“Doing more for less” is a phrase local authorities often hear, but Sunderland Council’s Responsive Local Services initiative is doing just that. Despite cutbacks, the council was determined to keep on improving services and quality of life for the people of Sunderland.
We started with environmental services: uniquely placed to strengthen the connection between council and residents, with high local visibility, it was already performing well but we felt it could be better. We rationalised structures and processes, brought in new technologies and, crucially, put the customer at the centre of planning and delivering services.
We created six Area Response Teams with ‘total place’ responsibility for local environments. We equipped more than 200 staff with mobile phones and PDAs so they could report issues and get to work on them faster than ever before. The team members were encouraged to be proactive in identifying and acting on local issues; to be driven by customer feedback and insight; and to respond to customers quickly.
Working together with local councillors, partners and residents they have overcome practical barriers, such as land ownership, to create attractive spaces that can be enjoyed by the community again. The approach has also removed time-consuming links in our internal chain of communications.
Results speak for themselves: response times for graffiti-removal have been cut from days to hours. Staff reporting exceeds public reporting of issues, which are often dealt with before they become problematic for residents. More compliments than complaints are received and recent MORI results have demonstrated increases in public satisfaction.
Working more closely with our communities might seem like common sense, but we have had to overcome barriers, including cultural ones. We had to assure staff they had the authority to work outside the traditional boundaries, and to accept the fact that standards could (and should) vary between areas, according to customer preference.
We are extending this approach to incorporate other services that are most important to our customers – including noise pollution, independent living, and information and advice. In time, all of our 600 services will be assessed as to whether we can add value to them through this transformational initiative.
