The chance of joining Defra as an apprentice Software Developer - my subject of interest, in a department my values closely align with, I knew I had to. Today 2 years later, I am a Web Developer.
One of the dubious privileges of my suburban upbringing was watching my Dad assemble flat pack furniture on rainy Sunday afternoons. As the hours passed and the chair, barbecue or desk started to emerge with missing legs or extra arms, …
The Smarter Guidance team has been working to make content smarter -- make it more readable and clearer for users. But how do we measure if we've been successful? I've devised one way and while it'll take more than a …
This week saw the beta release of the Environment Agency's flood data APIs and 4 new open data products from Ordnance Survey including the detailed OS Open Map - Local and the new OS Open Rivers network data. Alex Coley's …
Open 'Flood' Data Last year the Environment Agency increased its publication of Open Data. In the first instance, and in response to the extreme flooding episodes of the 2013/14 winter, this included access to flood warnings, flood alerts and river …
This week sees some exciting steps forward in opening up useful data that support our understanding of rivers and providing data that local groups interested in topics such as flood management and pollution control can access. OpenMap Water This week we …
Releasing public sector data as Open Data is a top government priority, as is being transparent about the work we do and the data we collect. But how do we make these things happen? What do we need to consider? …
When we're writing for GOV.UK, we use the active voice, but a lot of the source content we're rewriting uses the passive voice. This is one of the most significant differences in style between Smarter Guidance content on GOV.UK and …
Defra is the UK lead department for the INSPIRE Directive, the UK is leading the way in INSPIRE implementation. In this post we provide an introduction to INSPIRE for those who are new to it and an update on progress …
Defra's guidance helps people comply with the law, but people use it because they have a task to complete. Whether it's labelling food products or applying for a grant, a user's task is always broader than just knowing what the legislation …
Here at Defra we are working towards being open data exemplars, through our Open Data Strategy we are committed to publishing as much of our corporate, operational & research data as possible as open data under the Open Government Licence …
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