Kent & Medway Go Live with Government Connect using Kent Public Service Network (KPSN)

Kent Connects’ success has been achieved by deploying the Kent Public Service Network (KPSN), earning both organisations a shortlisting at next week’s Government Computing Award for Shared Services Excellence in the Public Sector. Designed to provide better safeguards when sharing information, as well as streamline the processes involved, GCSX requires authorities to fulfil stringent criteria to access the service. Across the country authorities have been preparing for several months in order to switchover to GCSX, working with Government Connect to meet the technical and procedural specifications.  

Kent Connects is the lead technology partnership in Kent and Medway, with a membership of all twelve districts, Medway Council, Kent County Council, Kent Police and Kent Fire & Rescue Service.  Already investing in the innovative development of a single, shared IT infrastructure - KPSN – the authorities were able to take advantage of an ‘aggregated approach’.  

Debbie Wisdom, Strategic Director of Kent Connects says: 'Achieving access to GCSX at this stage is a testament to the benefits of collaboration between public sector organisations.  Our partner authorities face the same problems as any other public body: the constant drive for improvement and efficiency, and the rapid rate of change in technology. Working together, we have been able to meet these challenges more cheaply and more effectively.'

Jeff Wallbank, KPSN’s Interim Manager, goes on to explain: 'KPSN has reduced the time, money and environmental impacts of delivering secure and resilient electronic services.  The network offers a five-fold increase in capacity, benefitting 1,000 sites and 250,000 users, and meets all the technical requirements to enable access to GCSX.' 

Lee Grafton, Head of Commercial and Communications at Government Connect praised the progress made by Kent and Medway noting that it is the first aggregate community to connect all their sites. 'The success of KPSN in achieving this significant milestone conclusively demonstrates the ability of local and central government to work in partnership and to deliver real benefits to ordinary people.' He continued, 'the positive impact of GCSX for local authorities will increase as more government programmes and services are deployed over it, for example, the In and Out of Work project that enables information to be shared to help join-up Government services for people moving in and out of work.' 

KPSN continues to develop, with shared services and unified communications just two of the projects currently on the agenda, and proposals to extend its facilities to voluntary and community organisations in due course.  Other potential developments include support for Regional Data Centres, additional centralised GCSX services, and Employee Authentication Services.  KPSN may also extend beyond county boundaries to provide services to neighbouring authorities. 

ENDS 

Note to Editors:

1. Information for journalists about Kent Connects can be found on the media pages on www.kentconnects.gov.uk.  

2. Technical Note: The Kent Connects Aggregated GCSX solution is based on an MPLS IP Secure Communications Network - the KPSN.  Two geographically independent GCSX routers, on separate sides of the County, provide independent access into the GCSX network.  Each receives an equal volume of data, has a separate firewall and is connected by a KPSN router into the KPSN.  Each is configured to support the other, and resilience also includes using BGP fail-over through the KPSN, providing partnerships with a minimum of two circuit routes into the core of the network.  Partners benefit from circuits of at least 100 MB with the majority of KPSN running at 1GB. 

For further information please contact:

Antony Parker, Kent Connects, Business Implementation Manager

t: 07920 538415

e: antony.parker@kentconnects.gov.uk   

For further information on the In and Out of Work Project please contact:

Steve Dunn, Jobcentre Plus, In and Out of Work Project

t: 0113 2327690

e: steve.dunn@jobcentreplus.gsi.gov.uk

Government Connect – www.govconnect.gov.uk

Government Computing Awards - http://www.guardian.co.uk/gcawards/background