States Assembly launches new website and e-petitioning
6th August 2018
The States Assembly’s refreshed website is now live. Amongst a range of new features and design elements, the refresh makes the site more user-friendly and brings together the previously separate Scrutiny Jersey and States Assembly websites in an effort to make it easier to find Scrutiny reviews and reports. In a first for Jersey, the website also launches e-petitioning – e-petitions allow members of the public to lobby the Government by creating and signing petitions online.
The website project was overseen by the States Greffe and States of Jersey (SoJ) Digital Delivery Team and involved workshops with members of the public, States members, the media and SoJ departments to find out what they did and didn’t like about the website. Research was also carried out into the websites of other parliaments across the world to explore which elements could be incorporated into the States Assembly’s site.
As a result, this research helped to identify new elements, including a redesigned homepage for the States Assembly featuring news stories and a calendar of States meetings and events. It also makes Order Papers (listings of the business of parliament for that day’s States meeting) and Hansard (the official record of debates in Jersey’s parliament) more easily findable.
States members’ profile pages have also been refreshed with additional details, including links to their voting records, statements they have made and questions they have asked during States sittings. Members are also now easier to contact via ‘clickable’ telephone numbers and email addresses.
E-petitions have been introduced to implement a proposition brought forward Deputy Scott Wickenden. Members of the public, resident in Jersey, can now press the Government for action by creating and/or signing petitions online about topics of concern to them. E-petitions which attract 1,000+ signatures will automatically be referred to the relevant States of Jersey Minister for a response, and petitions which attract 5,000+ will be considered for debate by politicians in the States Assembly. The page is now live and ready to receive petitions by members of the public.
Greffier of the States, Mark Egan, comments, “We have re-designed our website and introduced modernised functionality to help make it quicker and easier for the people of Jersey to find out about the work of the States Assembly and States members online. E-petitions will allow Islanders to express their views to the Assembly and to Ministers quickly and easily, helping everyone in the Island to play a part in Jersey’s democratic process.”
Although phase one of the website refresh has been completed, the site and the e-petition facility are still being tested and improved. Members of the public, industry and media are asked to give their feedback on the redesign and new features using the smiley faces in the bottom right corner or they can email the team at statesgreffe@gov.je. Phase two development will be carried out over the next 12 months, and see current features improved and other features added based on public feedback.
In addition, the States Assembly’s modernised web functionality sees the website being made mobile-friendly. This means it can be easily accessed from mobile and tablet devices, without having to ‘pinch’ the screen to zoom-in to find and read content. It also includes an improved search function and makes finding out how States members have voted easier to understand.
New website features at a glance:
- New look and feel website, encompassing brand new design elements across the site
- New home page focusing on top customer tasks for both States Assembly and Scrutiny
- E-petitions
- Dedicated landing pages for Scrutiny and States Assembly
- States members’ profile pages include more contact information and ‘clickable’ telephone numbers, including links to their voting records, statements they have made and questions they have asked during States sittings
- Dropdown menu for easier navigation
- Dedicated newsroom for both Scrutiny and Assembly news
- New calendar for meetings and events
- Improved ‘votes’ layout with results alphabetically and with an English translation
- Improved Scrutiny review pages
- Improved Scrutiny panels and committees page with imagery and member details
- New searchable quarterly hearings section
- Central reports area for both Scrutiny and States Assembly reports
- More prominent year filters on each of search pages allowing people to search more easily by date
- Larger and more modern font to make it easier to read
- Clearer headings for improved accessibility
- More prominent search box so customers can search more easily
- Wider pages so users can see more of the page content
- Mobile and tablet-friendly, making the website easily viewable on any Wi-Fi connected device
- Smiley-face feedback buttons in the bottom right corner
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