Storm ID at GovCamp Scotland: supporting open conversations on the future of public services
Storm ID was pleased to sponsor and attend GovCamp Scotland, the participant-led unconference for people working across Scotland’s public sector, local authority and third sector organisations. Held at the Edinburgh Futures Institute on Monday 21 September 2026, the event brought together people with a shared interest in improving public services and achieving better outcomes for users.
Why it matters
For Storm ID, the day mattered because it reflected the kind of open, practical and collaborative problem-solving that sits at the heart of effective public sector transformation. Across our work with Scottish public sector organisations, we see every day that better services are shaped not by technology alone, but by the people, partnerships and shared understanding behind it.
A different kind of public sector event
GovCamp Scotland is designed as an unconference, meaning there is no fixed agenda, no hierarchy and no pre-set list of keynote speakers. Instead, participants propose and shape the sessions on the day, bringing questions, challenges, ideas and experience into the room. The format is built around shared learning, fresh thinking and honest discussion about how organisations can work together to make public services in Scotland better.
That made the event particularly relevant to Storm ID. Our teams work across a diverse range of public sector environments, supporting organisations as they modernise services, make better use of data, adopt emerging technologies and build the digital capability needed to respond to changing public expectations.
Reflections from the day
Attending from Storm ID were Claire Paterson, Lead Client Partner, and Olly Jackson, Technical Consultant. Both work extensively with public sector clients and were able to contribute to conversations about the opportunities and challenges facing organisations as they continue to transform services around user needs.
GovCamp Scotland created exactly the kind of space public service transformation needs: open, generous and focused on real challenges. It was valuable to hear directly from people working across different parts of the sector and to see how much shared ambition there is to improve services for the people who use them.
The unconference format is powerful because it starts with the questions people are actually dealing with. For anyone working in digital, data or AI, that is essential. Good technology decisions depend on understanding the operating context, the constraints and the outcomes public services are trying to achieve.
In keeping with the Chatham House Rule, we will not attribute the contributions made during individual discussions. Across the sessions, however, several themes stood out: the importance of creating cultures in which people feel safe to raise problems and ask for help; using proportionate data alongside human stories to make evidence meaningful; addressing the systemic barriers experienced by mid-career women with caring responsibilities; and bringing greater clarity, long-term thinking and cross-organisational collaboration to public service reform. The published session information provides an overview of the topics explored on the day.
Digital, data and AI as enablers of better outcomes
Much of the current conversation around public sector transformation is understandably focused on digital, data and AI. These technologies can create major opportunities: more responsive services, better insight, reduced administrative burden, improved accessibility and more joined-up experiences for citizens.
But the discussions at GovCamp Scotland were a useful reminder that technology is only part of the story. Transformation succeeds when it is grounded in the realities of service delivery, shaped around user needs and supported by the right culture, capability, governance and collaboration.
That is where Storm ID’s experience across the Scottish public sector is especially relevant. We help organisations move from ambition to implementation: designing and delivering digital services, unlocking the value of data, exploring the responsible use of AI and building the technical foundations needed for sustainable change.
Why sponsorship matters
As a sponsor of GovCamp Scotland, we wanted to support a forum that gives people the time and space to learn from one another. The public sector faces complex, interconnected challenges, and meaningful progress depends on bringing together different perspectives: policy, operations, technology, design, data, research and frontline experience.
Events like GovCamp Scotland help create the conditions for that kind of collaboration. They encourage people to talk openly about what is working, what is difficult and where collective effort can make the biggest difference.
Continuing the conversation
We left GovCamp Scotland encouraged by the energy, openness and commitment in the room. The conversations reinforced our belief that Scotland has a strong community of people working hard to improve public services, and that digital, data and AI have an important role to play when they are applied thoughtfully and responsibly.
Storm ID is proud to support that work. We remain committed to helping public sector organisations transform services, make better use of technology and deliver better outcomes for the people and communities they serve.