Development of StatsWales data publication platform

Description

Summary of work The successful supplier will be required to develop a data publication platform, StatsWales. The Knowledge and Analytical Services (KAS) within Welsh Government is responsible for the provision of statistics and research advice on policy development, measurement of effectiveness, and public dissemination of official statistics. Dissemination is via the Welsh Government website (https://www.gov.wales/statistics-and-research) as well as the data publication platform StatsWales (https://statswales.gov.wales/). StatsWales is the a free-to-use online repository for detailed statistical data for Wales. It is intended to allow a range of users to freely access and manipulate Welsh data and allow data providers to easily upload data in the required form. The current version of StatsWales went live in 2012 and is now based on outdated and unsupported technology. It is cited by data providers and consumers as being difficult to use and navigate. It no longer meets accessibility guidelines. A discovery phase determined a prioritised set of requirements and user needs for StatsWales and proposed an Agile delivery approach, adhering to the Government Digital Service guidelines. Where the supplied staff will work Wales Where the supplied staff will work No specific location (for example they can work remotely) Why the work is being done The Knowledge and Analytical Services (KAS) within Welsh Government is responsible for the provision of statistics and research advice on policy development, measurement of effectiveness, and public dissemination of official statistics. Dissemination is via the Welsh Government website (https://www.gov.wales/statistics-and-research) as well as the data publication platform StatsWales (https://statswales.gov.wales/). StatsWales is the a free-to-use online repository for detailed statistical data for Wales. It is intended to allow a range of users to freely access and manipulate Welsh data and allow data providers to easily upload data in the required form. The current version of StatsWales went live in 2012 and is now based on outdated and unsupported technology. It is cited by data providers and consumers as being difficult to use and navigate. It no longer meets accessibility guidelines. A discovery phase determined a prioritised set of requirements and user needs for StatsWales and proposed an Agile delivery approach, adhering to the Government Digital Service guidelines. Estimated timescales are: • an Alpha phase of 6-8 weeks • private Beta of up to 6 months • public Beta of up to 6 months. The ambition is to have an Minimal Viable Product in place in spring 2024. The business problem The Welsh Government requires a solution to disseminate statistical data in open formats which meets user needs. This should include programmatic access to data (e.g. via APIs). The current StatsWales system does not meet all user needs. Initial user research on the current platform has been undertaken and a library of user requirements has been created. Feedback shows that the current system is not user friendly. Searching for specific data is difficult and it is not well integrated with related statistical information on gov.wales which results in a disjointed user experience. A delivery partner will need to propose a solution to meet the user requirements gathered. The delivery partner will need to suggest the most suitable platform for the tool which must be compatible with existing Welsh Government infrastructure and architecture (e.g. Welsh Government's Azure architecture). The platform must meet the requirements detailed in Attachment 1.1 (Non-Functional Requirements). The people who will use the product or service User type: Data Providers Definition: These are mostly Welsh Government officials who produce data to be disseminated through StatsWales. They need to be able to prepare data ready to be published on StatsWales. Other public bodies such as the Welsh Revenue Authority also publish to StatsWales. There must be scope in the solution to extend this publishing capability to other public bodies in future. User type: Data Consumers Definition: The discovery work has identified a wide variety of users with varying levels of expertise, data literacy and complexity of needs. This includes citizens, charity users, local government officials, analysts in public bodies, journalists and researchers. Users look for supporting figures to add to their publications or to share with others; or look to access raw data in order to carry out their own analysis. The user research conducted across these users has been developed into personas, these broadly range from: • technical users comfortable in using large quantities of structured data, across multiple datasources inclyuding the consumption of API's • Users who often require a single figure in answer to a question with a requirement for word driven summary of that dataset. Any pre-market engagement done An 8 week discovery exercise was conducted on the current StatsWales service. The output of the discovery has determined a prioritised set of requirements and user needs which will be made available to the successful supplier. It proposed Agile delivery approach adhering to the GDS guidelines and also meeting Welsh Digital Service Standards: https://digitalpublicservices.gov.wales/resources/digital-service-standards/ The Discovery Report is available in Attachment 1.2 (Discovery Report). Work done so far A discovery exercise has been undertaken and has created a prioritised set of user requirements which are available. A copy of the Discovery Report is available in Attachment 1.2 (Discovery Report) to this opportunity. Which phase the project is in Alpha Existing team The successful bidder will be required to provide all necessary skills and roles for this work, e.g. both for user research/service design and technical elements of product development and service delivery. The supplier will work in partnership with a newly appointed service owner within the Welsh Government who will be the supplier's primary contact. Through the service owner, the supplier will be able to draw on subject matter expertise within the WG team across Knowledge and Analytical Services. Via the service owner, the supplier will also work with Welsh Government IT services and gov.wales teams. A project board will be established. Address where the work will be done The supplier is to work remotely, on-shore, in the UK. The authority's main address is Crown Buildings, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NQ and there may be occasional travel to Cardiff required. Working arrangements The supplier will be working remotely, with meetings being held using Microsoft Teams and collaboration tools. The supplier will be required to work collaboratively with the Welsh Government and wider user groups which may require occasional travel to Wales (mostly Cardiff). Regular stand-ups should be utilised and knowledge transfer is integral to the service. Security and vetting requirements Counter Terrorist Check (CTC) Security and vetting requirements Security Check (SC) More information about the Security requirements: Further details on the security requirements are available in Attachment 1.1 (Non-Functional Requirements). Latest start date 4 December 2023 Expected contract length Contract length: 2 years 0 months 0 days Optional extension: 1 years 0 months 0 days Special terms and conditions special term or condition: Please refer to Attachment 1.1 (Non-Functional Requirements) Budget Indicative maximum: £1500000 Indicative minimum: £1000000 Further information: Please note the above budget range does not include the 12 month extension period Contracted out service or supply of resource? Contracted out service: the off-payroll rules do not apply