In April 2025, the UK government borrowed £20.2 billion – one of the highest April figures in recent decades. At the same time, public sector teams are being asked to deliver more with even less. Update legacy systems, improve services for the public and tackle increasingly complex problems – all while budgets keep shrinking.
In this context, digital transformation isn’t optional. It’s one of the few levers left for the government to reduce costs and improve public services.
Despite spending over £26 billion annually on digital and technology, the public sector often isn’t seeing the benefits. That’s not because of a lack of ambition or effort. Instead, it’s because too many projects are short-term and focused on launching something new, rather than fixing the full end-to-end service.
To change that, we need a different kind of delivery. One that puts reusability, measurable outcomes and long-term sustainability at the top of the list.
6 steps to reduce spend through smarter delivery
Delivering digital services in government is about more than writing code or launching new platforms. It’s about building services that are more cost-effective to run and better for the people who use them. The key is taking a smarter, more sustainable approach to delivery.
These are 6 things I’ve seen work in practice:
- Focus on delivery outcomes, not time spent. It’s easy to fall into measuring delivery by headcount or time spent. But what really matters is what’s improved. Has the service become easier to use? Has it saved money or time? Focus on outcomes and your teams will make better decisions throughout the process.
- Prioritise value through iteration. Don’t hold off for the perfect release. Instead, work incrementally. By getting changes live quickly, your teams will spot what works and avoid wasting time on features nobody needs. It also helps build trust and ensures funding follows what’s proven.
- Save money through reuse. Many government services share the same building blocks – case management, eligibility checks, identity verification and more. If you can identify these common patterns and build reusable components, you’ll avoid duplication and speed up your next delivery.
- Match your delivery approach to the risk. Not all deliveries should follow the same path. Some projects benefit from structured upfront discovery work to reduce risk and uncertainty. In contrast, others might need rapid prototyping or quick experimentation. For lower-risk deliveries, I recommend using a ‘build-measure-learn’ approach that can help test assumptions and make more informed decisions. Tailoring your approach to the level of risk helps reduce waste and get better results for your spend.
- Think long-term from the start. Cutting corners to save money today will mean that you’re likely to spend more later. Keeping architecture simple and code clean makes services easier to maintain and cheaper to run – something I always push for on client teams.
- Build internal capability. Long-term savings come from your own teams being able to own, run and improve their services over time. Make sure your suppliers prioritise knowledge transfer and provide clear documentation. This builds confidence and reduces reliance on external suppliers.
For more ideas on how to cut delivery costs read my previous blog Digital: delivering more for less.
How digital delivery can drive better outcomes and savings
Ultimately, government borrowing won’t be solved by one department or a single initiative. But we can make a dent in it. From changes to tax and spending, to saving money in day-to-day operations and using data more effectively. When services are simpler and easier to run – they cost less and work better for the people who use them.
Smarter digital delivery on its own won’t fix the budget gap, but it can make a real difference by:
- cutting costs through reducing duplication and rework
- delivering value faster by getting services live sooner
- avoiding future problems by designing for reuse and easy maintenance
- building resilience through better engineering
- strengthening teams by focusing on skills and working together
These aren’t just theories. I’ve seen these approaches work first-hand in departments across government – making services more efficient and easier to use.
At Made Tech, we help government teams design and run digital services that are more cost-effective and better for users – all through lean agile delivery and a focus on building lasting capability. To learn more or speak to our team, visit our delivery services page or get in touch.
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