Public sector innovation
The Public Sector Innovation Unit supports and enables the public sector to innovate.
In October 2009, the Cabinet Secretary, Sir Gus O’Donnell tasked BIS’s Public Sector Innovation Unit to develop a package of support to help government to innovate. He said:
“Sustaining and improving public services, and tackling the most complex policy problems, will test our professionalism to the full, in a challenging fiscal context. Doing things as we have always done them won’t be good enough. We must find new insights and develop new ways of working.
“In short we need to build on our capacity to innovate, to make innovation central to our work. We must learn from each other about how to build innovation into our organisations. I set BIS the challenge of leading that work on behalf of Government. I’m delighted that they have now developed a package of innovation support.”
Sir Gus O’Donnell
Cabinet Secretary
What we do
Through innovation the public sector can achieve both savings and better outcomes. BIS’s Public Sector Innovation Unit leads on building innovation capability across government.
The Public Sector Innovation Unit’s role is to:
- provide help and support for people working in the public sector who would like to access tools and techniques to think (and do) differently;
- offer guidance and support to leaders who want to explore innovative approaches and nurture an innovative culture;
- collate, manage and diffuse knowledge about innovation in the public sector;
- harness thought leadership on innovation.
What does this mean in practice?
In response to the challenge set by Sir. Gus O’Donnell, BIS’s package of innovation support developed in March 2010 is outlined in our prospectus (PDF, 227 Kb) . Since then the PSIU has also developed:
• A cross-government web portal that incorporates:
• information, inspiration and practical online resources on innovation practice;
• advice on leading innovation in the public sector;
• advice on building partnerships to support innovation, and
• connecting government departments to providers of innovation know-how.
• the BIS-sponsored, public sector initiative, Idea Street. This is a sophisticated ideas management system that allows open access so people can submit and develop ideas with colleagues. Live pilots are already running in DWP, MOJ, Met Office and BIS. A further ten live pilots are planned in 2011.
• A brokerage service to our network of external innovation experts who can work with you to help you discover solutions to your innovation challenges.
• The Innovation Space located on the upper ground floor in BIS’s 1 Victoria Street head quarters in Whitehall. The Innovation Space is open to all.
The team’s ethos is based on learning together and making connections to deliver better policy outcomes. They help provide space, interactive technology and support for creative thinking, team building days, prototyping ideas and customer insight.
In-house skilled facilitators can help clients to design and run their own sessions or simply book one or more of the rooms to discover solutions to specific innovation and change challenges.
To find out more or book the space take a look at The Innovation Space section on the Public Sector Innovation portal , call the team on 0207 215 0299, email theinnovationspace@bis.gsi.gov.uk or drop in, just off the Upper Ground lift lobby at 1 Victoria Street, London SW1H 0ET.
