Register for ESS Lite

Enter your details

When you register, you will be presented with the following screen and then asked to enter these details. If you do not know your personnel number, ask your manager they will be able to assist you with this information.

A visual indication of the registration step

Authentication

If your personal details are correct and there is a work and/or personal email address on your record, you’ll receive a one-time passcode (OTP) by email. If both email addresses are held the code will be sent to both. Enter this code to continue.

The OTP is valid for 20 minutes.
If it expires, you’ll need to restart the registration and request a new one.

If you don’t receive your OTP:

Check your spam or junk folder
Try the registration process again
Ask your manager to confirm the personal email that is on your employee record

Your manager can check this in the ‘My Team’ section on the IBC Portal. This is the e-mail shown in the 'Personal E-mail Address' field and not the 'Correspondence E-mail' field.
If your email isn’t listed, they can add it using the ‘Manage Personal Email Address’ app.

This app cannot be used to amend employee's emails when payroll is closed.

Note: Updates will appear on your account the next working day, so you will need to wait until then before attempting to re-register.

Date format

Your date of birth must be in the format dd/mm/yyyy

National Insurance (NI) number

When entering your NI number do not use any spaces, hyphens, slashes or other punctuation.

Problems registering?

If you have problems registering for ESS Lite:

make sure you have entered your last name not your full name
check your personnel number and National Insurance number are correct
re-check that your chosen password matches the necessary criteria
check with your manager that you have the appropriate information set up on your employee record such as your personal email address
check that the OTP has not been sent to your junk/ spam folder if setting up email as the multi-factor authentication option.
If you have tried all these actions and still can’t register, contact us using the webchat icon on this page for immediate support. However, if you are unable to use webchat use the IT call back service by calling 0300 555 0223 and select option 2.

Set up a password and authentication method

Enter a password which matches the requirements displayed on the screen and re-enter the same password to confirm. The password must be a minimum of 15 characters. The advice given is to make a password out of three random words. Once completed, please read the terms of use and press the tick box to accept terms of use.

Once you have entered your password and selected Continue, you will be asked to set up an authentication method.

Multi-factor authentication

Setting up multi factor authentication (MFA) on your ESS account is required to keep your information secure and protect it from unauthorised access. Once MFA is set up, you’ll need to confirm your identity each time you log in on a personal device using a one time passcode. This passcode can be delivered through an authenticator app, an email address, or both if you choose.

Screen shot of choosing an authentication method during registration

Authenticator app

If you don’t already have an authenticator app on your mobile phone, you’ll need to download a free one from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store before registering. We recommend using the Microsoft Authenticator app.

Select Add under Authenticator app. You will then be presented with the screen shown below:

Screenshot of setting up an authenticator app during registration

If you are using an Android device:

Scan the QR code or click the link below
This will open the Authenticator app and add ‘Shared Services’ as a new account
A 6-digit one-time passcode (OTP) will appear — enter this in the OTP field
The code refreshes every 30 seconds

If you are using an Apple device:

Scan the QR code or click the link below
This will open the Passwords app
Look under ‘H’ for your Hants account (may appear as account.hants.gov.uk)
Enter the displayed OTP in the OTP field

If you cannot find the Hants account, save your username and password in the Passwords app and try again.

Email address authentication

If you do not know the email personal address held on your record, or are unsure if you have one, you will need to speak to your manager who can check and add one to your record on your behalf to enable you to register. Managers can refer to the Manage Personal Email guidance in the portal for further information on how to do this.

To use your email address as an authentication method, click on the Add button under Email.

You’ll see the 'work' and 'personal' email addresses on your record, and can choose which one to use
If you only have one of these emails, it will be shown automatically

A one-time passcode (OTP) will be sent to your chosen email. Enter this in the OTP field on the screen.

The OTP is valid for 20 minutes
If it expires, you’ll need to restart the process and request a new one

If you do not receive the code, check your spam or junk folder.

Screenshot of entering an OTP during registration

Once you add an authentication method to your ESS account, a confirmation email will be sent to the work and personal email addresses held on your record. If you did not make this change, use the link in the email to contact Shared Services via webchat as soon as possible.

Accept terms and conditions

You will see an acceptance of use message at the bottom of the page. Press to tick the box next to "I agree to the above terms of use" then press Register.

The Registration screen will open confirming your account has been successfully registered. Close the web page by pressing X in the top right corner.