Benjy Stanton

Notes about API user research, recording remote user research sessions, and onboarding remote team members during lockdown.

Notes about wireframing, checking accessibility with CSS off, the user-centred design and data community, and designing in the open.

It's been a while since my last weeknote, (almost a year and a half!)

Back when I worked at ONS (Office for National Statistics), I remember looking around, trying to find other interaction designers and user researchers across government who were working on data publishing services.

A list of my 11ty bookmarks. 11ty (or Eleventy) is a static site generator.

A list of teams who share their accessibility audit plans, backlogs and roadmaps in the open.

A short post about designing close buttons with SVG icons and accessible mark-up.

It's bad for usability, because it takes control away from users (for example, it breaks the back button functionality) and makes interactions unpredictable It's bad for accessibility because it can be disorienting for people, especially those who have ac…

I’ve been at Swirrl for 12 months (happy swirrliversary to me)!

Not surprisingly, a lot of my twitter friends are stationery nerds like me.

Here are some tips on different user research techniques to try when you're testing user interface content (crowdsourced from Twitter – thanks everyone!).

Here's my first submission for Jukesie's sticker stories project.

I’m trying to get better informed about racism in the UK, so I asked my Twitter friends for some book recommendations.

A brief checklist for marking-up an accessible search form.

Here are some low-key, achievable personal things for 2020.

For data tables to be accessible, I like to take care of the graphic design, content design and mark-up.

A list of questions to help with user research when designing data things.

A list of big things that I’ve done over the past 10 years.

A list of accessibility recommendations; covering typography, content, layout and interaction.

I've been playing around with the Shortcuts app since they added it to iOS.

I’ve recently switched my bank current account to Monzo.

This is a simple presentation of the trips I’ve made for work in 2019, which I keep a record of over the year.

Finally went to Ty Cwrw in Mumbles last night, tried a lovely Tenby Brewing x Tiny Rebel ale

A list of specialty coffees that I’ve tried at home, so I can remember which ones I like.

Tiny Rebel beer mat

I’m a big fan of structured/facilitated design workshops.

I've been looking again at user stories recently, and had a chance to reflect on why they're useful (and why they are difficult to get right).

Updated on 1 November 2019.

After almost 10 weeks of working at Swirrl, here's a quick post that lists some of my pros and cons of working from home.

Wellcome data labs I was excited to learn about Wellcome Data Labs, a part of the Wellcome Trust that's combining data science and user research.

This week I have been mostly thinking about user-centred design and how to apply it when designing, measuring and improving data services (again).

Mapping data ecosystems This week, I've been working with Sarah on some of the data ecosystems diagrams she's been doing.

Week 2 at Swirrl started on Tuesday after the Easter bank holiday weekend and the amazing UK weather.

View from Swirrl's shared office in St Peter's Square Some short-but-sweet weeknotes about my first ever week at Swirrl.

Last week, I turned to Twitter for help.

Short weeknotes feat. prototyping, Service Design in Government, my strong tweet game and Andy Bell.

Laura’s leaving do I’m writing these notes on my phone, on the train from Swansea to Cardiff.

Your Talk of the Year?

Watching services week from my kitchen Services week It was services week – a cross-government week of events lead by Government Digital Service (GDS), with many events happening across the country.

We got a chance to walk around Coventry cathedral on Thursday lunch time This week I travelled to Newport, Titchfield and Coventry and I realised while writing these that I'd been on 10 different trains!

Chatting to the design team On Monday I spent some time catching up with the permanent interaction designers working in my area.

This was my first week back after Christmas and my first week on the Census cross-service team.

We cooked Christmas dinner this year, for the first time in at least 6 years.

Adding value, by adding values This week I had the great honour of being named by the RSA as the first Royal Designer for Industry for Service Design.

This is my response to Andy’s blog post five things Benjy taught me.

View my latest user manual.

I did it!

It was great to see some smart people, that I really respect, recognising the good work that we’re doing in ONS (Office for National Statistics) digital publishing today.

The hidden cost of design tasks It’s a strange thing, being diagnosed with a chronic disease.