Customer Services and Organisation Development Business Improvement Plan

Communications & Engagement

Communications & Engagement supports the organisation across all service areas in ensuring the delivery of key messages to target audiences across various and appropriate channels, reputation management, and through facilitating effective and co-ordinated consultation and engagement.

The Communications & Engagement team provides communications guidance and support across the organisation to manage reputation and ensure key audiences (internal and external) are aware of service delivery, developments, and change. 

A particular focus for 2025/2026 will be supporting Major Assets projects within the capital programme, the City Deal project and in particular investment promotion for the Westerhill Regeneration Area, behavioural change campaigns for Fostering, Waste and Pavement Parking, and continuing to ensure the Council, HSCP and EDLC websites are accessible with regular analysis of the customer experience and journey.

Priorities include delivering communications plans and campaigns to support Education, Greenspace and Streetscene, the Community Planning Partnership, Community Protection and Trading Standards, Equalities, the Civic Office, HSCP and EDLC Trust. 

The team continues to review evolving best practice including new channels and technology, developing the most appropriate approach for each target audience.

Key areas include:

• Reputation management - effective communications planning, media management, promotion and campaigns activity, guidance and advice.
• Engagement with regional and national resilience partnerships - ensure consistent communications across local government in relation to the resilience agenda.
• Digital communications – through website management and development, social media management and support, and evaluation of activity and emerging trends.
• Internal communication and engagement – through the internal communications strategy and employee engagement activity in conjunction with HR colleagues.
• Design – providing essential design to all Council services, EDLC and HSCP by creating a range of assets including posters, infographics, social media graphics and videos to ensure our communications remain dynamic, engaging and fresh.
• Consultation and engagement – through the consultation and engagement strategy, continuing to ensure high standard online consultation functionality to better engage and develop improved post consultation reporting.
• Accessibility – providing guidance and ensuring all communications comply with legislation – The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018 -and good practice. The Team will continue to work closely with services to create inclusive and accessible content including videos, graphics and webpages.

Corporate Performance & Research

The Corporate Performance and Research team assumes the lead role in the development of performance and risk management, reporting and statistical support at a corporate level across all service areas.

The following key activities are performed:

• Ensuring Corporate Performance frameworks are in place which are fit for purpose, in line with our statutory obligations and aligned to our strategic planning priorities
• Providing support and assistance to all strategic groupings in the development of their strategic planning and performance reporting and ensuring consistency of reporting 
• Ensuring adequate mechanisms are in place for Public Performance Reporting, meeting the needs of our communities and in line with our statutory obligations 
• Leading in all elements of Corporate Benchmarking, including compliance with the Local Government Benchmarking Framework
• Undertaking area based research and statistical support to service areas, councillors, and our Community Planning Partnership, to inform future strategic priorities
• Provision of Data Support and analysis for all elements of Social Care for the Integrated Health and Social Care Partnership
• Co-ordinating insurance cover renewals and insurance claims 
• Supporting the risk culture and business continuity planning across the Council
• Delivery of our complaints management service in line with our complaints handling procedure and respond to all SPSO referrals

Customer Services 

Our Customer Services team provide frontline customer services across all channels (face to face, telephone and online/digital channels). Face to face services, including licencing and registration, are delivered through Community Hubs in Kirkintilloch, Lennoxtown Bishopbriggs and Bearsden on an appointment basis between 1pm and 4pm. During the closure of Bearsden Hub, outreach appointments are available through Milngavie Enterprise Centre for the Bearsden and Milngavie locality.

Telephone and online/digital customer services (website, email and social media) are delivered through the Hub localities and from the Customer Service base in Broomhill. Service delivery will continue to flex across channels in line with demand with resources deployed as available to meet channel demand. 

The Emergency Response Centre operates 24/7 across three shifts and provides: monitoring of the Council’s public realm CCTV cameras; response to out-of-hour emergency phone calls; and the 24/7 operation of telecare alarm call responding, delivering this service for both East Dunbartonshire and West Dunbartonshire Council and for Cordale and Hannover Housing Associations in East Dunbartonshire.

As far as possible, customer requests are met at first point of contact, providing back-office functionality with the necessary information to complete the required tasks. Our approach to customer service excellence, regardless of channel and priorities, includes:

• Continuing to provide accurate and timely responses to customer enquiries in line with seasonal priorities and changing service delivery 
• The first point of contact for customers, regardless of channel, aligning resources to the area of greatest need dependent on volumes of engagement across each channel
• Effective use of technology and systems to deliver efficient services that meet expectations
• Provision of 24/7 emergency contact for community alarm customers and in support of Council emergencies, civil contingency, and business continuity incidents
• Delivery of reception services at Council offices and Enterprise Centres.

