Create creating-a-vds-ucd-monthnote.md

Author: martom90

app/posts/vaccinations/2025/07/creating-a-vds-ucd-monthnote.md

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+---
+title: "Creating a VDS UCD monthnote"
+date: 2025-07-03
+---
+
+
+## Purpose of the VDS UCD month-note
+
+As the User-centred design (UCD) leadership team in Vaccinations Digital Services (VDS), a key part of our role is to maintain a comprehensive and up-to-date understanding of what UCD work is happening across the programme. 
+
+This is important for several reasons:
+
+* Effectively communicating the value of what our teams' work to senior leadership
+* Identifying and addressing any gaps in our work
+* Optimising resource management and workload distribution 
+
+With 11 different teams and more than 30 UCD professionals, this is not an easy job! We therefore decided to create an update that could be shared with everyone every month. 
+
+## Key considerations for the VDS UCD update
+
+In planning the VDS UCD update, we identified several critical factors:
+
+1.	Frequency: determining the optimal frequency for sharing updates (e.g., weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, quarterly).
+2.	Format: deciding on the most effective format for the update (e.g., Slack, Word, PowerPoint, email).
+3.	Content: deciding the essential content to be included.
+4.	Structure: organising the information in a clear and logical manner. 
+5.	Reach: deciding whether the update should cover only VDS updates or include the entire DPSP. 
+
+## Learning from past attempts 
+
+Before finalising the current format of the update, we had two previous attempts that were unsuccessful. Recognising the need for improvement, we decided to learn from these past iterations. We began by gathering feedback from contributors and readers of our earlier updates to understand what worked and what didn't.
+
+### Challenges identified
+
+* Formatting issues: the PowerPoint format was cumbersome and difficult to complete. 
+* Time-consuming: it was labour-intensive to follow-up with people for their updates. 
+* Limited engagement: readers told us they only focused on information relevant to their own programme - without engaging with DPSP-wide updates. 
+  
+### What worked well 
+
+* Enhanced visibility: the update provided clear insights into the activities of different teams, fostering better understanding and collaboration.
+* Improved communication: it helped team members identify the right contacts for more information about specific areas of interest, facilitating smoother communication, knowledge sharing and collaboration.
+
+## Best practices from other teams
+
+We then reached out to UCD colleagues in other teams across Product and Platforms and Data Services to learn about their update processes and the value they have delivered. Here are some of the different approaches:
+* Digital Primary Care: they use a Word newsletter, which is sent via email to their directorate and other interested stakeholders. It is also shared in the Teams channels for their directorate and the UCD updates channel on Slack. Each month, a volunteer from the team coordinates the newsletter.
+* NHS website: they use a PowerPoint document, shared on the UCD updates channel on Slack. They have a dedicated user researcher who coordinates their updates.
+* NHS App: they use a Slack canvas sprint-note, shared on the NHS App Slack channel.
+* Feedback from the Digital Primary Care team highlighted that their approach worked well in terms of visibility of their work and articulating the value of their achievements. They also noticed increased engagement with UCD since starting their updates.
+
+## Our chosen approach
+
+Based on our learnings from past attempts and insights from other teams, we formulated a strategy for our VDS UCD updates. 
+Here’s what we decided:
+
+1.	Frequency: we chose to share the updates monthly to ensure they are comprehensive yet manageable.
+2.	Format: we opted for a Slack canvas as it is easy to share on different Slack channels and tag people directly. Adding emojis can also make the format more engaging. We decided to keep all the updates in one canvas so that readers can scroll down to read updates from the previous months.
+3.	Content and structure: we are including:
+-	Updates from the UCD team: announcements relevant to or about UCD ways of working; UCD changes in the programme; reports, blogs or week-notes written by UCD people, and opportunities for people to get involved in UCD activities. 
+-	Updates from our projects: key things UCD people in each team focused on learned this month, barriers they were facing and opportunities for other teams to help them. The updates are presented in a table where each team has their own row. 
+4.	Coordination: for the Design and User Research Leads in VDS are coordinating the update each month. We ask people to complete their sections during the last week of the month and then share the update from the previous month on the 1st. 
+5.	Feedback loop: we are explicitly asking for feedback to continuously improve the updates based on user input. 
+  
+## Next steps
+
+The first VDS UCD month-note was released at the beginning of June, and the feedback has been positive, with many encouraging comments and Slack emoji reactions. 
+
+However, we identified a misunderstanding regarding the 'Barriers and Opportunities' section. Many thought it referred to user barriers and opportunities rather than those faced by the teams. To address this, we decided to remove and simplify the section.
+
+We will continue to monitor responses as the next month-note is scheduled for release at the beginning of July. This ongoing feedback will help us refine and improve the updates further.