2) Claim for Crown Court Defence (CCCD) — Beta → Live GDS (29 Sept 2016)

Client / Sector: Ministry of Justice — Legal aid / justice payments
My role: UX Research (brought in during Beta to strengthen Live readiness)
Phase: Beta → Live (and mandated rollout)

Overview (from your notes)

• CCCD is a gateway transmitting an average of 270,000 crown court bills per year.
• Rolled out since mandated on 31 Oct 2017 with reported usage at 98%.

Problem

A Beta service existed, but needed stronger user evidence and targeted improvements to support Live GDS assessment and to ensure it aligned with how litigators/advocates actually work.

What I did

• Conducted 30+ interviews with litigators and advocates across the country (from sole practitioners to larger organisations).
• Interviewed caseworkers who submit claims on behalf of organisations; also interviewed Nottingham-based caseworkers using the Beta service to understand limitations.
• Combined workflow understanding (how they currently work) with observation of task completion (submitting claims) and fit to existing processes.
• Managed difficult recruitment constraints (no incentives permitted), relying on goodwill and clearly communicating the value of participation.
• Investigated assisted digital assumptions: tested feasibility of telephone support; confirmed primary users were digitally literate due to daily computer use.
• Addressed accessibility constraints by recruiting caseworkers with access needs (public service mirrored caseworker service).

Outputs

• Issue/severity insights from repeated user sessions
• Clear recommendations and iteration triggers (what to fix immediately vs monitor)
• Evidence base to strengthen Live assessment confidence

Outcome

Research identified and prioritised improvements, guiding iterations required for Live readiness and ongoing service refinement.

3) Moving People Safely — Police Integration Research (Beta)

Client / Sector: Ministry of Justice — Justice health/risk information transfer
My role: UX Research (brought in to cover previous researcher; focus on police use)
Phase: Beta

Problem

When people move between police, courts, prisons (and possibly hospitals), vital health/risk information and property details are captured on paper forms. This creates data quality risks and potential loss of information.

What I did

• Visited three police custody suites (Luton, Guildford, Maidenhead) and a Magistrates court.
• Observed end-to-end custody intake processes: what data is collected, where it’s recorded, who uses it, and what breaks.
• Mapped roles, tasks, systems, and handoffs — including interaction between police and third-party transport providers and onward transfer to courts.
• Fed findings back into the team’s existing courts/prisons solution so police needs could be integrated.
• Conducted further interviews with police to understand system variation across regions and implications for integration.

Outputs

• Evidence of how custody data and property logging flows through real operational contexts
• Integration requirements and constraints for joining police processes into courts/prisons service
• Research inputs to support a joined-up cross-organisation service model

Outcome

Provided the insight needed to design how police processes could integrate with an existing courts/prisons solution—supporting the aim of a joined-up service across police, courts, and prisons.

Assisted Digital + Accessibility (Send Money)

Problem → Some users couldn’t access digital service; accessibility needed formal assurance.
What I did → Prison questionnaire to 4 prisons (~500 responses) + visitor-centre feedback (50+), explored phone walkthrough/phone payments, charities/CAB/libraries, cards, PayPoint; acted as main contact with Digital Accessibility Centre and recruited people with access needs.
Outcome → Clear evidence of barriers + validated assisted-digital options and accessibility action points.

Digital Disbursements (Discovery → pilot)

Problem → Prisoners sending money out relied on slow/manual methods; staff sometimes had to physically go to post office for postal orders.
What I did → Visited 20+ prisons across categories/regions; mapped varied local processes; worked with service designers on flexible prototypes; iterated with stakeholders across staff roles.
Outcome → Service built and trialled in 22 prisons, with ongoing monitoring and issue resolution during pilot.

Cells Bells (Discovery)

Problem → Cell bell systems used for non-emergencies and emergencies; inconsistent assurance/testing across estate could affect response times and safety.
What I did → Prison-based research with staff and prisoners; collated findings across researchers; fed into stakeholder synthesis and report.
Outcome → Estate-wide insight + senior recommendations for improvements.

Tax Tribunals (Beta)

Problem → Need to validate whether users can complete appeal and payment journeys unaided.
What I did → Two rounds of lab testing (6 participants each), wrote screener, managed incentives/budget, planned sessions around iteration, wrote script/questionnaire, logged issues with severity.
Outcome → Implemented fixes between rounds (clarity on process, fees, tribunal independence, timescales, HMRC distinction) and re-tested.