Government Communication Service

As part of our One Big Thing 'One Small Change' series, today we're showcasing the ongoing success of the Government Communication Service (GCS) Locations Strategy, one year on! Thanks to our GCS members, changes have been made to build a series of collective changes over time that have helped create a stronger sense of community and to develop careers through increased outreach. We now have 9 (soon to be 10) active and inspiring GCS communities across the UK. The impact of this collective effort is clear. An impressive 69% of members from these locations said they felt more like they belonged to a community. Coming together across organisational boundaries has also created new avenues for collaboration and innovation, and brought teams closer to the people we’re communicating with. Read the full blog on the GCS website to learn more about the great work GCS members are doing in their communities - https://lnkd.in/gvhsSckS #GovernmentCommunicationService #GCS #UKGovComms #OneBigThing2024 #InnovationInGovernment

Cabinet Office civil servant Hayley Higgins shares her 5 top tips on how to be a crack communicator with the UK Civil Service as part of National Career Development Month. Read the full blog to learn about how Hayley and her team expanded their reach, utilised the power of storytelling, and why OASIS is her north star!

We're back with our third instalment of our 'One Small Change' series! This week we're hearing from Abby Wade, Applied Innovation Manager at the Government Communication Service (GCS), who is sharing her top 6 tips to help you and your team become innovation champions! For Civil Service colleagues, this is just in time for your 'Team Conversations', as part of this year’s Civil Service One Big Thing programme. 💡 Abby's top 6 tips are: 1. Redefining innovation 2. Embracing agile workflows 3. Hosting a 'Hack Day' 4. Cross government collaboration 5. Embarking failure as a learning opportunity 6. Harnessing technology responsibly Read Abby's full blog on the GCS website - https://lnkd.in/eXtCcqDj #GovernmentCommunicationService #GCS #UKGovComms #OneBigThing2024 #InnovationInGovernment

We're thrilled to have delivered our first-ever graduation ceremony for those who have completed GCS Advance Practitioner! This programme has equipped our colleagues with the cutting-edge skills and knowledge they need to navigate the complex challenges of modern government communication. To our graduates: Congratulations on investing in your professional growth. Your dedication to excellence in government communications is truly commendable. We're excited to see how you'll share your new insights with your teams. To our line managers: Your support in creating learning opportunities for your teams is invaluable. We’re confident that you will see your teams go from strength-to-strength. To our subject matter experts: Your expertise and dedication have been the cornerstone of the Practitioner programme. You've helped craft content that truly resonates and empowers our communicators. We're immensely grateful for your time and insights. We can't wait to see the fresh ideas and approaches our new GCS Advance Practitioners will bring to communications across government. Well done everyone! Feeling inspired? You can find out more about our GCS Advance offer on the GCS website - https://lnkd.in/e9Kzztkc #GCSAdvancer #GovernmentComms #UKCivilService

Justine Wrightson MA MA MCIPR, a Senior Comms Officer in the Defence Innovation Unit (MOD), reflects on the small steps and big leaps she took when returning to work after 15 months extended maternity leave, and how Assist, the GCS AI driven tool, built specifically for GCS members, helped bridge some gaps. “I started to make these small steps towards remembering, expanding my shrunken network, rebuilding skills. [...] I was able to ask Assist what I’d missed over my maternity leave and it presented what I needed to know and where I could find more information.” Read Justine’s full blog on the GCS website -https://lnkd.in/eEDkE9-6 If you’re a GCS member, you can catch up on all One Big Thing activity via the GCS website - https://lnkd.in/erZSGX3b #OneBigThing2024 #VirtualReality #InnovationInGovernment

The government has introduced a new Coat of Arms design following King Charles III's accession. This update, which occurs with each new reign, symbolises the Royal Authority under which the government operates. A simplified version, known as the Lesser Arms, is used by the government, with an even simpler silhouette version for communication purposes. Read more on the GCS website - https://lnkd.in/ex5KWjdX

This week we are spotlighting the innovative work Ross Middleham has done at the Met Office to nurture creativity in their team, as part of our One Big Thing weekly series. Ross tells us how the team introduced an idea called ‘Creative Headspace’, and this one small change has given them some dedicated time together and a safe space to focus their ideas and creative thinking. Read the blog to understand the impact this one small change has had, and to learn about Ross's 5 tips to help you set up your own Creative Headspace - https://lnkd.in/eXuSdDbm. If you’re a GCS member, you can catch up on all our One Big Thing activities via the GCS website - https://lnkd.in/erZSGX3b #OneBigThing2024 #VirtualReality #InnovationInGovernment #CreativeHeadspace

This week we were delighted to welcome over 90 government communicators to the Government Communication Service (GCS) New Member event! 🌟 Members from over 30 GCS organisations, from every comms discipline, and locations across the UK came together to get to know each other, learn about the GCS and explore the benefits of being a GCS member. It was a busy agenda for attendees with a focus on: - Learning about the communications disciplines and Evaluation Cycle - Networking with other members Listening to career journeys - Asking questions of our senior leaders - Visiting the market stalls and engaging with GCS colleagues from AI Assist, Membership Services, GCS Advance, Crisis Comms, One Big Thing and GCS regional networks A thank you to all our GCS colleagues who joined us - we hope you enjoyed the event, got to know fellow communicators and found the event inspiring! #GovernmentCommunicationService #GCS #UKGovComms #Communications #GovernmentCommunicators

One Big Thing launched last week and we’re delighted to kick-off our 'One Small Change' weekly feature today, which spotlights how innovation is being embraced across government. For our first feature, the Innovation Team at Defra digital, data, technology and security, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and the Environment Agency have been using innovation as a way of revolutionising coastal management. The teams have used cutting-edge Virtual Reality (VR) technology to tackle climate change challenges along the coast from Pevensey Bay to Eastbourne. They have created an immersive VR experience that allows users to visualise the impact of a 1-metre sea level rise over the next century, which creates a personal connection to climate change effects, unlike traditional graphs and statistics. Read their blog to find out more about the impact this work has had on the south coast - https://lnkd.in/dNici-Rc If you’re a GCS member, you can catch up on all One Big Thing activity via the GCS website - https://lnkd.in/erZSGX3b #GovernmentCommunicationService #GCS #UKGovComms #OneBigThing #Innovation #VirtualReality #InnovationInGovernment