Background

Provision of this website is in line with our Knowledge Management aim of using web technologies to enable access to the improvement knowledge base for Scottish local government by developing and publishing our own content and by providing a knowledge sharing platform and signposting to information and people networks of relevance to Scottish local government improvement.

The site was first set up in 2006 when the Improvement Service was established - it piloted an approach to knowledge sharing which combined content provided by the Improvement Service; content contributed and developed by users of the site and others involved in local government improvement in Scotland; and signposting to information and resources of relevance to local government improvement.

Who is this site for?

This intended audience for this site is primarily Scottish local government elected members, officers, practitioners and their partners. The site is intended to:

• communicate who we are, what we do and what we offer.
• link up practitioners working across the 32 local authorities and their partners by providing access to and a collaboration space for communities of practice.
• provide information resources and toolkits of relevance to Scottish local government.
• promote an innovative and learning culture across the sector.

Our challenges

Development of the site is built around a number of beliefs and principles:

1. We do not assume that by putting up experts’ opinion and best practices on the site, users will adopt them without question , debate and adaption.
2. We do not assume that online interaction is always good. We understand that online resources and discussions may not always be the appropriate or preferred communications channels, and they cannot replace face-to-face meetings.
3. We do not assume there are ‘right’ answers out there. We believe there are difficult questions which we do not have answers to. Together with site users, we will facilitate and explore common understanding and solutions together.
4. We do not assume that the website alone will change behaviours and attitudes. This website is an enabler , not a driver, of improvement initiatives. All our online resources and activities are supported by face-to-face events and capability building activities.

We understand that major change doesn’t happen overnight, but we’d like to support the move to working in new ways. We expect the site to develop and evolve in response to users’ needs. We actively monitor usage and gather feedback from users and non-users. We are committed to learning from our own mistakes and building on successes - including in the development of our website!