New Department of Education Data Strategy design and development

What is the purpose and vision of the new Data Strategy?

The purpose of the Department of Education's 2024-2027 Data Strategy is to provide considered, intentional direction for action, informed by an understanding of our context, and the needs and experiences of department staff and the wider education community.

Our vision is for an education data culture in which trusted, well-governed, accessible data is understood, supported and leveraged for the benefit of those who learn, teach and lead across the sector.

Why did the team decide to take a design approach to its development?

Planning for the development of the department’s new data strategy coincided with the publication of the Design Principles for Government in Ireland and the Action Plan for Designing Better Public Services. We decided to take a design approach to the strategy development process because we could see its inherent value and we were fully supportive of the drive to have design embedded across government.

How did this approach work in practice?

The design process provided a welcome structure for our strategy development process, and we were privileged to have the support of the Central Design Unit in the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform throughout.

The actual practice of implementing the design approach proved its value. In the workshops and prioritisation exercises we undertook, the very action of bringing people from different sections together was useful in helping them to consider the bigger picture of their work while at the same time rooting that bigger picture in day-to-day challenges so that decision-making was, above all, realistic.

Every principal officer area in the department took an active part in the development of this strategy and circa 100 staff representing 44 sections attended in-person workshops to discuss initial findings and consider best next steps for data. Comments from staff and representatives of the wider education community reflected a real sense of meaningful involvement.

What did the team learn from the process and what would your advice be to Public Service organisations interested in taking a similar approach?

At first glance, because much of the narrative around the design approach focuses on enhancing services, we were not sure how well it could be applied to the development of a strategy, especially a strategy such as ours which was quite inward facing.

As it turned out, the design approach was particularly suited to strategy development. Once we reframed the narrative such that it would be our own colleagues who would be the ‘clients/customers’ for the strategy and it would be they who would be implementing it and feeling its effects first hand, for good or ill, the collaborative approaches and ecosystem awareness of design became all important.

A significant advantage of the design approach is that it is so well informed and supported. It is firmly rooted in evidence; there is a wealth of research to support it and there are case studies of good practice available. The collectively agreed principles and action plan are in place and there is associated training available on OneLearning for anyone interested in applying it.

The strategy has now been published and has been very well-received by the department’s Management Board and staff.

<strong>Better Public Services: Service Design Resources</strong>

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