Lewisham Council has gone live with IEG4's OneVu self-service citizen portal, which integrates with the council’s existing 'My Lewisham' accounts to enable residents to access revenues and benefits services online.
"OneVu is a win-win solution for both citizens and the council,” said Ralph Wilkinson, head of public services at Lewisham. “By encouraging self-service, we can process housing benefit and council tax applications faster and make decisions in a more timely manner. By improving the online user experience and automating services we are able to ensure that the council’s budget is best allocated to meeting the ongoing needs of the public."
The new user and mobile-friendly platform enables the south-east London borough’s 306,000 citizens to apply for housing benefit or council tax discounts and exemptions, track payments and appeal decisions online at any time, not just during office hours. Landlords can now also view information about their tenants.
Added Wilkinson: “The contract with our previous supplier was coming to an end and we were looking for alternative solutions to improve the citizen journey, deliver efficiencies and meet our digital transformation goals. Following a competitive tender, we identified IEG4 as being the best fit in terms of delivering user-friendly technology, as well as sharing our vision for improved customer engagement. The OneVu solution will integrate with, and further enhance, the existing experience for My Lewisham account holders.
“We are now considering our next steps and looking at robotic process automation (RPA) as a way to build on the service improvements and efficiencies we’ve already made. We anticipate it will drive savings and deliver a better service for customers and staff alike.”
Paul Tomlinson, managing director at IEG4, added: “It’s great to work with forward thinking councils like Lewisham that recognise the need to innovate when it comes to service delivery and customer engagement. The council has already embraced digital with its My Lewisham accounts and we’re pleased to work with them to extend the services currently automated.
“We live in an increasingly digitalised world and interaction between citizens and councils should be no different. We know that customers will always seek the most convenient method of communication with service providers, councils or otherwise. By delivering a mobile and user-friendly online platform we know that the desire to self-serve increases, to the benefit of both the end user and local council."
Providing an online service better reflects how citizens choose to engage with the council, improving the user experience, automating services and integrating seamlessly with the back office to avoid operatives having to rekey data.
With IEG4’s flagship solution for local government, OneVu, citizens can create and sign in to their My Lewisham account to view personal information, bills and notifications related to benefits and council tax, track the progress of any requests they make and upload supporting documents. By completing the relevant online form, residents can quickly and easily notify the council of any changes in circumstances or set up direct debits to pay council tax. IEG4’s solution also provides customisable frequently asked questions that are personalised to individuals.
Initially, OneVu will make housing benefit and council tax services available to Lewisham citizens online, with additional services expected to be added to the council’s offerings in the future.
If you’d like to find out how IEG4 can help to improve and deliver your digital transformation needs the company is hosting events in February in London and Cheshire. For more details and to book your place click date below:
