Opening up our code and logic for algorithmic decision-making
insidegovuk.blog.gov.uk
insidegovuk.blog.gov.uk
For example, I've recently noticed that when I need to know about a drug, the NHS page about it is one of the top results on Google. I've come to click on it rather than sites like webMD because I know I'll get a simple, informative page of text instead of an ad-loaded nightmare that responds to any meaningful question with "ask your doctor" (who will then Google it and charge you $500 for the favor).
Turns out it's totally possible to have a government make nice things -- way nicer than the private sector, actually.
- content dense pages
- accessibility
- using the browser defaults with only minor styling (Eg links are blue underlines, proper use of H1-H3, etc)
- works without JavaScript
Just this evening i benefited from an NHS site that looks like it's had their help/guidance and the process was excellent.
It's interesting how so many form products discount themselves from this space by either requiring javascript or not being able to deliver the html+css specified in https://design-system.service.gov.uk/components/
There are still snags though. GDS have made some, let's say questionable, tech choices that go against their own mandates, and they're reticent to engage with the commercial sector to help departments adopt their designs/standards. But, overall, it's an excellent resource and makes designing and building forms so much easier.
Can you tell us more about this?
There is no way to just present code that will compute it, though, because much of the detail lies in the data collection techniques, which rely on human judgement to replace discontinued or altered goods with equivalents, and they interview homeowners and renters in person via the Census. You can't reproduce the entire computation without employing a few thousand people in representative samples of the country.