Agenda item

The Executive Member for Corporate Services submitted a report that provided information on the council’s approach to digital services and how it currently accommodated those who were digitally excluded.

The Executive Member for Corporate Services said that as the way in which the council worked changed, it was important that organisations such as East Herts Council reflected and made sure changes were being made in the right way. Members were advised that the council had made significant strides in respect of digital transformation.

The Executive Member for Corporate Services explained that the customers who accessed the council’s services in person were often the ones with the most complex needs. He explained that this group of customers currently represented two to three percent of interactions with the public. Members were advised that the council’s approach to customer services provision would continue to be driven by data to ensure that residents needs were being met.

The Executive Member said that approximately 80% of face-to-face contact which the council had with customers was related to council tax and benefits, and that this was quite a significant increase of around 50% from the spring of 2023 when service contacts were more evenly spread across various departments and service areas.

The Executive Member said that to address digital exclusion, the council had kept its receptions open for walk ins, and residents could also book appointments if they found this to be convenient. The council had also held face to face consultations in public spaces in line with the corporate plan objective of being a listening council.

The Executive Member for Corporate Services said that the receptions had reopened for face-to-face services on a phased basis following the COVID-19 lockdowns, and he detailed the opening hours in Bishop’s Stortford and Hertford.

The Executive Member for Corporate Services said that although face-to-face demand continued to decrease, the council had continued to provide access for those who needed to engage with the council face-to-face. He acknowledged that for a small number of customers, the online systems for Resident Parking Zones (RPZs) permits may not be ideal. Members were advised that the technology that was in place did not offer the flexibility that some residents would prefer.

The Executive Member said that the council continued to provide paper RPZ permits for residents that visited the council offices. He said that the council would continue to learn from best practice and digital exclusion was not something that was unique to local authorities. Members were advised that other forward-thinking councils had partnered with business and agencies to address any concerns.

The Executive Member for Corporate Services said that the council would continue to learn from the experiences of other businesses and agencies where possible. He said that the council’s commitment to inclusivity remained at the core of the approach to digital exclusion and that the council would ensure that residents who chose not to use digital services, or those who were not able to, were fully supported and that this work would be going.

Councillor Carter said that there was some anecdotal evidence to suggest that residents who were not able to use digital services were using other agencies such as the Citizens Advice, the tourist information centre, or Town Council receptions. She asked how much the council was working with other organisations to ensure that residents were signposted or could access the services they need.

Councillor Clements said that he was pleased to see the emphasis in the report on maintaining a face-to-face service for those who could not go fully digital in their interactions with the council. He asked if officers knew why customers were still choosing to phone the council when they had the option of dealing with a query online.

Councillor Clements asked if the council had put in place training for reception staff to take account of the changing needs of customers who were still coming into see the council face-to-face.

Councillor Dumont said that the council offered a similar assisted self-service provision for customers who had booked an appointment with a customer services officer. He said that customers not knowing which authority to contact for various services had been a long term and ongoing problem since he had been an elected member. Officers were very quick to highlight if an issue was not one that East Herts Council deal with and were very quick to provide the right information or signpost the customer to the correct council or agency which they needed to contact.

The Head of Communications, Strategy and Policy said the council had regular dialogue with Citizens Advice in respect of sharing information regarding any patterns or trends. He cited an example of when council tax letters went out, and where there was closer collaboration with some of the council’s partners in libraries or, as now, in Jackson Square shopping centre Bishop’s Stortford.

The Head of Communications, Strategy and Policy said that some of the changes alluded to by the Executive Member might force the council into more of that type of collaboration. He said that there was no structured way of sharing information, but the council did work with Citizens Advice and in an ad hoc way with other organisations.

The Head of Communications, Strategy and Policy said that there were always customers who wanted to ring the council, and that this would continue to be the case. He referred to the wide geographic spread of the district and the two reception centres. Members were advised that some customers would happily stay holding on the phone to speak to the council. He talked about the challenge of improving the digital offer and said that officers had received training in respect of safeguarding and mental health awareness. Customer Services staff had also been trained in personal safety following a spike in aggression towards public sector workers. 

Councillor Marlow talked about the issue of broadband affordability and older people who used mobiles instead. He asked if the council was working with phone providers to address this issue and the matter of poor coverage in areas such as the Hadhams and Hunsdon.

The Executive Member for Corporate Services said that East Herts had one of the highest uptakes of digital usage in the country. The Head of Communications, Strategy and Policy acknowledged that there were patches of the district that were not covered by broadband due to the expense of the installation of fibre services and due to the poor mobile coverage. He said that the county council had a connecting counties programme that had delivered broadband to a lot of different villages in the district. He also mentioned the partnership known as the digital innovation zone and the work being done to talk about lobbying for more investment in masts and other similar infrastructure.

The Head of Customers Services confirmed to Councillor Swainston that both Bishop’s Stortford and Hertford customers services centres had self-service PCs that could be utilised by the public during the opening hours, and Customer Services staff were available to help customers.

Councillor McAndrew commented on the different groups of people that the council had to cater for, i.e. those who did not want to talk on the phone and those that would only engage by digital means. He talked about the challenges of IT and referred to the waste services contract and the potential for a fully digital service. He mentioned that councils were in the hands of the providers in reference to the installation of full coverage of broadband services.

The Executive Member for Corporate Services said that the contract the council had with Stevenage did not hamper digital innovation and there had to be specific platforms and technologies to deliver specific services. Councillor McAndrew said that he believed there were some challenges.

The Head of Communications, Strategy and Policy said that the waste services contract was digitally automated in terms of requests to the contractor regarding missed collections or replacement bins.

Councillor Horner said that all aspects of the digital services needed to be brought together so that it should be easier to use, and that this was very important. He referred to future budget constraints and said that self- service assisted appointments should continue as well as the open receptions in both of the main towns.

The Executive Member for Corporate Services said that the council had to provide the self-service assisted provision for the people that needed it. He was not aware of complaints or concerns in terms of data where customers had not been able access the council when they needed to.

Councillor Carter talked about improving services and how the council could survey users to find out what customers found difficult when accessing the council’s services. The Executive Member for Corporate Services talked about his aspiration to get a customer service excellence certification. He acknowledged that getting customer feedback had been quite difficult.

Councillor Woollcombe proposed, and Councillor Clements seconded, a motion that Overview and Scrutiny Committee have considered information in respect of digital exclusion and have made comments to the Executive Member for Corporate Services.

After being put to the meeting and a vote taken, the motion was declared CARRIED.

RESOLVED – that Overview and Scrutiny Committee have considered information in respect of digital exclusion and have made comments to the Executive Member for Corporate Services.