LocalGov Drupal is an innovative open-source publishing platform designed by and for local councils across the UK. It aims to revolutionize the digital experience for citizens while optimizing service outcomes and reducing costs. By adhering to the principles of the Local Digital Declaration, LocalGov Drupal fosters collaboration among councils, pooling resources, expertise, and code to deliver high-quality digital solutions that benefit all stakeholders.
Innovation Summary
Innovation Overview
LocalGov Drupal addresses a significant challenge faced by local governments: the high cost, complexity, and inconsistency of managing digital platforms and online services for citizens. Traditionally, local councils in the UK each developed and maintained their own websites, often resulting in high costs, duplicated efforts, and limited functionality that could fail to meet residents' expectations for efficient, accessible online services. LocalGov Drupal was created to tackle this issue by offering an open-source, collaborative digital platform tailored to the specific needs of local government.
The innovation is an adaptable, feature-rich website platform built on Drupal, a content management system. Designed collaboratively by UK councils, LocalGov Drupal provides a cost-effective, standardized solution for managing web content and delivering services. The platform includes purpose-built tools and templates—such as service directories, event listings, news sections, and enhanced accessibility features—that make it easy for councils to create user-friendly, accessible websites without starting from scratch. This approach not only reduces costs but also increases the overall quality and consistency of government digital services, ensuring they are accessible, secure, and easy to use.
The primary goal of LocalGov Drupal is to empower councils to provide high-quality online services while minimizing development costs and encouraging collaboration. By sharing the development and maintenance responsibilities, councils benefit from a collective knowledge base and continuous platform improvements. Additionally, it promotes flexibility, allowing each council to customize its site according to local needs while still benefiting from the shared framework.
Its collaborative model, in which councils actively contribute to and benefit from shared improvements, promotes sustainability and longevity. As more councils join the platform, the community grows stronger, allowing for the addition of new features and further cost-sharing benefits.
Innovation Description
What Makes Your Project Innovative?
Unlike proprietary systems, LocalGov Drupal is a publicly owned asset developed collaboratively by a community of developers, content designers, and digital leaders from various local councils. By leveraging open-source technology and shared best practices, LocalGov Drupal offers unparalleled flexibility, functionality, and cost-effectiveness, setting a new standard for digital innovation in local government.
LocalGov Drupal places people at the center of its ethos, emphasizing open culture, diversity, community building, trust, and innovative decision-making. Through its collaborative approach, it promotes knowledge sharing, shared learning, and support among councils, empowering digital practitioners to drive digital transformation at the local level. Moreover, its intuitive user interface and content patterns enable content designers and editors to create compelling, user-centric websites that meet the needs of citizens and service owners alike.
Innovation Development
Collaborations & Partnerships
Users, Stakeholders & Beneficiaries
Local communities and residents are the primary beneficiaries, as they gain easier, more reliable access to online government services. Councils themselves also benefit from reduced costs and workload, allowing them to allocate resources to other community initiatives.
Innovation Reflections
Results, Outcomes & Impacts
The primary value proposition of LocalGov Drupal lies in its ability to empower councils to deliver superior digital services at a fraction of the cost of traditional solutions. By providing a comprehensive suite of features, templates, and tools based on user research and government standards, LocalGov Drupal enables councils to create intuitive, accessible, and customizable websites tailored to their specific needs. Moreover, its modular architecture, automated testing, and peer review processes ensure technical excellence and ongoing improvement, fostering a culture of innovation and collaboration within the community.
It is estimated that using LocalGov Drupal will reduce the cost of building a new council website by up to 80%. Councils spend on average £120k on building a new website. LocalGov Drupal councils are typically spending £20k to £60k.
Replication
LocalGov Drupal's implementation is guided by a clear vision, mission, and set of aims aimed at fostering digital transformation and improving citizen experiences across the public sector. In January 2023 the team established Open Digital Cooperative to help run, develop and ensure the financial sustainability of the Localgov Drupal project. Further, by adhering to open-source principles and encouraging contributions from a diverse range of stakeholders, it ensures the sustainability and scalability of the platform. Moreover, its innovative decision-making processes – run by councils for the benefit of participating councils and their citizens – and commitment to continuous improvement position it as a model for future digital initiatives in local government, both in the UK and beyond.
Status:
Innovation provided by:
Date Published:
5 November 2024