57% of Basingstoke residents have access to the Internet, with 87% having access at home, yet as with so many authorities, take up of electronic services in the area is low. Basingstoke has been using e-citizen, particularly the research findings, to better understand their own residents, and ensure that promotional campaigns for services are tailored and relevant.
Electronic service delivery offers significant opportunities to meet the needs of citizens by improving access to, and interaction between government departments, citizens and businesses. Customers will continue to have a choice of traditional and electronic channels for accessing services, but they also need to be more accessible, convenient, responsive and trusted.
With this in mind the council undertook research including focus groups with a cross section of the public – from different age groups and from urban and rural areas, combining technophobes with those who often used the internet, to establish what they wanted from e-services, and what would motivate them to use them.
Payment of car parking fines on-line was a key service that consumers asked for. Residents reported that if they paid a fine quickly, it was significantly reduced. For those who worked full time it was often difficult to do this because they could not access the Council during working hours. This was an interesting observation as the Council had provided this facility on-line for approximately the last 12 months, but residents were not aware of this facility.
This was supported by e-citizen national research findings, with lack of awareness a major barrier to consumer use of e-services. 46% of consumers in England are ready and waiting to use Councils e-channels, but interest is much higher than usage, which stands at just 18%. The main reason for not using Council e-channels is that they consumers are not aware of the options available.
e-citizen also identified the need to have 'proof of concept' campaigns based on identifying a customer segment most appropriate to using e-channels, identifying the type of transaction or service of interest, and then developing an appropriate targeted marketing campaign, rather than a diluted blanket approach.
Irene Cook, Policy and Partnerships Officer at Basingstoke Council, comments: "The latest report from central government shows that virtually all Council services will be e-enabled by the December 2005 target, but few citizens are likely to go online to use them. Based on current take-up levels, it will still be many more years before most Councils are able to break even on their massive e-government investment. By using the tools and research from e-citizen, we are developing a clear strategy to ensure that our electronic services not only meet customer's needs, but also achieve the desire of the Council to become more efficient. The e-citizen project has given us the confidence to know that we are doing the right thing, and that ultimately we will be driving efficiency across the borough."
The Leader of the Council, Councillor Paul Harvey added "People want to access services at the council online as much as by telephone and in person. It's right that we provide a full and innovative range of services online. This is the 21st Century and we are a cutting edge council and in the top 15% of all district councils for leading this e-gov agenda."