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Installing using npm

Requirements

To use NHS.UK frontend in your projects with npm you must:

  1. Have Node.js installed. We recommend using the long-term support (LTS) version of Nodejs, which also includes npm.

  2. Have a package.json file within your project. You can create a default package.json file by running npm init -y from the root of your project.

  3. Have a pipeline set up to compile Sass files to CSS.

  4. (Optional) If you want to use our Nunjucks macros, you will need to install Nunjucks. Nunjucks macros allows you to define reusable chunks of content. It is similar to a function in a programming language.

    npm install nunjucks --save

Installation

Install the NHS.UK frontend package into your project:

npm install nhsuk-frontend --save

Configuration

You will need to import a couple of things into your project before you can start using NHS.UK frontend:

Importing styles

To build the stylesheet you will need a pipeline set up to compile Sass files to CSS. We recommend using gulp and gulp-sass however you can use any tools that you are familiar with.

You need to import the NHS.UK frontend styles into the main Sass file in your project. You should place the below code before your own Sass rules (or Sass imports).

@import 'node_modules/nhsuk-frontend/packages/nhsuk';

Alternatively you can import each of the individual components separately, meaning you can import just the components that you are using.

// Core (required)
@import 'node_modules/nhsuk-frontend/packages/core/all';

// Individual component (optional)
@import 'node_modules/nhsuk-frontend/packages/components/action-link/action-link';

Importing JavaScript

Some of our components require JavaScript to function properly, others need JavaScript to improve the usability and accessibility.

You should include NHS.UK frontend JavaScript in your project to ensure that all users can use it successfully.

Add the following JavaScript to the top of the <body> section of your page template:

document.body.className = ((document.body.className) ? document.body.className + ' js-enabled' : 'js-enabled');

Option 1: Include compiled JavaScript

Include the node_modules/nhsuk-frontend/dist/nhsuk.min.js script in the <head> of your page using the defer attribute.

The defer attribute is used for performance benefits as the browser loads the JavaScript file as soon as possible, due to it being in the <head>, but will not run until after the page has loaded.

You might wish to copy the file into your project or reference it straight from node_modules.

    <script src="path-to-assets/nhsuk.min.js" defer></script>
  </head>
    <script src="node_modules/nhsuk-frontend/dist/nhsuk.min.js" defer></script>
  </head>

Option 2: Import JavaScript using modules

If you're using a transpiler or bundler such as Babel or Webpack, you can use the ES6 import syntax to import components via modules into your main Javascript file.

// Components
import Checkboxes from './components/checkboxes/checkboxes';
import Details from './components/details/details';
import ErrorSummary from './components/error-summary/error-summary';
import Header from './components/header/header';
import Radios from './components/radios/radios';
import SkipLink from './components/skip-link/skip-link';

// Polyfills
import '../node_modules/nhsuk-frontend/packages/polyfills';

// Initialize components
document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', () => {
  Checkboxes();
  Details();
  ErrorSummary();
  Header();
  Radios();
  SkipLink();
});

Importing assets (optional)

If you want to import assets such as the NHS logo, favicons and SVG icons, you might wish to copy the files into your project folders from the node_modules/nhsuk-frontend/assets/ directory or you can reference them straight from the node_modules folder.

<link rel="shortcut icon" href="path-to-assets/favicon.ico" type="image/x-icon">
<link rel="apple-touch-icon" href="path-to-assets/apple-touch-icon-180x180.png">
<link rel="mask-icon" href="path-to-assets/favicon.svg" color="#005eb8">
<link rel="icon" sizes="192x192" href="path-to-assets/favicon-192x192.png">
<meta name="msapplication-TileImage" content="path-to-assets/mediumtile-144x144.png">
<meta name="msapplication-TileColor" content="#005eb8">
<meta name="msapplication-square70x70logo" content="path-to-assets/smalltile-70x70.png">
<meta name="msapplication-square150x150logo" content="path-to-assets/mediumtile-150x150.png">
<meta name="msapplication-wide310x150logo" content="path-to-assets/widetile-310x150.png">
<meta name="msapplication-square310x310logo" content="path-to-assets/largetile-310x310.png">

Thanks to the Government Digital Service (GDS)

This documentation has been taken from Installing GOV.UK Frontend with node package manager (NPM) with a few minor adaptations.