Customer Strategy 2023 to 2028 (Plain Text Version)

Operating Context

Looking ahead, 2023/24 to 2027/28 is expected to bring fundamental change to council services as we seek to transform council services to continue to meet customer needs, take advantage of opportunities, such as new technology, and bridge a funding gap of £47.6 million.

This strategy will help the organisation develop the capabilities and knowledge to transform the council for the future.

The following factors reflect the challenges and opportunities that the council is likely to face and the strategy will address.

Societal Trends and Customer Needs

Customer service trends and customer expectations are likely to continue to evolve in the next five years.

The norms of customer service will be influenced by wider societal trends and the innovations and market disruptions that occur in other sectors, in addition to the changing needs in our local area.

This will require the council to adapt services accordingly and at pace in order to continue to meet the most pressing needs and expectations of our service users and respond appropriately to any risks and opportunities.

The Customer Strategy will ensure that the council continues to prioritise customer needs in the development of service and transformation plans. The voice of the customer will be promoted in our decision-making and will be a key consideration in our approach to service improvement.

Some of the expected trends that will impact upon the way that the council operates are outlined below:

Economic and Market factors

The financial context is challenging and will require changes that will fundamentally impact upon the future composition of council services and the services that are provided to customers in the next five years.

Economic and market factors will have to be closely monitored for the duration of this strategy, with steps taken to mitigate their impact on council services, where possible. In anticipation of rising demand for key services the council will have to review and adapt service provision, in consultation with users and in response to the budget position.

Demographic Diversity

We serve a broad spectrum of people in growing and vibrant towns and the diversity of our service users, in all its forms, is ever increasing.

Every person who resides in or works in West Lothian will access or experience council services at some point in their daily life. It is vital to ensure that we design our services around the people that we serve.

Reducing inequalities in society underpins a number of the strategic outcomes and objectives of the council. But, as a service provider, we also want to understand and address any barriers people may experience to accessing services and find out how we can better serve the whole community.

Technology, Automation and the Demand for Technical Skills

Digital services and on-demand transactions are becoming ever more present in all areas of society, with the pace of technology-enabled change in other sectors driving customer expectation about the way that public services can be accessed and delivered.

In the next five years, the council will need to maximise the use of proven technology by introducing systems and appropriately skilled staff to meet the changing demands of our customer base. The demand for digital channels and flexible service provision across all market sectors accelerated during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Previously resistant groups are now engaging and transacting via different channels, though some still prefer to utilise more traditional methods. The council will ensure that new technologies offer a positive experience for customers to help support them to transact digitally.

Automated customer services can also improve the speed and effectiveness of customer services. The council will have to undertake targeted work on the automation of internal processes and systems that can provide quick, reliable and robust outcomes for the customer.

Legislation and Regulation

Each council service has to be delivered and developed in line with the relevant legislative/regulatory frameworks and officers will have to ensure that future changes are considered and implemented timeously and with due consideration for the impact it may have on service users.

Changes in the legislation can impact upon the level of service that customers receive from councils and sometimes, the way that it will be provided.