How did the team at GOV.UK tackle the IA for a site where the users are ‘everyone’ and needs range from the personal to the professional? Where content is uneven, unpredictable and being constantly added to by hundreds of organisations? Where content is crucial because users have nowhere else to go? Is it possible to create a simple and flexible underlying architecture that is user-focused and can meet a variety of demands alongside a process that is sustainable and can scale?

2. Gaynor Burns and Vicky Buser
Information Architects at GOV.UK
Government Digital Service
@gaynorburns @vickybuser

3. Information
architecture and
GOV.UK

4. “Information architecture (IA) is a design
discipline that is focused on making
information findable and understandable”
GDSPeter Morville, Louis Rosenfeld & Jorge Arango

5. … based on user needs
GDS

6. GDS
“The user should
not have to
navigate the
departmental
structure of
Government before
finding the service
or content they
need”
GDSDirectgov 2010 and beyond: Revolution not evolution

7. GDS

8. GDS

9. The challenge

10. GDS

11. 190,000+ content items
Published by 300+ organisations
GDS

12. GDS

13. GDS

14. Content of different levels of complexity,
granularity, tone, target audience
GDS

15. Different taxonomies have evolved
They’re not complete
Not all content is tagged to them
GDS

16. GDS

17. Existing tagging is
complicated
GDS

18. Who are our users?
10m visitors per week
All of us - either directly or indirectly will
have needs of government
GDS

19. GDSwww.flickr.com/photos/nomadyc/200334975

20. GDSwww.gov.uk/guidance/keeping-a-pet-pig-or-micropig

21. GDSwww.flickr.com/photos/woolgenie/16093952683/

22. GDSwww.gov.uk/government/collections/early-years-childcare-registering-with-ofsted

23. GDShttps://www.flickr.com/photos/conred/24752276586

24. GDSwww.gov.uk/guidance/zika-virus

25. GDS
We can’t just focus on the most popular
needs

26. GDS
Some users have nowhere else to go

27. Journeys start from the content
What else is there?
Where can I go from here?
Is this everything?
GDS

28. Our approach

29. GDS

30. GDS

31. Do the hard work to make it simple
GDSwww.gov.uk/design-principles

32. GDS

33. “I didn’t know what to google as I didn’t
know what was available”
GDShttps://insidegovuk.blog.gov.uk

34. Only 6% users use site search*
*That’s still 5m searches a month though!
GDS

35. GDS

36. Principle 1 = one taxonomy
GDS

37. Start with needs*
*user needs not government needs
GDSwww.gov.uk/design-principles

38. GDS

39. Principle 2 = simple tagging interface
GDS

40. GDS

41. Principle 3 = simple display rules
GDS

42. Consistent design patterns for browse at
every level
GDS

43. GDS

44. And consistent page-level orientation
GDS

45. GDS

46. Solution = taxonomy + tagging + display
GDS

47. Simple enough to scale
Flexible enough to adapt
GDS

48. Be consistent, not uniform
GDS

49. We’re learning about our approach by
starting to trial it with something small
Our first theme is Education
GDS

50. Iterate
Then iterate again
GDS

51. Tips

52. Importance of content strategy
GDS

53. GDS

54. Automation and tools can really help…
GDS

55. Automation and tools can really help…
...but you still need people to do the
thinking
GDS

56. Analytics are hugely helpful…
GDS

57. Analytics are hugely helpful…
...as long as you know the question you’re
asking AND have time to analyse the data
GDS

58. GDS

59. Communicate and collaborate
GDS

60. Working in an organisation that values user
research is vital
GDS

61. Where are we
now?

62. GDSGDS
We’re still working through
education

63. That’s about 4% of the total content
GDS

64. GDS

65. We still have lots of open questions about
governance
GDS

66. “The need for logical user-centric structures
and taxonomies has never gone away”
GDShttps://fiveminuteswithergonjon.wordpress.com

67. GDS
“The user should
not have to
navigate the
departmental
structure of
Government before
finding the service
or content they
need”
GDSDirectgov 2010 and beyond: Revolution not evolution

68. Thanks!
Gaynor Burns and Vicky Buser
@gaynorburns @vickybuser