Flexible working to improve council services
Shropshire Council is embracing new technology and working practices to help staff and councillors work more effectively than ever before.
The council is starting to work in different ways to meet the changing needs of Shropshire residents while saving money and improving efficiency.
One way to help achieve that is by encouraging staff to work in more flexible and innovative ways, such as becoming more mobile to help save time and increase productivity.
A variety of mobile devices are being trialled with a number of teams across the council, and we will be sharing case studies on Shropshire Newsroom over the coming weeks and months.
The first of these examples features building control officers who are developing the use of computer tablets to speed up the whole building control process and help provide a better service, while saving significant travel costs.
Martin Taylor Smith, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member with responsibility for flexible working, said:
“Councils up and down the country need to innovate to be able to deliver the quality of services that our residents deserve, and we are leading the way here in Shropshire. By embracing new technology we can provide services in much more flexible and efficient ways, which in many cases will improve the level of service to the public whilst also saving money.
“Building control officers using tablet computers is just one example of how we are looking to do this. It seems common sense for officers to be able to access all the files and plans they need while they are out in the field, rather than having to traipse back and forth to the office all the time. By using new technology like this, our officers will be able to get to more jobs and be more flexible and responsive – helping save time for people who may be waiting for a document to sell their house or complete a major building project.”
