PSN Finally Connecting All Of UK Authorities

Telford & Wrekin Council in the West Midlands has just turned on its PSN connection - a move hailed by the government team behind the public 'network of networks' as marking a major milestone in its acceptance.

In a new blog post, James Duncan, Interim Chief Technical Officer for PSN and a Senior Technical Advisor in the Government Digital Service (GDS), notes that the go-live means that every local authority and council across England, Scotland and Wales is now connected to the Public Services Network.

According to Duncan, that means that collaboration can take place and services can be shared between local authorities right across the UK - or in his slightly more romantic phrasing, "from the Scottish Highlands to the Isle of Wight, from Great Yarmouth to Pembrokeshire."

He goes on to acknowledge that it's taken slightly longer to get here than it was assumed when PSN was rolled out with such fanfare three years ago: "We’re not going to pretend it’s been an entirely smooth journey, but we’ve tried to listen and respond, and ultimately, work together as a community to resolve concerns and overcome issues."

But the focus is on the future now, he affirms: "We’ll do our best to help customers exploit their new infrastructure in ways that change the way they work, collaborate, connect with partners, reduce duplication and share resources."

Read our new interview with the industry body trying to promote more take up of PSN, PSNGB, here.