Success Story | Milton Keyes City Council

How Milton Keynes City Council improved & streamlined adult social care with govService

Person on couch looking at milton keyes council website on a tablet

Immediate

decision made available using intelligent forms

2,200

safeguarding referrals made to council

Decrease

low-level social care needs contacting the Council

Overview

When Milton Keynes Council wanted to improve adult social care and meet its responsibilities for the health and wellbeing of its citizens, Granicus govService had the digital solutions the Council needed.

SITUATION

Changing the way citizens access information

The first thing Milton Keynes Council’s Adult Social Care team wanted to do was overhaul the information, advice, and guidance they offered online. Their previous online forms didn’t let people self-serve in any way, information was not always up to date, and there wasn’t a complete overview of local care and support services. This meant citizens weren’t always getting the support they needed, and that staff weren’t always being used in the most effective way.

“There was a recognition within Adult Social Care that we had to do more to realise our ambitions for social care. We initially looked at off-the-shelf providers of directories of care - but nothing stood out.”

Victoria Collins

Director of Adult Social Care

SOLUTION

An online social care hub powered by govService

With support from govService, the Adult Social Care Hub went live in early 2017, and the outstanding functionality of govService makes it quick and easy to search, compare, save and download details of community services.

Since the Hub launched, there has been a marked decrease in the number of people with low-level social care needs contacting the Council.

“Thanks to the Hub and govService technology behind it, our staff find that when people progress to needing to speak to them, they come much better informed and have realistic expectations of the support we can offer. With fewer telephone calls and face-to-face interactions to deal with, our staff have more time to focus on those that need our support the most.”

RESULTS

Better service for customers, less work for staff

Every year, over 2,200 safegaurding referrals are made to Milton Keynes Council. Before moving to govService, there was an online form for people to use to make a referral, but it wasn’t integrated into the line of business care system that records and tracks cases.

“A lack of integration meant that staff had to re-key in data, which was not only a waste of their time but also diverted them away from their other vital activities.”

With govService, referrals made online now seamlessly integrate with the wider social care system. Staff no longer have to key in data multiple times, allowing them to focus on higher value tasks and provide a faster response. Referral forms are also far more accessible and can be completed using either a computer, smart phone or tablet.

Online Request for Service & Eligibility Checklist

Customers, third-party organisations, and Milton Keynes Adult Social Care also use Service Designer to process online requests for support.

Based on the information provided, the intelligent form makes an eligibility assessment and gives an immediate decision about the likelihood of someone receiving care and support from the Council. Decisions are transparent and standardised, based on the national minimum threshold criteria for care.

govService has transformed the way Milton Keynes Coucil delivers adult social care. Processes that were once cumbersome and took staff away from their frontline activities are now more streamlined thanks to smart capabilities and in-built integration tools. Citizens have become more self-serving because they can find everything they need in the Adult Social Care Hub and this is promoting early intervention and prevention. Staff now have more time to help the most vulnerable people in their community.

Milton Keynes Council is unlocking the savings associated with channel shift and delivering outstanding customer service for adults with social care needs thanks to govService.

"Using govService to power our request form makes it possible for people to find out quickly if they are entitled to support. The in-built financial test of resources helps to set realistic expectations of what an individual may have to contribute in order fund their social care is not free at the point of delivery."