Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
Driving delivery of enhanced portfolio and reporting tools.
Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service
Transforming the Crown Office’s public and internal digital estate.
The ask
The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) is responsible for public prosecution in Scotland and plays a major role in the Scottish criminal justice system. Since 2021, we've been working collaboratively with COPFS as their Digital Applications Partner, to help improve the way the organisation works and delivers services.
We've been asked to produce and launch a new public Umbraco website, a new SharePoint intranet containing a bespoke digital library for their extensive documentation, and a service to transcribe sensitive video and audio from court recordings.
What we did
We carried out extensive user research to understand the needs for the new public website and intranet. This was a highly collaborative effort due to the strict security clearances needed for more sensitive content. We identified key user journeys, iterated information architecture and made recommendations around documentation search and discovery.
The huge volume of documentation and publications COPFS are responsible for presented a significant challenge. We needed to audit, revise and convert the documents into HTML for both website and intranet. We also created a bespoke publications filter for the website, with a user-centred focus on findability and accessibility. Usability and accessibility testing was key to ensuring functionality for all users.
The new intranet needed to be the primary interface through which all COPFS staff access corporate information, collaborate and use corporate applications. We developed the intranet using SharePoint alongside a suite of apps using Power Platform to digitise public-facing processes and replace internal applications.
Following a legislative change, COPFS also had a requirement to transcribe sensitive video and audio statements from court recordings. We developed a service combining Microsoft 365 and Azure Cognitive technology. It allows staff to drop video and audio recordings into Sharepoint that are then automatically transcribed into a text document for further use.
"As a Trainee Solicitor this sets everything out clearly and is easily accessible. Just what I needed!"
Results
The new intranet launched in December 2021, with the public website following in May 2022. Feedback has been positive, with the intranet in particular making a significant difference to the day-to-day work of staff.
Since the launch of the sites, we've worked closely with COPFS to support their platforms with regular security and accessibility checks. We're working towards the longer term goal of all products being managed in-house by COPFS themselves.
We're continuing our work with COPFS as their Digital Applications Partner, developing ways to further innovate the vital public services they provide.
