It’s easy to get caught up in the potential of digital tools in government, the efficiencies they promise, the speed of delivery, the data they surface. But there’s something more fundamental that often gets lost in the conversation: dignity.
At the centre of every public service is a person, often at a vulnerable point in their life, trying to access housing, report a crime, register a birth, apply for benefits, or navigate a health scare. These moments demand empathy, clarity, and trust. Technology can support that or it can do the opposite. It can confuse, exclude, or depersonalise.
That’s why inclusive service design isn’t a luxury or a checkbox exercise. It’s the foundation of delivering digital public services that work, for everyone. And if Scotland is to realise its ambitions of being a digital nation that’s fair and open, then dignity must be baked into every design decision we make.
What Do We Mean by Inclusive Service Design?
Inclusive service design is about ensuring that the services we create work well for the widest possible range of people regardless of age, ability, income, language, location, or life circumstance. It recognises that people interact with public services in different ways, and that good design must anticipate this diversity rather than expect users to fit into a one-size-fits-all model.
This isn’t just about accessibility, though that’s a vital part. It’s also about language, tone, pathways, devices, identity, trust, and the ability to opt out or ask for help. Inclusive design takes into account not only those with visible barriers, but those whose needs might be hidden or temporary, from someone with anxiety filling out a housing form at midnight, to a carer juggling five systems just to get basic support for a loved one.
When we get this right, the result is not just a more inclusive system, it’s one that is more efficient, less costly to run, and more resilient in the face of change.
Why It Matters in Government
The private sector has been investing in user experience for years, largely because poor design costs them customers. In government, the stakes are higher. Poorly designed services don’t just frustrate users, they prevent people from getting support they need. They can cause distress. They can erode trust in public institutions. In some cases, they can even put people at risk.
Take benefits systems. If the application form is confusing or hard to navigate, someone might give up or fill it in incorrectly. That could mean weeks of delay, or losing entitlement entirely. Or consider online access to mental health support. If it takes six clicks to get to a helpline, someone in crisis might not make it there.
These are not abstract design problems. They are real-world consequences that affect real people.
In Scotland, the Digital Scotland Service Standard already emphasises the importance of user-centred and inclusive design. But embedding that principle across all levels of government, from procurement to implementation, remains an ongoing task.
Designing with, not for
A core principle of inclusive service design is that we don’t design for users, we design with them. That means involving people from all walks of life in the creation and testing of services. Not just at the start, but throughout the entire process.
It also means valuing lived experience as much as technical expertise. A person who has navigated the homelessness system can often spot flaws or friction points far more quickly than a developer or policymaker ever could.
Co-design isn’t always easy. It takes time. It can challenge assumptions. It often means slowing down to ask better questions before speeding up to find solutions. But it is almost always worth it.
Some Scottish councils and NHS boards are already using co-design effectively, running discovery workshops in community spaces, building inclusive panels of users, or creating ‘day-in-the-life’ simulations to understand how digital services are experienced in context. These practices should become the norm, not the exception.
Small Decisions, Big Impact
Inclusive design doesn’t always require major overhaul or flashy innovation. Sometimes, it’s the small, seemingly mundane decisions that make the biggest difference.
- A form that lets you save progress and return later, respecting the reality that not everyone has time to fill something in all at once.
- A page that uses plain language, not bureaucratic jargon, making it understandable without a degree in public administration.
- A service that doesn’t require a fixed address or photo ID, recognising that not everyone has these things, and that excluding them creates further hardship.
These tweaks are not about being “nice to have.” They are design decisions that treat users with dignity. They make services more humane. And they often make them work better for everyone, not just those on the margins.
The Risk of Digital-Only Thinking
In our enthusiasm to digitise services, there’s a real danger of creating digital-only pathways that leave people behind. While online services are often more convenient for many, they are not always suitable for all.
There needs to be an equal investment in assisted digital support, phone lines, face-to-face help, drop-in centres, community partners and in recognising that trust is built through relationships, not just interfaces.
Scotland’s approach to this has been thoughtful, especially through the Digital Participation Charter and local initiatives that support digital literacy. But there’s more to do. Digital inclusion must mean more than giving someone a device. It means designing services that people feel confident using and knowing where to turn if they don’t.
Leadership and Accountability
Inclusive design needs to be championed at the top. Leaders in public bodies must understand its value, set expectations for delivery teams, and ensure that suppliers and contractors are held to the same standards.
That also means creating space for teams to do the work properly, not rushing discovery, not skipping usability testing, and not treating accessibility as something to be “fixed” at the end.
Procurement also has a role to play. We need contracts and frameworks that reward user-centred design, that ask for evidence of inclusive practices, and that measure success based on outcomes for real people.
Conclusion: Dignity as Design Principle
Technology in the public sector is not just about efficiency or modernisation. It is a tool for enabling people to access their rights, participate in society, and live with independence and agency. When those tools are badly designed, people suffer. When they are well designed, they empower.
Designing for dignity means putting inclusion at the heart of everything we build, not as an afterthought, not as compliance, but as a moral and practical imperative.
Scotland has the ambition, the talent, and the policy framework to lead the way in this space. The challenge now is making inclusive design the default, embedded not just in digital teams, but in how we think about public service itself.
Because at its best, public sector tech doesn’t just work. It works for people. And that starts with designing like their dignity depends on it, because it does.
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