: What is esd-toolkit?

The esd-toolkit contains a series of different facilities that fall within a number of categories, some are organisational facilities such as the directory services and projects database; some relate to information and advice on specific topics such as customer profiling and some relate to controlled lists of information and standards. This report will attempt to group these facilities under the broad categories that the toolkit programme board itself has adopted as follows:

Engagement and Involvement

The esd-toolkit includes a number of different services that are designed to facilitate the involvement of Council’s and their staff in the communication of ideas within a council, between a partnership of councils or with all councils within the wider local government community.

Any person with a .gov.uk e-mail address from a subscribing authority can register with the esd-toolkit and once they do a profile will be set up automatically for the individual. Users may personalise their access to the website’s facilities by amending their profile information as detailed below. Controlled access is allowed by a password protected user log in to the site.

The services are:

                            Profile
                            Home Page
                            Forums
                            Projects
                            File Exchange
                            Services
                            People Finder



Knowledge and Infrastructure

The knowledge and infrastructure aspects of the toolkit provide a shared repository about information, business processes and advice on areas of Local Authority common interests. Again, the following details what can be accessed from the ‘Quick Links’ section of the Home Page.


The services are:

                            Performance Indicators
                            Performance Management
                            Customer Insight
                            Transformational Government
                            Digital Inclusion
                            North Lincolnshire Data
                            Reports
                            Online Submissions
                            News and Events
                            Communities
                            Help
                            Tools



Controlled Lists

These controlled lists provide metadata that authorities can use to describe their activities and the services. Together these controlled lists describe a standard for local authorities that can be adopted, if they wish to do so, and provide the framework for the e-Government Metadata Standard (e-GMS).

Further the lists also provide a common vocabulary that can be used by authorities and other public sector agencies (such as the Police, Fire and Rescue, the Health Service, etc.); the vocabulary assists staff in describing items and issues in a consistent and coherent fashion. To take a trivial example, when describing a wheelie bin - are they dustbins, rubbish bins or neither? How would staff or more importantly a member of the public search for the information they need? By adopting a common vocabulary for the naming of the services and activities the Council provide then the overall consistency of the organisation and the comprehension of individuals interacting with it is improved. The control lists that make up the Local Government standard include the following:

                    Integrated Publis Sector Vocabulary (IPSV)
                    Local Government Directory List (LGDL)
                    Local Government Category List (LGCL)
                    Local Government Interaction List (LGIL)
                    Local Government Service List (LGSL)
                    Local Government Business Category List (LGBCL)
                    Local Government Classification Scheme (LGCS)
                    Local Government Audience List (LGAL)
                    Government Category List (GCL)



It is probable that all local authorities within the UK will be subscribed to the esd-toolkit as this was the primary website that local authorities had to use for the submission of information to the former ODPM in implementing the e-Government agenda by completing the on-line IEG statements. Consequently, this site has proved a framework that has now been built upon for communicating information, knowledge and ideas within the wider local authority community.

 

This site has been produced to provide you with the knowledge of what is contained in the Esd-Toolkit.  As you will already know there is quite a lot of features and content.  Please click on the Main Menu button to return and browse sections of interest.