The latest prototype that we tested had two overarching concepts: identity and witnessing.

The aim of the prototype testing sessions was to gather feedback around these concepts as well as the following specific prototype elements:

1. the dashboard

2. enter your details and confirm your identity

3. the progress indicator

4. guidance

5. digital witnessing

6. signing the LPA

The dashboard

The people we spoke to thought that the dashboard was well laid out and understood the process that they would be going through.

Two thirds of the people we showed the prototype to were immediately interested in the “Confirm your identity” option, they recognised it as something new and wanted to know more.

Again, there was no surprise or concern around the concept of providing ID.

They felt that it was laid out in a logical order and would be most likely to complete the process in the order shown, even if they were able to do it in any order.

One person particularly commented on the fact that it was clear which sections you weren’t able to start yet.

It is interesting to note that all of the people that we spoke to were unsure about what a certificate provider is. We hear confusion over this term in almost every testing session or interview that we carry out. People don’t find it an easily understandable term.

Enter your details and confirm your identity.

All of the people that we spoke to felt that the amount of information they were asked to provide was proportionate to the task they were trying to accomplish. As with the other rounds of testing, there was a mixed response regarding whether they thought they should provide an address as part of the identity check. Some suggested that the OPG could check this against the electoral roll if given. For others, providing an address as part of an online service seemed unnecessary.

For confirming identity, the most commonly chosen option was passport or driving licence - people felt that this was the easiest option for them. This is the same as previous rounds of testing.

The progress indicator

This went over really well in the sessions. People liked having something to orient themselves and to give them an idea about how long something would take/how many tasks would be needed to accomplish their aim.

I asked people if they would prefer a percentage complete indicator, which they thought might be nice, but equally liked the current one, no strong feelings either way.

One person thought it would be helpful to reflect the step numbers in the section headings, we also felt this may be useful for call centre support.

Guidance

We added two pages of guidance. Some felt that this information should be available upfront as they felt that this was the first time the terms (attorney, certificate provider) on the dashboard were explained. Most felt that the content was helpful and that the language used was clear.

Digital witnessing

We asked Nick Goodwin to record a short video to use in the digital witnessing section, the video tested very well, people felt that it humanised the process and was very relatable. One person said they would have preferred the choice to read or watch the information, and would have preferred to have read a bulleted list.

People felt that they would like to see more videos like this to explain the more complex elements of the LPA for example, what is an LPA, what is an attorney, what is a certificate provider. For this guidance, they didn’t think that it needed to be the Public Guardian giving the information.

Selecting your attorney’s witness

In this prototype, there is an option to select whether you want your attorney to have an in-person or digital witness. This page appears between the Public Guardian’s video and the LPA signing page. This page seems to either be in the wrong place in the process, or is in need of a redesign as it tripped up both researchers and testers during the sessions.

Signing the LPA

Two thirds of the people we spoke to thought that this was great, and all thought that the information on the page was well written.

One person didn’t realise that ticking the box was the act of signing the document, and expected to be taken to another page to sign (once the green box was clicked). They suggested that the wording was changed on the green box to - complete or return the LPA.

One person thought that they would do the LPA this way for themselves because they feel confident in the people they have appointed as attorneys. They acknowledge that many people would be fine going through this route but they are worried about those in society that are vulnerable.