Invitees:

Darren Mepham – Chief Executive

Martin Morgans – Head of Performance and Partnership Services

Phil O’Brien – Group Manager - Transformation and Customer Services

Councillor Hywel Williams – Deputy Leader

The Head of Performance and Partnerships gave a presentation updating the Committee on the progress made since the introduction of Phase 1 of the Digital Transformation Programme on 24^th April 2018 plus the development of phase 2. The presentation outlined the key statistics from phase 1, progress with the website, Corporate Plan commitments, Discovery/Navigator plans and business process redesign plans for phase 2 and the challenges and opportunities for the programme. 

A member asked if an analysis had been undertaken on council tax online applications to track the areas that were using the system and to look at ways of reducing the barriers in other areas and promoting use of the website. The Head of Performance and Partnerships explained that General Data Protection Regulations restricted the way data was handled and used however they were looking at ways of finding barriers and dealing with exclusion.  From a Council Tax perspective, 70% of account holders were on direct debit and had very little contact with the authority so there was no incentive to sign up. Housing Benefits were working with partners to mitigate exclusion and he was confident that they could drive up the user base. The Committee recommend that analysis be undertaken on a postcode basis of areas that had not registered online for Council Tax.  Members asked for this information to assist with providing a demographic understanding of areas to focus on advertising for My Account.

The Committee noted that out of the citizens who had registered their council tax account online, only 49.59% of them had subscribed to e-billing.  A Member explained that she had signed up for paperless billing for her utility bills because a discount had been offered. This could be an option to increase the uptake although it was acknowledged that even a small discount could be challenging in the current financial climate. Members recommended that as a way of promoting paperless billing, the Council should consider offering a small discount as an incentive.

A Member referred to the member referral system which was “clunky” and

Awkward to use. He asked if Bridge Maps could be made available to Members and a training session offered. The Head of Performance and Partnerships explained that a working group had been set up to look at member referrals. In relation to the App called ‘Bridgend Report It’ which allowed citizens to report highways issues such as potholes and dog fouling, Members recommended that the App include the ability to report grass cutting issues and overflowing litter bins. The Head of Performance and Partnerships also agreed to look at Member training on Bridge Maps.

A Member asked if the Chatbot option would be the only option and replace staff. The Head of Performance and Partnerships explained that as in his presentation, they were not looking to close down channels but to add functionality. It might not be fit for purpose in all areas but they would not be losing access to a member of staff if that was required.

A Member thanked the officer for the report and presentation and for the progress made. He raised concerns about the impact on equalities and stressed that access to the website needed to be fully inclusive. The Member referred to the financial implications and the current underspend position. He asked if there was a resilient financial plan for next 3 to 5 years. The Head of Performance and Partnerships explained that there had been no exact science to the 1^st phase and the key focus was procurement and to start leveraging opportunity. The keys to progress were business process redesign and user adoption. The Head of Performance and Partnerships agreed that when he next submitted a progress report, it would include a more detailed plan including any threats to the programme. 

A Member referred to duplication of referrals and asked how this could be better managed to avoid wasting time and effort. The Head of Performance and Partnerships explained that if there were multiple reports for the same issue it would be tagged and other members would be able to see that it had already been reported. This would also give a representation of where the problems were around the borough and encourage officer activity in those areas. 

A Member thanked the officer for the report and suggested that the team be congratulated on their achievements. He asked for information on what other authorities were doing and how they were taking this matter forward. The Member referred to the forecast that by 2020, over 85% of customer interactions would be handled without a human, and asked what impact this would have on staffing levels and jobs going forward. The Head of Performance and Partnerships explained that he regularly met other authorities to discuss progress. There appeared to be a piecemeal approach across Wales. Staff would be able to do far more functional work if the area was digitised and there could be real benefits in terms of how to make the process quicker from a back office perspective. The Deputy Leader added that in the early days he had advocated looking at others and not reinventing the wheel. The reality was that we delivered differently so had to build our own service and take staff with us. This allowed the authority to manage the growth in population and demand with the current workforce. 

A member raised the possibility of extending cashless schools because it would promote healthy eating and avoid the stigma of free school meals. This would also be a way of managing food waste. He asked if there was any tolerance if parents forget to put money on their child’s card. The Committee recommended that the system should also include cashless payments for schools trips and tickets for school events for example to alleviate administrative costs and to assist parents to make payments when convenient to them.

A Member asked if there were going to be any changes to the blue badge system. The Head of Performance and Partnerships reported that discussions were underway regarding blue badge applications and there were pilots starting in October. The intention was that the system would be fully accessible using basic language.

A Member suggested that a button be incorporated into the new website which would allow access to view council meetings. There should also be a link to tourism because BCBC was responsible for sporting events such as world class golfing tournaments and other revenue generating events. During deliberations of the new website, Members maintained that there had previously been very high profile events across the Borough that were not advertised adequately to effectively promote the event and therefore recommend that Tourism had its own webpage with its own button on the Bridgend Council’s homepage.  In addition, to encourage public engagement with the Council, Members recommended that a button be added to the homepage to allow residents to watch webcast Council meetings.   

A Member commented on the poor sound quality of webcast meetings. The Head of Performance and Partnership agreed to refer the matter to the service area. 

The Chairperson thanked the officers for their attendance.

Digital Transformation Programme

The Committee congratulated the Head of Performance and Partnership Services on what he had achieved digitally and Members praised the positive change in the local authorities culture.

Recommendations

1          The Committee recommend that analysis be undertaken on a postcode basis of areas that have not registered online for Council Tax.  Members request to receive this information when compiled to assist with providing a demographic understanding of where in the Borough requires concentrated advertising for My Account.

2          The Committee note that out of the citizens who have registered their council tax account online, only 49.59% of them have subscribed to e-billing.  Therefore Members recommend that in a way of promoting paperless billing, the Council offer a small discount as an incentive.

3          In relation to the App called ‘Bridgend Report It’ which allow citizens to report highways issues such as potholes and dog fouling, Members recommend that the App includes the ability of reporting the need for grass cutting and the emptying of overflowing litter bins.

4          Following discussions regarding cashless catering the Committee recommend that the system should also include cashless payments for schools trips and tickets for school events for example to alleviate administrative costs and to assist parents with the ability of making payments when it is convenient to them. 

5          During deliberations of the new website, Members maintain that there had previously been very high profile events across the Borough that were not advertised adequately to effectively promote the event and therefore recommend that Tourism have its own webpage with its own button on the Bridgend Council’s homepage.  In addition to this, to assist with increasing public engagement with the Council, Members recommend that a button be progressed on the homepage to enable citizens to watch webcast Council meetings effortlessly.   

Additional information

• At a future meeting, Members have asked to be presented with a financial plan detailing the current spend to date, any underspend/overspends and projected spend for the duration of the programme.  In addition to this Members request that a business plan be offered specifying targets for timeframes and registrations for My Account.
• The Committee request that the following question be referred to the Corporate Director – Education and Family Support:

In relation to cashless catering, the Committee queried whether there was any flexibility on a negative balance on a child’s account and further questioned if the tolerance (if any) was the same for all schools.

Members request a training session on BridgeMAPS.