Configure the Homepage for GOV.UK Design System Service Portal

By default, the GOV.UK Developer Toolkit provides a homepage that is complaint with GOV.UK design standards. This page contains widgets and other components that enable UK constituents to access cases, announcements, and helpful content, and quick navigation to detailed views and actions. You can use this page as-is, or you can configure the default widgets on the page to meet your needs.

Before you begin

Role required: admin

About this task

By default, the GDS Service Portal experience begins on the homepage for authenticated users when referenced by the URL suffix (/ukgds). The homepage houses several widgets and page components that contain the major information and actions that users see when they access the portal or log in. Each homepage widget offers different interaction options for accessing detailed information and completing actions.

The default GDS Service Portal homepage contains the following widgets that can be toggled on or off, rearranged, or edited to fit your portal needs.

Table 1. UK GDS default homepage Widgets

Widget	Description
Header	Contains GDS logo and branding, Global navigation links (Home, Search, My Work, Reports, Tasks, Calendar, Approvals, Notifications), a search bar for content lookup, and access to authenticated user profiles.
Portal Banner with Quick Links	Contains a personalized greeting message, customizable call-to-action button, and search functionality for services and articles.
Case Cards	Display recent case updates in card format. Include timestamps and status indicators.
Quick Links	Cards for common actions (e.g., Create procurement request, Incident report). Links to guides and tutorials.
Browse Catalog Cards	Grid or card layout for service categories (Driving licence application, Child benefit application, Report an issue, etc.).
Knowledge Links	Showcase popular articles with engagement metrics (views, likes, comments).
Catalog Quick Links	Highlight frequently accessed services for quick navigation.
FAQ	Expandable list of common questions with answers
Footer	Links for support, resources, legal information, and social/connect options.

Procedure

1. Navigate to All > Service Portal > Service Portal Configuration > Designer and from the pages list, select UK Government Portal Homepage.
2. Add or delete existing widgets, or select the edit icon to modify page properties such as titles, quick links, colors, and images.

   

What to do next

For more information on how to edit widgets that appear on a page in the Service Portal Designer, see Configure the GOV.UK Design System Service Portal Pages. For more information on portal pages, see Create and edit a page using the Service Portal Designer.