Harrow Council Expands Channel Shift And Online Offerings
The London Borough of Harrow has expanded its online service offering and enhanced its complaints and requests processes after adopting a new solution.
The local authority opted for channel shift specialist Firmstep and its Forms solutions to transform its approach to digital after enjoying success with its online appeals and payment system for Penalty Charge Notices (PCN).
The PCN solution was first launched five years ago and currently handles 840,000 submissions annually, savings costs of £90,000.
It has now expanded its online offering to include 200 web forms for residents, councillors and staff, which cover services provided by all councils departments.
Harrow’s ongoing expansion of digital services has led to annual increases of 30-40% in online submissions through the MyHarrow portal.
Forms has also been integrated with the council’s recently launched online portal for council members so councillors can now report issues and track the progress of their requests.
The IT department has since been able to close down some email inboxes to deliver further efficiencies for the organisation.
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The portal has received more than 2000 submissions and over 90% of all requests made by councillors are now being responded to since its launch.
“The Forms solution makes it easier and quicker for us to track the progress of and deal with the thousands of requests made by residents,” claimed Web/GIS Manager at Harrow Council David Miller.
“As well as giving residents access to services at any time of the day, the solution saves time and money which is important in this current financial climate.
“We have also seen that it integrates well with other systems we have which is vital to providing joined-up services to our residents and delivering a return on investment (ROI),” he added.
By moving services online to the MyHarrow portal, the local authority has reduced face-to-face transactions by 71% which has led to savings in excess of £500,000.
© 24N.biz
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