Agenda item

Elaine Prado, Head of Business Change, reported that the number of Member enquiries had risen in the past year.  The accompanying e-mails had increased as well.  Performance levels had improved despite this, with 93% being dealt with within the ten day target.  Benchmarking had been undertaken with other boroughs and Haringey was one of ten with a ten day target.  However, it was important that Members were also satisfied with the response that they received.  The ten day time limit allowed scope for matters raised to be investigated if required.  It was anticipated that the FOBO programme would facilitate improvements.  The team was working at full capacity though.  They nevertheless wish to have sufficient capacity to be able to gain learning from the issues that were raised.

Committee Members commented that the ten day target seemed too long.  However, they had been unaware that there were only three staff involved in preparing responses and we appreciative of their efforts.  The felt that levels of satisfaction could also be monitored and used as an additional benchmark for performance.   Residents had often been passed around different parts of the Council before contacting Councillors.

Mr Briggs commented that it was important to bear in mind that the process was about local constituents.  He acknowledged that the Council did not always do itself justice in the responses that were made and there was a need to change the culture.  However, achieving a 93% response rate within ten days was good and they were committed to hitting the target of 95%.  The target was the maximum number of days though and significant numbers could be dealt with more quickly. 

Ms Prado stated that they worked closely with Homes for Haringey (HfH) and there was a joint post.  In addition, officers from HfH had come to sit with the Member Inquiry team.  Enquiries regarding housing benefit could be fast tracked if need be. The service was looking to invest in improved IT.  In addition, training was being arranged with responding officers and action taken to raise the profile of the service.  Councillor Amin, the Cabinet Member for Civic Services, commented that some services were very good at responding quickly but some took much longer. Mr Briggs stated that if the acknowledgement of receipt could be automated, the possibility of reducing the target time could be explored.

The Committee raised the issue of the quality of responses, which could vary considerably.  It was felt that better quality responses was likely to reduce workload in the longer term.  It also appeared that not all respondents understood the role of Councillors.  The adequacy of current staffing levels was also queried.  They thanked current staff for responding effectively to the increase in enquiries.   They felt that the current IT system was outdated and in need of updating. 

The Cabinet Member stated that improved performances from services reduced the pressure on officers who dealt with enquiries.  Ms Prado stated that the improved IT system would improve efficiency.  This would release staffing resources to spend more time looking at quality and performance.  Complaints and Member Enquiries were received because services had failed to deliver though and it was important that work was done to focus greater attention on the needs of customers. 

The Cabinet Member stated that the service was under enormous pressure.  It had nevertheless striven to maintain the quality of the service.  There was a need for learning to be incorporated from enquiries.  There was also a need for Member learning including managing the expectations of residents.  In addition, it was important that a shared understanding of what was urgent was developed.