Sometimes the best ideas are under our noses, just waiting to be noticed. And I think GovWifi is one such idea. For years now, civil servants, contractors and visitors have enjoyed the ease of registering once and connecting seamlessly to secure Wi-Fi in government buildings across the country. It is not flashy, nor particularly well known, but I find it works perfectly, every time.
It’s a joy1 to visit a government building, open your device and instantly be connected. A simple initial sign up2, and your connectivity follows you around the government estate, without ever having to redo it on that device3.
Of all the building blocks in the platform foundations for more effective government this is a vital brick 4.
And it’s so good that I can’t be alone in wondering: what if the same model were made available to everyone?5
Imagine stepping into a hospital waiting room, a jobcentre, a library, or a family hub and being instantly connected. Extend that to courts and police stations, to council offices and leisure centres, to universities and classrooms. And then to trains, buses, and transport interchanges. A single, trusted, citizen-facing network, available wherever public money sustains the public realm – not just in civic buildings but in the places people live, work and play. That should include council housing and asylum accommodation, where digital connection is essential for the dignity, participation, and opportunity that help people to feel at home.
Isn’t it about time that we had a singular, national, network open to all, safe, and free at the point of use? Isn’t it about time for CivWifi6?
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