Agenda item

Report of the Executive Director of Resources

The Cabinet considered a report of the Executive Director of Resources, which sought approval of the Digital Coventry Strategy.

The Cabinet noted that to fully realise the benefits that digital technology could bring, the Council needed to pull together its digital work, increase its scope beyond the work that the Council is doing as an organisation and align this work to other partners so that the Council were co-ordinating this work across Coventry. 

The Digital Coventry Strategy was being established because it would benefit the people of Coventry, develop Coventry as a place and improve the outcomes that the Council could deliver.  It would support the delivery of the Council Plan, including promoting the growth of Coventry’s economy, improving the quality of life of Coventry people and delivering the Council’s priorities with fewer resources.  The report indicated that technology was increasingly present across all sectors and becoming integrated in many aspects of life.  Coventry needed a digital strategy because digital technology had the potential to transform the city and lives of residents while generating long-term savings and income and that digital was important for Coventry as a 21st century City.  The Council was already responding to this challenge through its transformation work, including Customer Journey and Kickstart programmes, alongside digital innovations within individual services and superfast broadband. 

It was clear from speaking to residents, including recent petitions received, that access to high quality internet connections was incredibly important to them. From speaking to businesses, this is also a priority for them as it helps them to grow their business and makes them want to locate in the City.  As well as being an essential service, investment in broadband was proven to generate jobs and bring wealth to an area.  It was noted that for every £1 of public investment in broadband infrastructure £20 in net economic benefits were gained.

The Council could make the services the Council provided to its customers better by redesigning them and opening up self-service channels through the internet meaning means people could access services 24/7 from the comfort of their home.  It's also more efficient for the Council to do things this way.  The report indicated that 70% of the Council’s customers were already using its online services for booking a tip visit or ordering a copy certificate.

As the Council’s budgets reduce further, it was looking at every way to protect the most vulnerable and front line services, with firm savings plans of £1m by reducing its buildings, working in a more digital way and moving more of its services online.

The Digital Coventry Strategy set out the Council’s 4 priority themes and case studies that describe existing activity against those themes:

·  Digital place – Infrastructure, digital innovation and data are promoted within the city to deliver economic growth and public service reform.

·  Digital customer and inclusion – Enabling customers to get the information they need and to access our services through online self-service.

·  Digital communities – Using digital technology to engage with our citizens and to work closely with our partners to address complex issues and help people to live independently for longer.

·  Digital workforce – Enabling a workforce which has access to the right tools to do its job and is confident in maximising the use and benefits of technology in its daily work.

RESOLVED that the Cabinet recommend that the Council:

1.  Approve the Digital Coventry Strategy attached to this report at Appendix 1.

2.  Note that the Digital Coventry Strategy will be a regularly reviewed document that will be updated, following the present iteration, to reflect the needs of our customers, advances in technology and the ambitions of the Council.