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Frontend templates

Homepage

The homepage sets out the proposition of GOV.UK. It introduces the different kinds of content and information users can find, as well as the different tasks they can do.

How it works

The homepage is not exhaustive; it does not provide a link to every single part of the site. It prioritises the most relevant and important tasks and content for the highest number, or the most impacted users. It also exposes how the site is organised.

This provides multiple ways for the user to find what they need:

  • By showing what kind of content is on the site
  • By showing how the content is organised
  • By providing keywords (for example, topic names)
  • By allowing users to compare important content side-by-side

Live example

Welcome to GOV.UK (opens in a new tab)

Page data available on Content Data (opens in a new tab).

How it’s built

These are the underlying technologies that make-up the homepage front template.

Content schema

homepage (opens in a new tab)

What is a content schema?
A GOV.UK content schema is a JSON schema that defines the data structure of a piece of content. It determines what content and metadata attributes the page has.

Content type

homepage (opens in a new tab)

What is a content type?
Content type describes the types of pages that exist on GOV.UK. It’s stored in the content item (JSON) as document_type. It powers search filters in all finders and changes the content type label users see on GOV.UK pages.

Publishing app

special-route-publisher (opens in a new tab)

What is a publishing app?
Publishing apps are used by publishers across government departments to publish content to GOV.UK.

Rendering app

frontend (opens in a new tab)

What is a rendering app?
Rendering apps render content to GOV.UK end-users.

Components

The components used within the homepage frontend template
Component Source Publishing app input field(s)
Layout super navigation header Hardcoded by developer
Search Hardcoded by developer
Heading Hardcoded by developer
Action link Hardcoded by developer
Image card Hardcoded by developer
Feedback Hardcoded by developer
Layout footer Hardcoded by developer
History and insights
Date Description Document Format
July 2024

Information regarding the design update, taken place in November 2023.
Changes included:

  • a visual refresh (larger font sizes, more spacing between sections, making the design clearer on mobile devices)
  • changes to the page structure based on what we know about what users do and what they expect (removing unused sections, showing list of topics as a list vs grid, adding bullets to the list of popular links)
  • changes to content (replacing “Topics” heading with “Services and information”)
 GOV.UK homepage (opens in a new tab) Wiki entry
July 2023

Gameplan/lead-up to redesigning the homepage.
The document includes:

  • Evolution of the homepage
  • Defining the GOV.UK end users
  • Content elements on the homepage
  • User behaviour on the homepage
  • Interacting with the homepage
  • Mobile & sources
  • User summaries
  • Performance of homepage sections
  • Summary
  • New ideas for GOV.UK Homepage
 What does user behaviour on the GOV.UK homepage look like (opens in a new tab) Google Slides
April 2023

A holistic redesign of the homepage was pitched, asking “If GOV.UK was created today what would the homepage look like?”

 Homepage Redesign Challenge (opens in a new tab) Google Slides

How to report an issue

If you happen to come across an issue:

  1. Report it on Github (opens in a new tab).
  2. Once the issue has been added, update this document by adding the title and Github Issue’s link.
  3. Give yourself a high-five.

Help improve this page

To help make sure that this page is useful, relevant and up to date, submit a GitHub issue (opens in a new tab) with your proposed updates.