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Citizens should expect their public services and councils to get it right first time and give their customers the same quality service they would get from the best of the private sector, Local Government Minister Barbara Follett said today.

Barbara Follett said:

"Services should be designed with the customer in mind and be flexible enough to deal with different cases and circumstances.

"This is not only good for the customer but good for councils and for the taxpayers. Good public services will enable councils to end duplication, cut bureaucracy and increase value for money.

"The Government continues to work with local councils to ensure they keep up with standards of customer services offered by the best across the private, public and third sectors."

Mrs Follett was responding to the recommendations of an independent review which looked on how councils can improve services for customers including when things go wrong. Today she set out the actions the Government is taking to ensure councils put customers first - including:

giving greater freedoms and flexibilities for local agencies to design services around the needs of the customer - which also cuts waste and duplication and ensures taxpayers' money is being spent effectively. The Total Place report published recently set out the sweeping changes being introduced following wide-ranging testing of the approach in 13 pilot areas;
piloting a practitioners' toolkit in nine local authorities testing a wide range of services to measure their current service, find out what customers really want and help them improve. The pilots are sharing learning and acting as regional champions to ensure good practice becomes common practice;
looking at improving the sharing of personal information between partners to ensure better service for customers as well as lower costs, whilst protecting personal data;
new Local Innovation Awards recognising and rewarding partnerships that have made a real impact on the lives of communities and demonstrated innovative services.

The review was led by David Cook, Chief Executive of Kettering Borough Council and drew on experts from the public, private and third sectors, including Tesco, the Institute of Customer Services, and local government. It found three key areas where councils could improve standards of customer service:

clearly setting out to customers how you will get it right, and correct any mistakes promptly;
the importance of good frontline staff; and
making sure that the customer has a seamless journey - and is not passed from pillar to post and blinded by bureaucracy.

Putting the customer first is at the heart of the Government's drive to build modern public services as set out in Building Britain's Future. Budget 2010 set out how the Government will protect key public service priorities while reducing the deficit. Total Place shows how this can be delivered in practice through a fundamental shift in the way public services are delivered that has never been attempted before.

Notes to editors

1) The response to the review Getting it Right and Righting the Wrongs will be available at: www.communities.gov.uk/publications/communities/gettingitrightresponse.

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Barbara Follett: Citizens are entitled to expect the best from public services

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