Agenda Item 7

Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council

Report to the Cabinet Member for Improvement and Efficiency

15th April 2011

Looking Local - Access to Services via Digital TV

1.0 Summary Statement

1.1 Looking Local is part of the previous e-government programme administered via Kirklees MBC which was launched to enable Local Authorities in partnership with others such as health, to offer information about services to residents across the digital TV channel network. The purpose of this report is to outline the benefits of Looking Local to the residents of Sandwell.

1.2 Looking Local is available on all Sky, Virgin and broadband connected Freeview boxes, this means that over 55% of households (46.5% across the West Midlands) – equating to in excess of 13 million homes across the UK have access via this channel.

1.3 There are approximately 90 other authorities using this platform. A number of sites have been reviewed in order to gain an understanding of customer demand/use of this channel; Birmingham City Council are experiencing an average of 25,000 hits per week, Dudley MBC 10,000, Kirklees 7,200 and Sandwell Homes as a single service provider and new to Looking Local are attracting 1,600 hits per week. 1

1.4 The digital switchover has already begun and will progress across the country until all homes have access to digital TV, this gives Sandwell an opportunity to provide information about Council services to people who do not have internet or PC access or the ability and/or confidence to use it, but who are happy and able to do so via a TV and remote control.

1.5 Additionally, services can be accessed by mobile and iPhone devices, resulting in very few people being excluded from this service. Recent developments to this mobile service include the introduction of a shortcode facility, by texting their postcode to 61061 customers get an immediate SMS response with a link to their local services within Looking

1 Data provided by Looking Local

Local.

1.6 It is proposed to launch Looking Local in Sandwell in May 2011 for a trial period of 8 months.

Further details are attached for your information

2.0 Recommendations

2.1 That the approach to ‘go live’ with Looking Local, which enables access to Council services via Digital TV, be approved, on a trial basis, commencing in May 2011 and ending in December 2011.

2.2 That the Director of Improvement and Efficiency be requested to communicate the launch of the Sandwell MBC Looking Local Digital TV site as a fourth access channel.

2.3 That in connection with 2.1 above, the Director of Improvement and Efficiency be requested to put steps in place to obtain feedback from a sample of users to the site during the trial period, in order to assess demand and submit a further report to the Cabinet Member for Improvement and Efficiency on the findings in due course.

In accordance with the authority delegated to the Cabinet Member for Improvement and Efficiency, the following course of action has been agreed, which will be set out in the formal record of the decisions taken by the Member:

(1) the recommendation(s) above is/are approved.

(2) the recommendation(s) above is/are approved as now amended.

(3) the recommendations above are not approved.

______Cabinet Member for Improvement and Efficiency

15th April 2011

Melanie Dudley Director of Improvement & Efficiency

Contact Officer

Tara Malik Improvement & Efficiency Contact : 0121 569 3653

Loraine Furness Improvement & Efficiency Contact: 0121 569 2387

Ian Hubball Revenue & Benefits Manager 0121 569 6203

3.0 Strategic Resource Implications

3.1 There are no costs directly arising from this report. First year costs are £15,000 which have been jointly funded between Improvement & Efficiency and Revenue & Benefits, from within existing resources.

4.0 Legal and Statutory Implications

4.1 There are no legal or statutory implications directly arising from this report.

5.0 Implications for Shared Partnership Priorities

5.1. The drive to improve access channels supports the Council’s determination to be regarded as an excellent provider of customer services and further supports the delivery of the shared partnership priorities

6.0 Background Information

6.1 The Authority in its drive to improve access to services is committed to delivering services to the community via a range of different channels which will help us to meet our customers’ individual and varied needs. Looking Local (also referred to as DigiTV) as an access channel will offer the following benefits:

o Give e-access to residents, particularly those without Internet access or PC skills;

o Offer information and services electronically at no additional cost to customers; accessing services on DigiTV is free for existing subscribers to Sky and Virgin media; o Offer access to information and the ability to request services and report concerns (via on line forms) 24 hours 7 days a week; o Increases social and digital inclusion for those people who do not have access to the internet or mobile phone technology; o Offers additional services that Looking Local brings for example access to Jobcentre Plus and Transport Direct databases.

6.2 The Looking Local site has the greatest impact for those people who are elderly or those residents who may have mobility problems, those who do not have PC’s at home and find it difficult to make use of community IT facilities, and those who are wary of new technologies and do not have the confidence to use a computer. In those areas of the country that are considered to be disadvantaged, the take up of digital television is proportionately high.

7.0 Looking Local for Sandwell

7.1 Looking Local for Sandwell will provide information on Council and partner services and will be made up of 8 key content areas:

Category Description News Breaking/good news stories

Contact Us Information on how to contact the Authority including on line e-mail template Council Services Detailed below:

Council Tax & Benefits • information on Council Tax and Housing Benefit including how to make a claim Care & Caring • information on Adult and Children’s Social Care

Community Safety • information on Anti Social Behaviour & Hate Crime Education & Learning • information on Adult Learning, School Admissions and Education Benefits Job & Careers • information on Current Vacancies, Volunteering and Temporary Work with the Council Leisure & Culture • information on Leisure Activities, Sandwell’s Museums and Parks and Open Spaces Rubbish & Recycling • information on Refuse Collection, Recycling Arrangements Transport & Streets • information on Street Care & Cleaning, Road Safety, Street Lighting

Category Description Health & Support Providing access to GP Services, NHS Choices

Other Services This includes access to Jobcentre Plus, Transport Direct, Community Legal Services and Family Information Directory Report It & Request It Providing access to on line e-mail templates so that customers can interact with the council on Looking Local in exactly the same way as they would on the internet. Sandwell Homes Direct link to Sandwell Homes site

7.2 The Looking Local pages are based on the redesigned Council website and content reflecting the most popular requested web pages as accessed by our customers.

8.0 Communication

8.1 Internal communications will take advantage of existing communication channels to ensure full visibility of this new service.

8.2 External communications will take full advantage of free channels of communication, including using existing web and social media sites, plasma screens etc. In addition a public demonstration has been planned and will be held within the One Stop Shop towards the end of April.

9.0 Go Live – Timescales

9.1 The site build is now nearing completion and under final review with service areas before “go live”, scheduled for May 2011, subject to Cabinet Member approval.