That:

1)            a Supplementary Estimate for £20,000 be approved;

2)            the ongoing annual costs of £12,500 per annum for a further 2 years be noted.

The Executive considered a report relating to a proposal to fund the implementation of a user-friendly multi-channel tool to measure customer satisfaction and gather feedback from customers in real time which could then be used to inform service improvement and increase satisfaction.

The Executive Member for Resident Services, Communications and Emissions went through the report and advised that the request was to fund access to the GovMetrics insight tool which was already used by 70 local authorities around the country to gather resident feedback, compare key measures and to educate service redesign.  Investing in this software would help the Council improve its customer service to residents and better target where service improvements were required and why, which would then deliver future cost savings.  In addition the information provided would enable target switching of services to self-service and the promotion of existing self-service options; thereby lowering costs and enabling staff to focus their time and efforts on residents who needed more detailed help and support.  It would also help the Council to respond to repeat issues faster and better understand the frustrations and challenges that residents have when trying to access Council services. 

RESOLVED that:

1)            a Supplementary Estimate for £20,000 be approved;

2)            the ongoing annual costs of £12,500 per annum for a further 2 years be noted.