Human Resources & Organisational Development

The HR & OD Team is responsible for the provision of all aspects of people related support to the strategic teams including the review and development of the employment policy base ensuring compliance and best practice

HR Business Partners support services to resolve business challenges and/or risks by identifying opportunities to ensure the best deployment of people resources. The team supports with the implementation of council priorities, including the implementation of Service re-design processes and support for cultural change and embedding of Organisational Development initiatives. Following Council decisions, a transformative approach will be adopted to review and align services on a locality based model to fulfil community priorities and implement the Workforce of the Future. A key priority of the team is to support workforce and succession planning across all strategic services by working with the leadership team and the development of Workforce Action Plans. With the People Development Function of OD to source and develop learning solutions to meet service needs, utilising and developing the eLearning platform Moodle to embed organisation training requirements.

Operationally, support is provided to managers and employees through HR Case Advisers who provide advice and guidance on discipline, grievance, performance improvement and absence cases to ensure legal compliance and mitigation of risk. This approach is underpinned by the principles of early resolution, intervention and prevention of employee relations matters. Implementation of Council policies applies across case management activity, including Dignity at Work and Discipline & Grievance 

The Employee Services and Payroll teams are responsible for all elements of transactional HR and Payroll activities. This also includes ensuring appropriate application of key terms and conditions with controls, processing and reconciliation activities are performed in line with established Council financial and structural approvals as well as national directives.

The Job Evaluation and Job sizing activities are taken forward through the established frameworks and governance for the respective schemes.

Communications & Engagement

• Supporting the management of Council reputation across all communications channels through effective engagement with services and monitoring of external communications
• Continuing the management and development of digital communications to meet organisational need and appraising evolving developments
• Replacement of the Hub (old intranet) with development of the Employee Zone, on an appropriate platform and accessible to all employees
• Management and upkeep of the Council’s website, ensuring it remains accessible in line with public sector website legislation on accessibility
• Management of the Council’s social media channels and implementation of the Social Media Strategy, providing guidance across all Council services, HSCP and EDLC Trust on social media use
• Implementation of the Council’s Consultation & Engagement Strategy including co-ordination of consultation and engagement activity in line with organisational and BIP priorities.

Corporate Performance and Research

• Continued development of our Performance Management and reporting Framework to ensure it remains compliant with the revised statutory guidance set out in the new Audit Scotland direction for 2025.
• The approval of an insurance strategy outlining the Council’s requirements and processes for the managing of insurance activity. 
• Continued support provided to the Health and Social care partnership to assist with their management performance and reviews of service delivery.
• Publication of Corporate guidance in line with the implementation of the SPSO Child Friendly Complaints handling best practice principles and guidance.
• Continue to improve the functionality of the new CRM to allow increased efficiency for complaints handling and reporting
• Continue work with the business change team to provide continued dedicated reporting and analysis assistance in regards to the implementation of the Oracle Fusion system.
• Ensure that improved complaints handling reports reflecting the additional functionality of the new CRM system are reported to the senior management team on a regular basis.

Customer Services

• Continued delivery of effective customer services across all channels including digital, telephone and face to face (through appointments at our network of Community Hubs). 
• Supporting implementation of new public space CCTV infrastructure including new monitoring equipment within the ERC with digital functionality providing an improved service and supporting safer communities objectives. 
• Ongoing development of the new shared digital telecare call handling platform and provide continued support to telecare teams for the tasks required in the wider analogue to digital switchover programme such as service changes and improvements, equipment testing and replacement. Participate in system user groups to share knowledge and experience to ensure the new platform is fully utilised.
• Supporting the ongoing development of the Customer Relationship Management system (CRM) to effectively co-ordinate customer services delivery, utilising the greatly improved, more efficient workflows and processes, reporting and data recording functionality. Undertake testing and development tasks as required. 
• Establish performance indicators across the service and across all delivery channels. The improved reporting functionality provided by new and upgraded systems will enable the measurement of key quality standards to ensure the service provided to customers is high standard and data protection requirements are adhered to. 
• Supporting the delivery of all Council services and initiatives, including service changes such as waste permits for garden waste, participating in project planning groups and supporting processing of applications through telephone and face to face channels.

