Arcus Global, a specialist cloud-based solutions provider for the public sector, has implemented a new platform at The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) to update its licensing system and ensure the safety of vulnerable workers and protect them from exploitation.
Arcus Licensing provides the GLAA with an accessible cloud-based system and dashboard to view and manage applications, along with enhanced reporting capabilities. The system also delivers a simplified licensing process for businesses providing workers to the fresh produce supply chain, horticulture, shellfish gathering and other sectors and regulated industries.
The Salesforce-based solution improves internal and external data management, which is visible to GLAA staff in real-time through an interactive dashboard. This enables GLAA employees to monitor licence holder statistics, see the progress of different applications, and use the data to inform daily operations. In addition, the self-service element means that licence holders can easily access relevant data involved with their application process.
For a central government system, dealing with protecting vulnerable groups and licensing businesses, security is an absolutely critical requirement. The data held is classified up to OFFICIAL SENSITIVE. To effectively meet these requirements the Arcus solution uses the Salesforce Shield module providing platform encryption and event monitoring. It has been assessed via an independent National Cyber Security Centre IT Health Check.
Nicola Ray, Head of Regulation at the GLAA comments, “The work we do is vital in preventing modern slavery and exploitation of workers, so it was important to us that our daily operations were seamless. The dashboard in particular is a great feature – it supports the licensing team with all high-priority tasks, from renewals to applications. It is also quite helpful for them to see a dashboard that isn’t individualised – so if someone is off, tasks can be accessed and followed through regardless. This single source of truth has been invaluable to the team.”
With the prior system reaching end of life, the GLAA used the G-cloud 12 framework to seek an agile supplier which catered to their organisational needs while being official sensitive and GDS compliant, and selected Arcus Global for the project. The system went live on 10 May 2021.
At the go-live date, Arcus Global launched the internal application to 90 users, as well as four portals for licensed gangmasters, labour users, the public, and for consultations with other government departments. This provided the GLAA and its partner agencies with a complete end-to-end platform at the outset without extra costs or delays.
Nicola Ray adds, “As an SME, Arcus understood us and our needs as an organisation very early on. They fully understand how licensing works and have extensive experience implementing solutions based off of Salesforce, so we knew we were in expert hands. The safety of the workers that our licence holders employ is paramount, and Arcus have delivered a solution that supports our robust licensing process.”
Tony Burrows, Business Development Director at Arcus Global concludes: “The implementation was delivered at pace whilst successfully navigating Home Office security and accessibility checks (WCAG 2.1 AA) as well as GDS service assessments. The teams collaborated following Agile methodologies and delivered a successful go-live without any issues arising. We. are delighted to be supporting GLAA in its critical work ensuring the safety of vulnerable workers.”
