Welcome! This playbook is a living document that aims to provide guidance on best practices for ways of working, tooling, and context-specific use cases for the use of AI in the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) tailored to Defra's unique needs and challenges.
- Overview
- AI Working Mindset
- Future AI-driven Opportunities
- AI Development Workflow
- Project Setup
- Feature Development Lifecycle
- Tool Specific Guidance and Resources
- Prompting Guidance
- General Development Guidance
- Appendix
The UK government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is a complex organisation tasked with responsibilities spanning environmental protection, food production, and rural development. Its intricate structure includes numerous sub-departments and arms-length bodies, each with unique mandates and operational frameworks. Coordinating these interconnected entities requires significant effort, given their diverse priorities and approaches.
The complexities of Defra's operations present a significant opportunity to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) tools to streamline and accelerate software development processes. AI can enhance every stage of the software development lifecycle, from design and testing to deployment and maintenance, by automating repetitive tasks, optimising resources, and delivering predictive analytics. These tools can also improve cross-departmental collaboration and decision-making, empowering Defra to address pressing challenges more effectively and efficiently.
This playbook has been written to help navigate these opportunities by identifying the best ways of working, as well as the tools, tips, and techniques that can be employed to fully exploit the potential of AI. By providing clear guidance and actionable insights, it aims to empower teams to maximise the benefits of AI, including lower development and maintenance costs, faster delivery of services, and improved efficiency. These advantages can drive innovation and ensure that Defra's diverse and interconnected operations are equipped to meet their challenges effectively and sustainably.
We welcome contributions from the Defra community. Please see the CONTRIBUTING.md file for more information on how to contribute to this playbook.