Improving and enhancing the customer experience

Wokingham Borough Council’s first ever customer experience strategy, setting out its commitment to improve and enhance resident's experiences when accessing its services, was approved by the decision-making executive on Thursday (26 October).

The strategy was created following 12 months of resident, community and group engagement with a wide section of the Wokingham Borough community including businesses, statutory partners, the youth council, CLASP and the Equality Forum. 

During the summer, the council formally consulted on the draft strategy.  Views were sought on six elements of the strategy including: ambition; customer charter, strategy focus overall, inclusivity, key areas to focus on and measures.   Based on the feedback received, the council made sure the language and intention was made clearer and more obvious in some areas, with respondents feeling that the strategy set the right focus overall across the six elements.

The council is aware that some people have inconsistent customer experiences when they interact with them, and while there are pockets of excellence, there is room for improvement across the organisation. This strategy outlines the vision and ambition that puts the customer and communities at the heart of what it does. Customers told the council they felt it was important they were listened to, able to get what they needed, and felt valued as a customer. They also wanted to trust the council to spend money wisely.

A new and improved website 

One example of how the customer experience strategy is making it easier for residents to interact with the council is the website - which is the first port of call for many of the council’s customers. 

In a bid to improve the online experience, a new website was recently launched and it enhances accessibility, provides up-to-date information and streamlines essential services for the community.

At the heart of the new website transformation was resident feedback which was conducted through surveys, user testing and face to face sessions. This feedback helped shape the new site, and we prioritised making it accessible to all users.

The new site has a modern, user-focused design that makes finding information easy. It has easy to use navigation, an improved search function and an organised layout that guides visitors to the services and information they seek. Additionally, it is mobile responsive, ensuring accessibility for users on smartphones and tablets.

The results are already showing an improvement with more people visiting the website and satisfaction levels improving.  Some of the feedback received so far included:  “Thank you for informing me about how I can get help”, “Great website, very easy to complete my tasks”, “Easy to navigate, exactly the kind of info[rmation] I was after”. The council also received feedback from an assistive technology user saying “[it’s] one of the most accessible websites I’ve ever used”.

Not just about digital 

Going online isn’t for everyone, and it is important that anyone who contacts the council gets the support they need. And that is why the council is committed to embed the principles of the customer experience strategy across its workforce.   - listen more, take steps to understand community needs and act on feedback to continuously improve.

An implementation plan for year one of the strategy has also been produced and will be regularly reviewed.

Passionate about delivering improvements 

Cllr Sarah Kerr, executive member for climate emergency and resident services, said: “ Despite the challenges the council faces, we are ambitious, committed to and passionate about delivering improvements to the customer experience across the whole organisation as well as striving for fully accessible and efficient services. This strategy sets the foundations for the council moving forward and has been built on the principles of our customer charter

“We will ensure everyone has a consistent customer experience. We recognise the diversity of the communities we serve and want to build strong relationships with them and understand their needs and priorities.

“It is about getting the basics right. We put the people at the heart of our services by listening to what they tell us, so we can better understand their needs and priorities. This will help us shape services in line with changing customer needs and expectations.”

Read the strategy 

You can view the customer experience strategy on the council’s website. The council has also created an easy read version of the strategy.

Read both documents below: