The Insolvency Service is beginning to work on the digital elements of the Breathing Space Scheme planned for launch in April of next year.
The move derives from a commitment in the Conservative Party’s 2017 election manifesto and the outcome of a consultation last year to give people in problem debt the opportunity to regain control of their finances.
The Insolvency Service has launched two procurements connected with the scheme, for a partner to work on a portal and case management systems and another for the development of a reporting, business intelligence and master data management platform.
The portal is aimed at enabling eligible money advisers to manage their clients within the scheme, also providing access for the debtors and relevant mental health practitioners. The case management system will make it possible to deliver the register and help to manage debtors.
Data features
Work on the platform will take in the provision of a suitable data warehouse, master data hub and reporting interface, all in line with the principles of the agency’s data and reporting strategy. Its purposes will include supporting data analytics and enabling reporting consumers to have access to live and historic data, reports and dashboards.
It is likely to be built on a Microsoft BI platform to align the agency’s investing in the Azure Cloud and Office 365.
A discovery phase has been completed and an alpha is expected to be wrapped up in June.
The notices say the volume of applications under the scheme is expected to be around 750,000 in the first year and then increase by 5-10% year-on-year.
Breathing space is aimed at giving people in problem debt the right to legal protections from creditor action while they receive debt advice and enter an appropriate debt solution. It will also enable them to enter a statutory agreement to repay their debts to a manageable timetable.
Image by Wilberth Gomez, CC BY 2.0
