Legal Aid Agency
Improving financial information collection for vulnerable users
Conversion rate increased from 9.89% to 34.67%
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Time to read: 7 minutes
Role: Interaction Designer
Background
The “Apply for Legal Aid” application allows solicitors and paralegals to apply for legal aid support on behalf of their clients in matters such as domestic abuse, housing, and children. The mission was to ensure access to justice by providing an application process that is simple, transparent, and understandable, ultimately facilitating more efficient and consistent decisions. As the lead interaction designer, I focused on improving the collection of financial information to reduce friction in the process and enhance user satisfaction, particularly for vulnerable users.
Problem Overview
Accurate financial information is critical for efficient decision-making in the legal aid application process. However, we identified several challenges:
User Drop-off: A significant number of users dropped off when asked to provide financial details, leading to low completion rates.
Completion Rate (Conversion): Only 9.89% (45 out of 455) of applicants successfully completed their applications.
29% (134 users): Blocked by open-banking eligibility, with no alternative way to proceed.
17% (78 users): Abandoned during the financial means assessment stage.
4% (18 users): Withdrew due to a change of mind.
The remaining users dropped out due to unclear guidance or accessibility barriers.
Legacy System Reliance: Many users resorted back to the convoluted legacy system, undermining the effectiveness of the new application.
Manual Caseworker Intervention: The caseworkers were facing an overwhelming volume of applications, requiring manual intervention that delayed processing times.
Requests for Further Information (RFIs): High RFI volumes were causing delays and unnecessary back-and-forth between caseworkers and applicants.
Objective
The primary objective was to streamline the financial information collection process, improving usability and efficiency while addressing the needs of solicitors, paralegals, and vulnerable applicants.
Research & Discovery
I began by reviewing existing user research to identify pain points and validate the problem areas. This insight served as the foundation for the design process. I facilitated workshops with cross-functional teams, including product managers, business analysts, and developers, to align on design goals and hypotheses. I used Miro to create and present detailed user journeys, segmented by user type, and an empathy map to uncover emotional drivers and pain points.This helped ensure we stayed focused on the findings from previous user research and allowed us to differentiate between users, keeping their specific needs at the forefront of our design process.
During the workshops, I led the team through activities such as:
Identifying the core issues and impacts of the problem.
Prioritising hypotheses and solutions.
Deciding how to measure success based on improvements in user flow, drop-off rates, and caseworker efficiency.
Competitive analysis
To explore solutions, I conducted a competitive analysis of both internal and external services, such as government and banking systems, to see how they handled similar challenges in collecting sensitive financial data. This analysis informed our decisions around process improvements and user flow design.
Ideation & Conceptualisation
After synthesising the user insights, I began the design process by focusing on the most critical stage of the journey: the collection of financial data. After I analysed user feedback, I identified that the existing open banking flow caused trust issues and confusion, leading to high drop-off rates.
I created some high-level user flows to map out how it could look.
I also ran an in-person workshop with the user researcher, content designer, product manager and developers to sketch ideas.
Using Figma, I explored various design patterns and components from the Gov.UK Design System and MoJ Pattern Library to ensure consistency and alignment with existing platforms. The focus was on:
Enhancing transparency and trust, especially around the TrueLayer open banking integration.
Providing alternative, user-friendly methods for users uncomfortable with open banking, such as a manual upload option similar to the legacy system.
Figma designs of potential solutions
Exploring guidance options including a video tutorial or images.
A new alternative flow for users who do not/ can not use open banking
Three user flows that were shortlisted after a series of design critique sessions
Prototyping (using HTML, CSS JavaScript)
I developed interactive prototypes using the Gov.UK Prototyping Kit to simulate the redesigned experience. This was so that when testing with users, they would be able to click through and carry out realistic task completion so we could gather accurate feedback.
The prototypes included step-by-step guidance, such as tooltips and downloadable resources, ensuring users understood the process.
I collaborated closely with the content design to include security assurances into the design, clearly communicating that only the last three months of bank statements would be accessed.
Stakeholder engagement
Throughout the process, I kept stakeholders engaged by regularly presenting progress during sprint reviews. I walked through the proposed user flows, explaining how they aligned with the broader project goals and the feedback from user testing.
Presenting designs to stakeholders during our regular sprint reviews
User testing
We conducted remote usability testing with a range of solicitors and paralegals to validate the prototypes. I worked closely with the user researchers to ensure that the testing sessions were well-structured and provided actionable insights.
Key findings included:
Solicitors preferred step-by-step image guidance over video tutorials.
Users expressed a desire to share guidance with clients, prompting us to add a download button to the page for easier access.
Clip from user research session
Iterations following user feedback
Following the testing, I iterated on the designs based on direct user feedback. This included refining the guidance components, simplifying flows, and ensuring that the design was accessible for a diverse range of users.
Design iterations in figma
Building the thing
I worked closely with the developers and wrote their Jira tickets to support the build of the final solution. We had constant run throughs and check-ins to make sure what was designed is what is being built.
Accessibility
I ensured we were being inclusive by testing with users who have diverse needs
reviewed and researched existing accessibility findings and concerns for components and patterns used from the design system
this was all considered before actual accessibility testing with screen readers, and keyboards
accessibility was a consideration throughout the processe.g. alternative text for images
clear & unique labelling for input fields
clear error messaging
Outcome
The updated journey went live successfully, resulting in the following improvements:
A significant increase in applications from applicants that required a financial means assessment.
Positive feedback from solicitors, with many stating that the service was now easier to use and that the guidance provided was clear and helpful.
A decrease in RFIs, though there was still room to improve the quality of bank statement uploads by solicitors.
Before the Redesign:
Completion Rate : Only 9.89% (45 out of 455) of applicants successfully completed their applications.
After the Redesign:
Conversion Rate: Improved to 34.67% (52 out of 150), representing a 350% increase in successful completions compared to the original 9.89%.
Open-Banking Route:
70% (106 out of 150) of applicants chose to use the open-banking integration.
Of those, 67% (71 out of 106) successfully shared their bank statements.
Ultimately, 42% (30 out of 71) of successful open-banking users completed their applications.
Alternative Statement Upload Route:
30% (44 out of 150) opted for the new alternative upload route.
Of those, 48% (21 out of 44) completed their applications.
Submission Rate Validation: Research confirmed that updated guidance and usability improvements reduced user confusion and increased success in both routes.
Accessibility Impact: The alternative upload route enabled previously excluded users (e.g., those ineligible for open banking) to participate, ensuring no user was left without an option.
Key Business & User Takeaways
350% Increase in Conversion Rate: The redesign drove a significant improvement in overall user conversion, from 9.89% to 34.67%.
Increased Accessibility & Inclusivity: The alternative upload route enabled more users to complete their applications, especially those excluded by the previous system.
User-Centered Success: The improved submission rates reflect the power of user research and iterative design in solving key pain points.
Reflection
This project provided an excellent opportunity to apply my expertise in user-centred design to solve a complex problem within a critical public service. By working collaboratively with cross-functional teams and iterating based on user feedback, we were able to create a more inclusive and accessible experience for solicitors and vulnerable applicants. This work is a key part of ensuring that legal aid is accessible to all who need it, particularly the most vulnerable.