Devon Councils Sign £1.5m IT Contract

Two councils in Devon have signed a contract with public sector IT systems supplier Civica to provide shared IT services.

The local authorities, South Hams District and West Devon Borough, are intending to improve efficiency and public access to services in the new £1.5m deal.

“We recognised that with ever-increasing financial challenges and the changing needs of our customers, a more transformational approach was needed,” claimed Darren Cole, head of ICT services across both organisations.

He added that technology must play a “key role” in digitising and redesigning internal and operations and public services.

As part of the contract, Civica is expected to provide solutions that include electronic document management (EDM), telephony, workflow, payment, CRM and mobile working.

The firm says it will use its contact management tool, in conjunction with Civica EDM and workflow system to build an online portal, which will allow the public to create an account to interact with the councils and use their services.

“Technology Helps Councils Do More With Less”

“Local authorities across the country continue to face the challenge of doing better with less,” claimed Chris Ginnelly, Civica managing director of information and engagement systems.

“The organisations doing so most successfully are those embracing technology as a way to transform how services are delivered to citizens,” he added.

The Devon authorities claim that the customer journey will be integrated into back-office processes in real-time, giving them better access to accurate information so they can try and increase productivity and service levels.

Both councils have worked together for eight years and combined their management structure in 2007.

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