{"id":5296,"date":"2025-01-07T11:17:14","date_gmt":"2025-01-07T11:17:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.gov.scot\/digital\/?p=5296"},"modified":"2025-01-07T11:17:14","modified_gmt":"2025-01-07T11:17:14","slug":"scotpayments-design-in-action-part-2-inclusive-payments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.gov.scot\/digital\/2025\/01\/07\/scotpayments-design-in-action-part-2-inclusive-payments\/","title":{"rendered":"ScotPayments Design in Action (Part 2: Inclusive Payments)\u202f"},"content":{"rendered":"

Blog by Ryan Bowler and Fiona MacLellan to highlight ScotPayments UCD team deep dive into Inclusive Payments and why payment choice matters.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Inclusive Payments<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We shared a post previously which <\/span>introduces our User-Centred Design team<\/span><\/a> and our iterative design process. Here we are with part 2 in our Design in Action series, with more on our recent deep dive on Inclusive Payments. In this post we\u2019ll share what we\u2019ve learned so far about the challenges people can encounter when receiving or using money and why having payment choice matters.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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User Research interviews, photography by Cal Marr<\/p><\/div>\n

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Our service makes payments to members of the public. It\u2019s important for us to understand challenges people can face when they receive money from the public sector. We want to know more about how receiving money could be made more inclusive<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In this blog, we want to explore what being unbanked means, explain what alternative payment methods are, and share examples of how third sector organisations are making inclusive payments, so that more people can have access to support.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Our early research into this vital area is around people having a choice in how they receive and use money. This choice helps them avoid personal compromise and helps us promote inclusivity around money.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Unbanked<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The ScotPayments Service is in private beta, and the way we currently send money means that a person must have a bank account to receive that money. Nowadays, this is quite common practice. There are many things that require a bank account, such as receiving wages, paying a bill or subscribing to a service.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This does not mean everyone has a bank account or uses one. When a person does not have a bank account, they\u2019re sometimes called unbanked. It means that they are financially excluded, and are unable to access certain financial services like:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n