Welcome to our newsletter, bringing you all the latest from the Digital Office for Scottish Local Government. In this newsletter, we bring you a detailed update on what has been happening across the Digital Partnership throughout the last month and details of upcoming activities.
If you have any queries regarding any of the content within this newsletter, please get in touch.
Refreshing Scotland's Digital Strategy Progress Update.
The vision part of Scotland's refreshed Digital Strategy is nearing final approval. Created in partnership between the Scottish Government, COSLA and the Digital Office, the document will soon be evaluated by SOLACE Scotland before being submitted to COSLA Leaders in September. It is set to be officially unveiled by the Minister for Public Finance, Ivan McKee, and the COSLA Resources Spokesperson, Councillor Katie Hagmann at the Futurescot conference at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre on 26th November 2025.
The participation of the Digital Leaders network has been instrumental in shaping the strategy. A short-term working group, comprising Digital Leaders from multiple councils, collaborated to define requirements, contribute to workshops, review drafts, and provide feedback. This process has ensured a strong alignment between national priorities and the objectives of local government.
Digital Capability Advisory Group: August 2025 Update.
The Digital Capability Advisory Group (DCAG) was formed in 2024 to support digital skills development across Scotland’s public and third sectors. It brings together leaders from government, academia, and civil society to align strategy, share learning, and grow digital talent.
August Meeting Highlights:
Data & AI Literacy: Updates from The Data Literacy Academy on the current cohort of learners and highlighting the importance of behavioural and cultural change across organisations.
AI Strategy: The importance of creating a unified AI approach across the Public Sector and how we action this.
Learning Expansion: Proposals to scale the current data literacy programme with self-serve models and wider cohorts were shared.
Think Data & AI Month: Coming this November, featuring webinars and hybrid events. All councils and public sector organisations will be invited to participate; share their experiences and any work they would like to showcase.
Digital Strategy Refresh: Work continues on a national learning model, open resources, and standardised job roles.
Talent Pipeline: Ideas for flexible entry routes into digital roles were discussed, including partnerships with universities.
Stay tuned for regular updates from the group and how to get involved with Data & AI month.
M365 Labelling: We Value Your Feedback.
Through the core Subject Matter Expert group, our drop-in sessions with Information Governance colleagues, and feedback at the Programme Board, we keep hearing the same challenges when deploying Microsoft 365 labelling at scale.
These include securing senior leadership buy-in, overcoming the view that labelling is an inconvenience, and finding the resources to deliver the business change needed to win hearts and minds.
We know labelling at scale brings clear benefits. It improves data handling consistency, reduces information risk, supports compliance, and it is a major enabler for the safe rollout of Microsoft Copilot.
We would like to hear from you so we can target support where it helps most. Please use the form to book a 30-minute slot with Monika Franko at a time that suits you to talk through your local challenges and ideas.
Join our Working Group to develop a Role-Based M365 Licence Framework.
At the last Digital Leaders meeting, many councils asked for a straightforward way to match Microsoft 365 licence types to common corporate roles. The goal? To improve return on investment, maximise use of the M365 suite in a secure and compliant way, and identify opportunities to reduce licensing spend.
We’re forming a small working group to co-develop a practical framework, shaped by input from users, compliance experts, and technical subject matter experts. If you’d like to be involved in this piece of work, please contact Monika Franko or Euan Miller We’ll share more details in the coming weeks.
Our Autumn Microsoft Aggregated Procurement Opens Next Week!
The Digital Office, Scotland Excel and Crown Commercial Services (CCS) have once again partnered to offer councils a streamlined opportunity to renew their Microsoft Enterprise Agreements through aggregated procurements.
Our Autumn Aggregated Procurement opens next week and will cover enrolments starting on 31 December 2025 and 1 April 2026. Eligible councils will receive an invitation to participate next week. If your enrolment falls within this window and you haven’t heard from us by mid-week, please contact Monika Franko or Euan Miller for support with next steps.
Digital and Data Capability Framework and Self-Assessment Tool Refresh and Collaborations with SPDS.
The Society of Personnel Development Scotland (SPDS), National Education Scotland (NES) and The Digitally Enabled Workforce (DEW) have been exploring how we collaborate, support each other and reduce duplication of efforts. Further to our last Digital Portfolio meeting, we're delighted to share an update on The Digital and Data Capability Framework and Self-Assessment Tool which has now been refreshed.
This framework has been created to support the development of digital capabilities for everyone working in health and social care in Scotland. The framework identifies the skills, knowledge and behaviours that are essential for this workforce, clarifying the responsibilities at individual, team and organisational level.
Reviewed annually to keep the resources current and relevant, the self-assessment tool is an interactive way to reflect and work through the framework to review your current levels of digital capability. Helping you reflect and explore your current levels of digital capability, along with receiving tailored development resources, so even if you’ve completed it before, now’s a great time to dive back in!
The National Cyber Security Centre releases version 4.0 of the Cyber Assessment Framework.
