What does this mean for local authorities? The Local Directgov Programme has been working with local authorities for the past four years, preparing and helping them to make their services available online. The time is now right to push the boundaries and further improve the local authority offering and the citizens’ experience. The Local Directgov Programme, supported by the ODPM, is engaging with councils to increase citizen take-up of online Local Authority services. It offers an important step towards developing a robust and reliable platform to complement, but not replace existing Local Authority websites and ultimately extend the reach of public services.
The Local Directgov Programme is an integral part of the successful central Directgov Programme, which currently provides the citizen with direct online access to a wide range of Central Government services. Whether looking for a driving licence or a new passport, travel updates or emergency numbers Directgov is the place to go. In June 2005 alone, the Directgov website www.direct.gov.uk recorded over 1.35 million visits from citizens, a number which is rising every month.
What benefits will local authorities get by becoming an early adopter partner council with the Local Directgov Programme?
Over the coming months the Local Directgov Programme team will be forging individual relationships with local authorities, finding out their present web development systems and capabilities. The Local Directgov Programme team will also be creating a support structure to enable local authorities to fully engage with the Programme and realise the benefits for both their own authority and their citizens.
When engaging with the Local Directgov Programme local authorities can, for example, expect to:
When can local authorities become Involved in the Programme?
The time to engage with and begin to realise the benefits of the Local Directgov Programme is NOW. The team are working to meet and build relationships with as many local authorities as possible and will be holding a series of nationwide workshops in association with the various regional partnerships throughout the autumn. Local authorities will be invited to these events.
Over the coming weeks the Programme will be releasing an Early Adopters Charter and offering local authorities the opportunity to ‘sign up’ to the Programme. This Charter is available to every local authority, regardless of their present web capability or offering.
Quelle: Publictechnology, 08.09.2005
