With the pace of technological change quickening and the public sector under pressure to modernise services, the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) and techUK are convening Supplier Summit 2025. This event will brief the industry on how DSIT and the Government Digital Service (GDS) plan to accelerate digital adoption across national, regional and local authorities. It will also launch an initial set of digital challenges where the government is keen to get industry input and innovative ideas.
Senior leaders from DSIT, GDS, and the broader public-service ecosystem will brief suppliers on DSIT’s evolving remit and priorities, introduce four pressing digital challenges that seek fresh commercial and technical ideas from industry, and create a collaborative forum where public-sector leaders and industry can exchange insights, foster partnership working and kick-start practical solutions to improving citizen services.
Agenda Outline
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13:00 – 14:00 — Arrival, buffet lunch & informal networking
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14:00 – 14:10 — Welcome & scene-setting – David Knott (DSIT) with techUK Public Service Board Chair & Deputy
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14:10 – 14:40 — DSIT & GDS: remit, organisation & priorities – David Knott
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14:40 – 15:00 — Secure by Design briefing – speaker TBC
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15:00 – 15:20 — Digital Commercial Centre of Excellence – Barry Hooper
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15:20 – 15:40 — Break
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15:40 – 15:45 — Introduction to Digital Challenges – John Cunningham & Roz Barrance
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15:45 – 17:00 — Challenge Showcase (20 mins each, incl. Q&A)
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Legacy & Tech Obsolescence
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National Data Library & Data Discovery
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Service Resilience in High-Volume Systems
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National Digital Exchange
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17:00 – 17:30 — Open Q&A with GDS panel
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17:30 onwards — Drinks & networking
The 2025 Digital Challenges
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Legacy & Tech Obsolescence – HM Land Registry – Ageing, siloed systems underpin many mission-critical services. HM Land Registry processes thousands of applications through manual workflows. They seek ideas that untangle legacy estates, automate validation, and enable smooth cloud migrations without disrupting users.
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National Data Library & Data Discovery – DSIT. Unlocking cross-government data is central to smarter policy. Concepts should enable federated catalogues, shared vocabularies and privacy-preserving access controls that prevent lock-in and make hidden data discoverable.
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Service Resilience in High-Volume Systems DWP – Departments such as DWP manage benefits for millions, where a single bug can derail vital payments. We’re looking for observability tooling, automated regression testing, and micro-rollback approaches that balance rapid change with rock-solid stability.
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National Digital Exchange (NDX) DSIT - A single, AI-powered marketplace that unifies £26 billion of public-sector tech spend, delivers nationally negotiated “one-click” deals, embeds tamper-proof buyer reviews, and targets £1.2 billion in annual savings while boosting SME participation by 40 % in three years.
Heather Cover-Kus
Heather Cover-Kus
Heather is Head of Central Government Programme at techUK, working to represent the supplier community of tech products and services to Central Government.
Prior to joining techUK in April 2022, Heather worked in the Economic Policy and Small States Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat. She led the organisation’s FinTech programme and worked to create an enabling environment for developing countries to take advantage of the socio-economic benefits of FinTech.
Before moving to the UK, Heather worked at the Office of the Prime Minister of The Bahamas and the Central Bank of The Bahamas.
Heather holds a Graduate Diploma in Law from BPP, a Masters in Public Administration (MPA) from LSE, and a BA in Economics and Sociology from Macalester College.
- Email:
- [email protected]
- LinkedIn:
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-cover-kus-ba636538
Ellie Huckle
Ellie Huckle
Ellie joined techUK in March 2018 as a Programme Assistant to the Public Sector team and now works as a Programme Manager for the Central Government Programme.
The programme represents the supplier community of technology products and services in Central Government – in summary working to make Government a more informed buyer, increasing supplier visibility in order to improve their chances of supplying to Government Departments, and fostering better engagement between the public sector and industry. To find out more about what we do, how we do this and how you can get involved – make sure to get in touch!
Prior to joining techUK, Ellie completed Sixth Form in June 2015 and went on to work in Waitrose, moved on swiftly to walking dogs and finally, got an office job working for a small local business in North London, where she lives with her family and their two Bengal cats Kai and Nova.
When she isn’t working Ellie likes to spend time with her family and friends, her cats, and enjoys volunteering for diabetes charities. She has a keen interest in writing, escaping with a good book and expanding her knowledge watching far too many quiz shows!
- Email:
- [email protected]
- Phone:
- 020 7331 2015
- Twitter:
- @techUK,@techUK
- Website:
- www.techuk.org,www.techuk.org
- LinkedIn:
- https://bit.ly/3mtQ7Jx,https://bit.ly/3mtQ7Jx
Charles Bauman
Charles Bauman
Charles Bauman is a Junior Programme Manager in the Central Government Programme at techUK.
He supports the programme’s mission to represent the technology supplier community to the UK government and advocate for digital innovation to address public sector challenges. Charles helps facilitate market engagement, foster partnerships, and ensure that tech suppliers and the government work collaboratively to improve outcomes, deliver value for money, and enhance public services for citizens.
Before joining techUK, Charles gained significant experience in research, analysis, and strategic advisory roles. At H/Advisors Cicero, he specialised in public affairs and corporate communications, while at Verdantix, he supported sustainability research and advisory projects, focusing on regulatory and environmental challenges.
Charles holds an MSc in Theory and History of International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and an MA in Medieval History from King’s College London.
Charles enjoys volunteering with a think tank, reading, hiking, and spending time with his dog and family outside of work.
- Email:
- [email protected]
- Website:
- www.techuk.org
- LinkedIn:
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/charles-bauman-75712016b/
Francesca Richiusa
Francesca Richiusa
Fran serves as the Programme Team Assistant within techUK’s Public Sector Market Programmes, where she is responsible for delivering comprehensive team support, managing administrative functions, and fostering strong relationships with members.
Prior to joining techUK in May 2025, Fran built a meaningful career in the charitable and local government sectors. She worked extensively with both victims and perpetrators of crime, and notably led the coordination of Domestic Homicide Reviews across Surrey—an initiative aimed at identifying lessons and preventing future incidents of domestic abuse.
Outside of work, Fran is an avid traveller and a proud cat mum who enjoys unwinding with her feline companions.
- Email:
- [email protected]
- Website:
- www.techuk.org/
- LinkedIn:
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/francesca-richiusa/
Tracy Modha
Tracy Modha
Tracy supports the marketing of several areas at techUK, including Cyber Exchange, Central Government, Cyber Resilience, Defence, Education, Health and Social Care, Justice and Emergency Services, Local Public Services, Nations and Regions and National Security.
Tracy joined techUK in March 2022, having worked in the education sector for 19 years, covering administration, research project support, IT support and event/training support. My most outstanding achievement has been running three very successful international conferences and over 300 training courses booked all over the globe!
Tracy has a great interest in tech. Gaming and computing have been a big part of her life, and now electric cars are an exciting look at the future. She has warmed to Alexa, even though it can sometimes be sassy!
- Email:
- [email protected]
- Phone:
- 02073312000
- Website:
- www.techuk.org
- LinkedIn:
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/tracymodha83