This month, The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has released version 4.0 of the Cyber Assessment Framework (CAF). This expands sections on building a deeper understanding of attacker methods, ensuring software is developed and maintained securely, and increased emphasis on security monitoring and threat hunting.
While the Cyber Assessment Framework is not a mandatory requirement for local government, it provides a very important set of principles to help organisations achieve high levels of cyber security. The Digital Office is currently working with the Scottish Government Cyber Resilience Unit and the other UK nations to promote and support councils on CAF adoption.
We’re pleased to share that new instructions and generic exercise templates are currently being developed to help councils deliver their own cyber exercises. These will mirror the Gold/Silver command format used by the Digital Office and the Scottish Government. The templates will be available next month on the Digital Office Resource Centre. In the meantime, if you’d like to:
Discuss the templates
Get advice on running your own exercise
Or request the Digital Office to facilitate an exercise for your organisation
Please contact our Chief Information Security Officer, Dave Ritchie
Less than 150 days until the end of the digital telephone migration!
Our Digital Telecare Programme is here to support all Scottish Local Authorities, Health and Social Care Partnerships, and Housing Associations in preparing for this transformation.
Whilst BT has extended their migration deadline to 2027, other telecom companies are unchanged and we remain committed to counting down to the 2025 deadline to ensure all Scottish Telecare Service Providers are ready well in advance.
Transitioning to digital services before the 2025 deadline is crucial to avoid any interruptions. Our dedicated Digital Telecare team is armed with the resources and expertise to help you on your journey to digital.
Comhairle nan Eilean SiarAwarded Gold Level Two Digital Telecare Implementation Award.
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Telecare Service currently supports over 1000 people across the Western Isles. The service plays a crucial role in helping people live independently and safely at home, offering support and an emergency response 24 hours each day.
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar was the first HSCP to adopt the Shared ARC solution and this achievement was made possible through a strong partnership with the Digital Office who have provided support and assurance throughout the transition.
Scot-Secure West: Cyber Security Conference: 10th September 2025
Scotland’s largest annual cyber security summit will host a sister event in Glasgow, Scot-Secure West, for the 3rd year running!
The event brings together senior InfoSec personnel, IT leaders, academics, security researchers and law enforcement, providing a unique forum for knowledge exchange, discussion and high-level networking.
The programme is focused on improving awareness and best practices through shared learning: highlighting emerging threats, new research and changing adversarial tactics, and examining practical ways to improve resilience, detection and response.
Our Chief Information Security Officer, Dave Ritchie will be discussing the What, Who and When of Cyber Exercising and participating in a panel discussion on cyber resilience.
The Highland Council Digital Week is coming soon, and we are working in collaboration with them to open access to some of the sessions available to the wider Digital Partnership. There will be a range of events to take part in between the 22nd to the 26th September.
Digital week will be coordinated by their Service Digital Business Partners and the Digital Foundations project, in collaboration with internal colleagues and the Digital Office for Scottish Local Government.
The week will coincide with the Council’s biennial Digital Maturity Assessment and will focus on four key objectives:
Elevating the importance of the Digital Maturity Assessment.
Engaging with Highland Council's People, Leaders, and Members about digital progress so far.
Empowering individuals on their digital journey.
Exchanging best practices to inspire innovation.
By encouraging wider participation in the Digital Maturity Assessment, the Highland Council aims to shape future digital plans with input from a broad range of voices from across the organisation. Stay tuned for further details on sessions available.
Microsoft Change Agents Programme: 9th & 10th October 2025.
There are still spaces left for councils in Scotland to take part in the Microsoft Change Agents Programme – a national training course designed to help staff lead and support digital change using the Microsoft 365 tools you already have.
The next two-day cohort will run virtually on 9th & 10th of October 2025, and may be particularly valuable for Digital Champions or staff involved in change and adoption work across your Microsoft estate.
What to expect:
Practical tips for delivering change
An introduction to automation and AI
A deeper understanding of tools already available to you
Access to a peer network across the UK
The sessions are interactive and designed for non-technical users who are curious, enjoy helping others, and are keen to learn something new.
Join us at DigiFest Scotland 2025, the flagship national conference for digital health and social care, taking place on Thursday, 11 December in Glasgow.
Organised by the Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre and delivered in partnership with the Scottish Government and NHS Scotland, in association with Futurescot as our event delivery partner, DigiFest is the official event for everyone shaping the future of health and care across Scotland. From NHS teams to social care providers, housing and third sector organisations, local authorities, Health & Social Care Partnerships and research communities—this is your space to connect, share, and lead.
This year, DigiFest arrives at a critical moment.
December 2025 marks the start of the national rollout of the Digital Front Door programme—beginning in NHS Lanarkshire. This transformative initiative will revolutionise how citizens access health and social care services, giving people easier, faster and more intuitive digital pathways to the care and support they need.
Whether you’re delivering services on the frontline, designing better systems behind the scenes, or researching the next generation of care models, DigiFest is where it all comes together.
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