Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Adam Bennett with Councillor Philip Corthorne substituting.

None.

RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting held on 23 July 2024 be confirmed as an accurate record.

It was confirmed that all items would be heard in Part I.

The Chief Digital and Information Officer and Head of Digital introduced the report on the Draft Hillingdon Digital Strategy. The Council's Draft Digital Strategy (the Strategy) for the next three years was presented for input before being presented to Cabinet for final endorsement. Members heard that the Strategy aimed to make the Council more modern and efficient by prioritising customer needs and focusing on delivering services digitally to help residents and customers access Council services 24/7. The Council aimed to adopt an agile approach to delivery, a unified approach to delivering customer needs and emphasised the use of data to direct better decisions.  It was highlighted that the London Borough of Hillingdon (LBH) was one of the first local authorities to deploy an automated voice and web chat system.

The Head of Digital explained the Strategy’s five work streams which were aimed at  improving services for residents. The first work stream emphasised on building services online to make it more user friendly for residents. The second work stream highlighted the importance of data for better decision-making, using data to diagnose issues before they occurred and improve service delivery. The third work stream involved modernising infrastructure and systems to enable self-service. The fourth work stream focused on building digital capability and inclusion, ensuring that online services were accessible to all residents while freeing up resources for the most vulnerable. The final work stream focussed on using technology to make improvements in the Borough and the way it functioned.

Members enquired whether there were varied focus groups in place to test systems prior to them being rolled out completely. It was explained that customers and residents were involved in designing services, including user testing to understand needs and tests of the website. Post rollout feedback would also be collated and the government digital services methodology would be followed.

The Committee acknowledged that there was a need for digital engagement however it needed to be fit for purpose.  Questions were raised regarding residents who may never be able to access services online and  how the proposed developments would work for people who preferred to use phones. The importance of digital inclusion was highlighted to Members and it was recognised that some people might not be able to interact online. Vulnerable customers were prioritised for support and there were already initiatives in place to support residents such as recycling devices and providing training to help residents build digital skills. The Council was committed to ensuring that both residents and staff had  the necessary digital skills to improve service delivery.

In terms of the proposed connectivity programmes, it was noted that the LBH had significantly improved its connectivity, although some areas still required work.  Members heard about initiatives such as partnerships with the West London Alliance to deploy 5G technology and plans to keep up with future advancements like 6G and 7G.

In response to questions regarding  the timeline for integrating new services and its impact on full time employees, it was explained that LBH  ...  view the full minutes text for item 26.

The Chief Digital and Information Officer and the Business Manager presented the Annual Complaints and Service Monitoring Report for 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.

The report was presented annually to the Committee, detailing complaints information for the financial year. It covered the complaints process, recent changes and observed trends.  It was reported that the aim was to use complaints data to improve services by comparing the number of complaints with other local authorities and using insights to enhance service delivery.

The report provided an overview of the complaints process and key statistics. The following key points were highlighted to the Committee:

-          the number of informal complaints dropped from 5176 last year to 3729 this year, with significant reductions in anti-social behaviour issues.

-          Stage 1 complaints decreased from 816 to 681, while Stage 2 complaints increased from 121 to 180, mainly concerning housing allocation.

-          Ombudsman investigations rose from 46 to 65, but 40 of these were not pursued further, indicating initial assessments found no merit.

-          The volume of Members' enquiries and service requests totalled 11,791, a significant increase from the previous year.

The report emphasised on learning from lessons to make improvements, with changes being implemented as required by the Ombudsman.

Members discussed the increase of the digital experience and how this would impact the level of Members Enquiries as residents would be able to handle various issues themselves without local Ward Councillor support. It was recognised that adjustments needed to be made for vulnerable people who were unable to access the system digitally and the Council kept a reasonable adjustment log to record these adaptations.

In terms of the implementation of lessons learned and the timelines for delivery, it was explained that lessons learned were implemented immediately. Whether identified within the Council or by the Ombudsman, these lessons were shared with senior officers and noted within the service. Follow-ups on implementation were conducted to ensure that the  appropriate actions were taken.

In response to questions around the effectiveness of the service request system that was intended to directly connect requests to service teams, it was confirmed that the system generally worked as intended. When a service request was submitted it went directly to the actual service. However, there were occasional  misdirected requests that required manual intervention.

The significance of using data to improve services was noted during Member discussions. Officers emphasised  the importance of using data from complaints and service requests to shape services. There was a focus on  understanding data behind lower-stage complaints to address issues before they escalated and using  AI for handling repetitive service request. The Committee was informed that the Council aimed to publish more data to allow residents to find information independently, reducing the need for formal requests and enabling more efficient resource allocation.

Concerns were raised about the challenges in housing and the high number of complaints. In response to the handling of 40 investigations that were not pursued by the Ombudsman and the lessons learned from these  ...  view the full minutes text for item 27.

RESOLVED: That the Forward Plan be noted.

The Committee was informed that the budgets were being reviewed by the newly appointed Corporate Director of Finance, who would also be considering how future financial performance was reported to Members. For this reason, there was no item for any budget updates on the Committee’s agenda.

RESOLVED: That the update on the budget and the Work Programme be noted.