Leaving DWP Digital
I’m leaving my job at DWP Digital in August.
This will be just short of 4 years working in government, first at the Government Digital Service (GDS) and then at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for the past 3 years.
It feels like the right time for a change and the right time to move on.
In particular, my role at DWP has been an amazing opportunity, both a brilliant and equally frustrating experience at times. The last year has been particularly challenging but the design community here has never been in a stronger position.
Designers are making a huge difference to how government is delivering better services designed around the needs of users.
We’ve now worked with around 70 design specialists in 3 years. I’m fortunate to have been able to bring in so many brilliant people and I’m grateful that they’ve all invested at least a few months (and sometimes a few years) of their time and energy into the civil service.
Design leadership is being taken seriously in government. I’m now covering the role of Deputy Director, Head of User Centred Design at DWP Digital. We’ll be working to make this a permanent role and will be looking to start recruitment for the position before I leave in 3 months time.
I’m also delighted that Melanie Cannon, Jon Hurrell, and Gavin Elliott have taken on design leadership roles as part of changes we’ve put in place with me leaving.
There are too many people to thank
Thanks to Leisa for tempting me to come and work on stuff that matters in the first place and to everyone I’ve worked with since.
I’ve had so many people support and encourage me from both inside and outside of government. You should all know who you are. Thank you.
Joining FutureGov
I’m very excited about what’s next. I’ll be joining FutureGov as Design Director in August.
This means I’ll still be investing my time and energy in designing better public services. I’ll be doing plenty more speaking and writing, and I’m looking forward to working with the great team they’ve been building.
I’ll share more about my new role in a few months time.
This is my blog where I’ve been writing for 18 years. You can follow all of my posts by subscribing to this RSS feed. You can also find me on Bluesky, less frequently now on X (formally Twitter), and on LinkedIn.