Design of the new Social Security Agency in Scotland
This case study looks at the design of the new Social Security Agency in Scotland and its services. The design aims of this case include creating a system that is distinctive from the one that have been administered by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP); creating a seamless experience or journey for service users for the new social security services; enabling easy access to the social security system for service users; and developing effective backend processes.
Stakeholders & Beneficiaries
The key stakeholders include the Scottish Government, policy makers, agency staff working on the operational level, and service users and external stakeholders participating in service design and testing.
The key beneficiaries are public service users of social security services, the agency itself and wider society.
Co-creation process
The key stakeholders include the Scottish Government, policy makers, agency staff working on the operational level, and service users and external stakeholders participating in service design and testing.
The key beneficiaries are public service users of social security services, the agency itself and wider society.
Digital Transformation Process
Not relevant
Results, Outcomes & Impacts
Since the case is still at the design stage, it is too early to evaluate the outcomes or impacts of the service design. However, the analysis of evidence shows that the service design has supported a cultural shift within the Scottish Government towards a user-centred narrative.
Challenges & Bottlenecks
Three broad challenges for service design have been identified in this case study. First, the setting of social security services is extremely complex. Although it is necessary to divide this large-scale task of service design into small and manageable chunks, it is challenging to fit the design of each chunk back together without losing the sight of a big picture. The complexity of the service setting has negatively affected the effectiveness of service design. The second challenge is also related to a public service setting where it is difficult for wider cultural change to take place. There is an understanding that public services could produce incremental improvement rather than complete solutions. Therefore, there is a bottleneck of the scope of continuous improvement. Third, the case study has revealed a lack of service designers and other user-centred professionals in public service context, which leads to a lack of input from a professional service designer in some parts of public service design process.
Transferability & Replicability
The methods of service design in the new Social Security Agency in Scotland may be transferred and replicated in other public service settings.
Success Factors
The success factors are twofold. First, the case study reveals that the service design process has supported a service user perspective, which focuses on the needs of social security service users and enables easier access to the services for them. Second, the service design process in the case has supported a holistic view of services, which provides a strategic overview of how different services under the social security interact and facilitates the creation of a seamless service experience for service users.
Lessons learned
Four practical lessons have been learnt from this case. First, service design is facilitated by a degree of flexibility at the operational level. Second, a holistic view of the service experience needs maintenance throughout the design process. Third, service design in practice requires capacity building and organisational learning. Fourth, the rationale of human-centred design approach needs to be balanced against the protection of the public purse.