of clarity on social-value requirements
DCMS consultancy spending quadruples in two years
14 Jul 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
DCMS consultancy spending quadruples in two years
Money spent on external advice increased fourfold overnight
Data watchdog calls for review into use of WhatsApp and private email in government
13 Jul 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Data watchdog calls for review into use of WhatsApp and private email in government
ICO's investigation into instant messaging by DHSC officials and ministers during pandemic concludes
UCL boss named civil service chief people officer
12 Jul 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
UCL boss named civil service chief people officer
Fiona Ryland joins alongside former HMRC and NHS staffer Mike Potter, who has been appointed chief digital officer
'Disappointing': Cabinet Office rejects call for more transparency about secretive FoI unit
12 Jul 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
'Disappointing': Cabinet Office rejects call for more transparency about secretive FoI unit
Government says releasing more data on the FoI Clearing House would be a “disproportionate use of resources”
Read the summer 2022 issue of CSW: A Portrait of the Civil Service
04 Jul 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Read the summer 2022 issue of CSW: A Portrait of the Civil Service
Officials working in some of the many organisations and functions that make up government give us a glimpse inside their world
Home Office perm sec hits back at calls to privatise HM Passport Office
27 Jun 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Home Office perm sec hits back at calls to privatise HM Passport Office
Hotline performance disproves the argument that “the way to reduce the size of the civil service is to privatise it", Rycroft says
Commons to delete MPs' attendance data after pressure from ministers
22 Jun 2022 Digital, Data & Technology
Commons to delete MPs' attendance data after pressure from ministers
Change comes after Jacob Rees-Mogg slams “lefty Freedom of Information request"