Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr Kirk Harrison and Cllr Richard Levell.

No declarations were received.

RESOLVED that: The Service Delivery, Performance and Customers Executive Advisory Panel agreed the minutes of the meeting held on 26^th July 2021 as a true and accurate record of the meeting.

None.

Members received a report that presented for consideration relevant sections of the Council’s draft Corporate Plan relating to Service Delivery, Performance and Customers and were provided with the opportunity to comment and offer feedback to the Executive on the subject. The ultimate aim for this element of the Corporate Plan would be to provide efficient, effective and affordable services that would make a real difference to all local communities.

The panel was asked to consider what modern public services should look like. Members commented that services should be accessible to all members of the community with the option of face-to-face assistance available to those requiring it. It was noted that the ability to contact the Council without facing long waiting times was crucial, as was the setting of customer expectations at the initial point of contact.

It was noted that efficient digital service delivery would free up alternative methods of contact such as telephone and face-to-face appointments for those customers who required them. It was important that customers could have their queries resolved, or be signposted to the relevant organisation for resolution, at the initial contact.

Provide good quality and efficient services valued by our customers

Members were asked to consider draft ideas (set out below) that would evidence the Council’s commitment to providing good quality and efficient services valued by customers:

1.    Own responsibility for every contact received anywhere in the organisation and if we cannot help, connect you to other organisations that can

2.    Work with our customers to develop quality services that are accessible to all and to make every contact count

3.    Understand and care about your concerns; demonstrating through our actions that your issues matter to us

4.    Be helpful, polite, friendly and treat you fairly and with respect

5.    Be honest, only making promises we can deliver, and do what we say we will

6.    Meet our customer service standards when we respond to you and regularly monitor and publish how well we are doing this

7.    Provide clear and up to date information about our services

8.    Explain our decisions and the reasons for them

9.    If things go wrong, say sorry, do our best to put them right and learn from our mistakes

10. Enable customers to access more information and services online

 Members provided comments as follows:

·         Commitment 5 should be of increased importance

·         The length of time for customers to establish initial telephone contact with a member of staff was vital, current timescales were too long

·         Queries should be correctly dealt with at the initial contact

·         The Council should understand that the costs of failure to provide exceptional service were not only financial but reputational

·         Timescales for the resolution of customer queries had to be accurate

·         Contact across the local authority needed to be joined up

Enhance the services provided at our community hubs

Members then considered how services provided at community hubs operated by the Council could be enhanced.

It was considered that community hubs should not offer a  ...  view the full minutes text for item SDPC/24

To discuss and to share views on areas that the panel may wish to consider to inform the future EAP Work Programme

Members received the Executive Forward Plan and the work programme for the panel and noted upcoming items for both.

It was requested that the Council’s internal draft forward plan be circulated with the agenda pack for future meetings of the panel.

The meeting closed at 11.35am.