Agenda item

The Executive Member for Community and Partnership and Liaison submitted a report setting out the Council’s Customer Service Strategy for 2015 – 2020.  The Head of Information, Customer and Parking Services stated that the Strategy would be evidence based and would formalise the Council’s customer service standards.

Members were advised that the Strategy would also identify key areas of concern and would propose priority actions to deliver a step change in digital service organisation and delivery.  The Head of Customer, Information and Parking Services stressed that this would not mean ‘digital by default’ as some services did not work that way.

He concluded that the Strategy would be entwined with the service planning process. This would enable the Authority to introduce targets based on what the Council expected when compared to the current situation in East Herts.  The Authority would be able to improve service standards across all areas of Council business whilst introducing more channels for digital access to the Council.

Councillor C Woodward commented that this evidence based approach had resulted in a really useful document.  He was advised that the survey backing up the strategy had been conducted by ORS involving 3,000 surveys of which 1,300 had been returned.

In reply to a comment from Councillor G Williamson, Members were advised that the Authority was committed to recognising what the public wanted and delivering a personal touch when it came to service delivery.  The Head of Information, Customer and Parking Services stated that 50% of customer contact was by telephone against a previous figure of 70%.  Officers should be aware that e-mail was not always the most accessible contact method.

Councillor N Symonds was assured that a Planning Officer would be on duty at Charringtons House so long as there was a demand.  A number of Members raised the issue of digitised plans for planning applications being very difficult to view on some media devices.

Councillor W Mortimer believed that this was often influenced by the quality of the scanners used to digitalise the plans.  The Head of Information, Customer and Parking Services undertook to pass all of these comments onto the Head of Planning and Building Control.

The joint meeting was advised that the Authority was in a unique position to act as a gateway to other services provided by other organisations and Officers always sought to direct customers to a website or hand over the call.  The Chief Executive and Director of Customer and Community Services thanked Members for their helpful comments.  He referred to the challenges and tensions involved in identifying the needs of customers.

The joint meeting of Scrutiny Committees resolved that the Council’s proposed Customer Service Strategy should be recommended to the Executive for approval.  Members also recommended that Corporate Business Scrutiny be asked to accept a report on the Customer Service Project Plan onto its work programme for the meeting due to be held on 26 May 2015.

RESOLVED – that (A) the Council’s proposed Customer Service Strategy be recommended to the Executive for approval; and

(B)   Corporate Business Scrutiny be asked to accept a report on the Customer Service Project Plan onto its work programme for the meeting due to be held on 26 May 2015.