To receive an update on the Council’s Customer Service Strategy refresh.
Minutes:
The Service Delivery Manager: Customer Relationships and Welfare Services presented an overview of the proposals for the Council’s Customer Strategy Refresh for 2025.
The Customer Strategy was first launched in 2021 and set out the Council’s vision for developing customer experience when interacting with key Council services. The strategy set out an ambitious programme of developments, which were to be delivered over a 4 year period, with the majority of actions being completed within the first 12 months.
A refreshed strategy was approved by the Council’s Cabinet in September 2022 which re-focused the priority for any remaining actions to be implemented over the final three years.
Following the introduction of the current strategy some of the key achievements within the last two years have included:-
In 2021, the Council became a member of the Institute of Customer Services in order to assess where the Council compared to private sector industries for customer service satisfaction. An initial benchmarking exercise was undertaken in 2022 which consisted of a resident’s survey and a workforce survey to evaluate how well the current strategy was embedded within the organisation. Key results from the first benchmarking exercise showed that the Council’s performance was strong against several measures and an action plan was developed to focus on those areas identified as needing improvement.
At the time of the meeting, the Council had recently completed a second benchmarking exercise which saw an increase in the UK customer satisfaction index to 74.0 from 72.1 and an increase in net promotor score to 19.4 from 16.1. The results also identified that workforce engagement with the current strategy, culture and processes had increased by 1.85 to a new index score of 76.96 from a previous recorded score of 75.1.
Members were advised that the results received would now make the Council eligible to be considered for the Customer Services Excellence accreditation and if successful, Telford & Wrekin would be the first Council in the UK to achieve this accreditation.
The Service Delivery Manager: Customer Relationships and Welfare Services informed Members that a new Customer Strategy is currently in development and would be considered at a meeting of Cabinet in April 2025. The new Strategy would be influenced by the action plan developed following the results of the latest benchmarking exercise but will also focus on how the Council will continue to deploy AI technology to support customer experiences in the future. The strategy would also look to retain an emphasis on providing omnichannel access to Council services to ensure residents are not digitally excluded.
Members were invited to participate in exercises as part of the Mystery Customer programme and attend visits to some of the Council’s frontline customer buildings to help inform and shape the new strategy before being presented to Cabinet in the Spring.
Following the presentation, Members posed the following questions:-
Members raised a number of concerns around previous mapping issues when reporting issues using the My Telford app, specifically in wards that share boundaries with Shropshire Council or have unadopted roads. Members also expressed their concerns for residents who had previously been unable to contact the Council using telephone services out of hours during severe weather to report incidents of fallen trees and if the Council had alternative methods of contact in place to report incidents during circumstances such as these.
The Service Delivery Manager: Customer Relationships and Welfare Services advised Members that feedback would be taken on board.
Members commented on the process for using Ask Tom and that some residents may find the system confusing when calling the Contact Centre and first hear the suggested questioning prompt which includes questions relating to Council Tax.
The Service Delivery Manager: Customer Relationships and Welfare Services advised Members that Ask Tom provides example questions to identify if queries can be answered before being connected to an operator. Members were informed that feedback would be reported back to the relevant Team to adjust the questioning prompts where needed.
What support was in place for residents who could not access services digitally or online?
The Service Delivery Manager: Customer Relationships and Welfare Services advised Members that the Borough’s current demographic had been considered when putting a service online. The Council’s blue badge service was given as an example of a service that was accessible to residents both online and face to face. Members were reassured that the Council’s intention remained to keep every channel open and that if residents were unable to conduct business online, a phoneline or face to face service would be available. Members also heard that the Council had complemented the introduction of online services by offering digital inclusion workshops for residents. Programmes had been offered across the borough in Parish Council buildings and community facilities such as libraries.
Were the digital inclusion workshops running as part of community events and did residents have to sign up to attend?
The Service Delivery Manager: Customer Relationships and Welfare Services confirmed that sessions were delivered as drop-in’s and had been dedicated to digital inclusion, providing support and answers to a wide range of questions. Where possible, sessions were held as part of local events to reach more residents directly.
With 98% satisfaction among those who use it regularly, how did the Council capture feedback from those who don't use it as often? How did you reach those individuals?
The Service Delivery Manager: Customer Relationships and Welfare Services advised that the Council’s regularly receives good feedback from QR codes placed in parks, leisure centres, and changing rooms. The micro surveys ask specific questions such as what was the service like and are well used. The QR code in the Town Park is the most frequently used by visitors and service user. However, the Service Delivery Manager confirmed that the Council could do more to make QR codes more prominent and clearer to encourage greater participation.