Human Resources & Organisational Development

• Continued engagement with portfolio leadership teams to consider changes likely to impact on how we deliver services, developing the Workforce Strategy and portfolio Action Plans to meet pre planned or anticipated changes, ensuring we maintain the right skills and knowledge within the workforce to deliver strategic priorities
• Support the implementation of organisational change in accordance with the Principles of Change Strategy for the strategic service reviews inline with the new ways of working, locality based model and strategic objectives and in delivering Budget priorities
• Continued focus and prioritisation on the need to mitigate a rise and continued improvement of sickness absence across the Council with emphasis around supporting employee wellbeing using data driven actions to ensure compliance with the policy and consistency in application
• Review and development of key employment policy base to support the Workforce Strategy and Wellbeing of the workforce.
• Provide support across the organisation through casem management activity and support the implementation of the new Occupational Health Provision following the national tender process for a shared provider
• Following the implementation of Oracle Fusion for Procurement and Finance, we have moved into the next phase of this project, harmonisaing the payrolls in April 2025 and implementation of HR/Payroll activies to the new Oracle Fusion HCM system for late 2026
• As Oracle HR/Payroll activies are implemented, the organisation can exisiting reporting and processing capabilities to streamline processes and provide real time access to data and information for both employees and managers, and consider internal KPI matrix support. The scope of this work remains ongoing. 

Cross Cutting

The Communications & Engagement Team supports communications across all Council services in delivering outcomes across the LOIP, with specific examples included for each local outcome below.

The Corporate Performance and Research team provides cross cutting support across all outcomes, ensuring the priorities of the LOIP are embedded into all aspects of our strategic planning and performance management framework. The team also provide area based statistical support and analysis to ensure evidence-based planning against delivery of all outcomes. 

The Customer Services team provides first point contact and resolution for customers requiring access to a wide range of Council services including Property Maintenance, Waste and Licensing.

Economic Growth and Recovery

The Communications & Engagement team support the Council in this outcome by promoting the town and village centres throughout the area. This includes town centre improvements and regeneration, signage, tourism and the Scotland Loves Local gift card. The team also supports consultation and engagement activity to inform and advise of developments such as City Deal and regeneration projects.

The Council is the largest employer in East Dunbartonshire. With 53% of Council staff residing in the authority, this provides local spend and growth in the local community.

Employment and Skills

The Communications & Engagement team raise awareness and deliver campaigns for Council programmes including Scottish Apprenticeship Week, Count Me In and supporting services with recruitment.

The Council plays a significant role in the Community in providing a range of employment opportunities, ranging from early career and trainee programmes, to skilled technical and professional services roles.

Delivering for Children and Young People

Campaigns and awareness raising are regularly delivered by the Communications & Engagement team. This includes promotion of key activity within our schools and Early Years Centres, supporting nationwide initiatives, delivering key Child Protection messages and supporting the promotion of free school meals, clothing grants and the Education Maintenance Allowance

The Corporate Performance and Research team provide dedicated statistical support for Children’s Social work services, allowing them to effectively manage their performance and assisting in the delivery of this outcome.

The Customer Services team works with the Youth Development team to ensure young people are able to access the benefits provided by a Young Scot National Entitlement Card including concessionary travel by providing a collaborative verification and application process.

Adult Health and Wellbeing

Communications & Engagement activity supports the delivery of key community safety campaigns, nationwide and local Trading Standards messages, and regular promotion of frontline work aimed at protecting local communities.

The Corporate Performance and Research team provide dedicated statistical support for Adult Social work services, allowing them to effectively manage their performance and assisting in the delivery of this outcome.

The Customer Services team in the Emergency Response Centre provides 24/7 community alarm care call handling service to the vulnerable in the community with community alarms installed in their homes.

Safer and Stronger Communities

The Communications & Engagement team highlight upcoming road works on the Council website and supports Greenspace and Streetscene activity including a renewed focus on Mugdock Park.

Older Adults, Vulnerable People and Carers

The Communications & Engagement team deliver communications to support HSCP and Council activity aimed at older and vulnerable people including Self Directed support, Adult Protection, Spectrum film club and links in with the HSCP on national campaigns such as Autism Awareness Week and Mental Health Week.

The Corporate Performance and Research team provide dedicated statistical support for Adult Social work services, allowing them to effectively manage their performance and assisting in the delivery of this outcome