Corporate service standards
Our corporate service standards cover quality in service
provision relating to customer contact.
General standards
- Staff will show courtesy, respect and sensitivity at all
times.
- We will answer questions as fully and helpfully as
possible.
- Customer advisors will solve as many queries as possible at the
first point of contact, where this is not possible they will act as
an advocate on behalf of the customer in order to see the query
through to a satisfactory conclusion.
- If a member of staff is unable to provide a full and accurate
response they (or a colleague) will call back or write with the
appropriate information at the earliest opportunity.
- Upon request we will facilitate the use of loop systems or
minicom and shall communicate in languages and form other than
English.
- Wherever feasible our facilities are made accessible for all
members of the community.
- Customers can make an appointment to see a manager or speak to
staff in confidence.
Writing
- We will treat letters and emails in the same way.
- We will respond to all letters and emails that need a response
within 10 working days of receiving them. If we can't do this, we
will contact the author with a holding response.
- The holding response will state the reason a full response
cannot be provided within 10 days and will provide a target date
for a full response.
- In the unlikely event this target date cannot be met another
letter will be sent from the appropriate executive manager
explaining the reason for the delay and proposing another target
date.
- Customers can expect all written information they receive from
the Council to be easy to understand and written in plain
English.
- Officers may telephone someone who has written a letter in
order to establish more details and/or provide a more thorough
response. In such circumstances the telephone call will only be
followed by a written response IF the person making the enquiry
explicitly requests one OR to do so would avoid any
misinterpretation of the authority's position.
Application forms
- There is no corporate target for responding to application
forms. Different types of application form all have their own
target (eg Development Control, Building Control, Council Tax,
Housing Benefits, Council House Waiting List, etc), and standards
can differ between the different categories of form (eg the
standard for "major" planning applications is different than that
for "minor" planning applications). Details of the relevant
standard can be found in the appropriate service information
leaflet.
Telephones
- We aim to answer all external and internal phone calls within
ten seconds.
- All telephone callers to the Council will receive a standard
response, consisting of a greeting (e.g. good morning/good
afternoon), the section name (or "West Lancashire District Council)
and the name of the person answering the phone.
- If we need to transfer a caller through to another member of
staff we will tell the caller who they are being transferred to and
provide details of the customer and their enquiry to the person
taking the call.
- Calls through our contact centre are put into a queue, any
caller who has not spoken to a member of staff within one minute of
dialling will be provided with several opportunities to leave a
message for a member of staff to call back the same day. If a
member of staff has been unable to answer the phone within three
and a half minutes the caller will be provided with one final
opportunity to leave a message before the call is
terminated.
- It doesn't matter if someone telephones a direct dial number or
the call centre, if a customer is unable to speak to the person
they need, we will give them the opportunity to leave a message and
they will be called back before noon of the next working day.
Home visits: appointments
- If we need to visit a customer we will always try to arrange a
convenient appointment.
- If we cannot keep an appointment we will notify the customer as
soon as possible.
- Staff will always carry their official
identification.
- If we cannot answer a question we will explain why and:
- say when a response can be expected and who will provide it;
or
- tell you where you can go for more help.
Visiting our offices
- All front line staff will wear clear ID badges in a place where
it is easy for customers to read.
- Anybody waiting for an advisor at a Customer Service Point
should be seen within 3 minutes.
- Anybody waiting for a particular member of staff at a Customer
Service Point should be seen within 5 minutes (or at the pre agreed
time). If the relevant member of staff is not available or is busy
seeing other customers the receptionist will let you know how long
you are likely to wait. If customers do not have the time to wait,
we can make an appointment.
- It is necessary to have a queuing system for certain services.
We will not keep customers waiting any longer than we have to.
Website
- For anyone with an Internet connection our website can be the
quickest and most convenient way to access services, pay bills and
find information.
- The council's website www.westlancsdc.gov.uk offers the opportunity for
customers to access Council services online 24 hours a day, 365
days a year, without needing to pick up the phone, make a visit or
write a letter. Our aim is that you can access the full range of
our services through our website.
- Customers can request services, pay bills, fill in forms, give
views, download documents and find information about the services
the Council provides, and the West Lancashire area.
- We are constantly updating and improving the website and
welcome any comments to help us improve the content or keep it up
to date.
Emergencies
- If you have an emergency outside our general opening times
telephone our central switchboard number 01695 577177 or the
Housing Repair line 01695 720681 if the emergency is to do with a
council house.
- An emergency response will be provided in certain situations.
If you are a council tenant, your tenant's handbook provides
details of the sort of repair that will come under this
category.
Complaints
- We always try to get things right but there will be occasions
when customers will have cause for complaint. Such complaints can
serve to highlight areas where services could be improved. For
details our complaints procedure please see the **Comments &
Feedback**section.
Equality
- All service users and staff must be treated equally
irrespective of their age, disability, gender, ethnic origin or
nationality, sexual orientation, domestic circumstances, marital
status, political or religious belief or as a result of gender re
assignment.
Customer care objectives
Customer responsibilities
Unreasonable and
threatening behaviour is a barrier to the Council delivering
excellent services to you and to other customers. We expect our
staff to provide excellent service, in return we expect customers
to show courtesy in all written, personal and telephone contact
with staff:
- Please be polite when talking or writing to our staff.
- Foul and abusive language or any other aggressive behaviour
will not be tolerated. It's unfair to staff and to other customers.
We may refuse to serve you if the behaviour continues.
- Please attend appointments on time. This helps us to keep
appointments with other customers.
- Please be patient. There are times when we are very busy. We do
what we can to keep waiting times to a minimum.
- Please consider if there are reasonable grounds for your
requests for service or any complaints. Contact intended solely to
harass or made to embarrass, annoy or place an unreasonable burden
on the Council will be considered as vexatious. Contact lacking in
substance or any clear merit will be considered frivolous.
If a request or complaint is clearly frivolous, vexatious or
made in bad faith, the Council will be justified in choosing not to
respond. Such a course of action will only be taken with the
agreement of the appropriate Executive Manager/s.
As a matter of courtesy, notice will be given to the complainant of
Council's intention not to respond to further requests or
complaints unless new issues are raised or new information is
provided on the matter.
Anyone who is abusive, aggressive, violent or threatening violence
may be added to our "Client Risk Register" and could be excluded
from visiting Council offices, denied home visits and reported to
the Police.
If you are happy with the service we
provide
Please tell us if you are happy with our services. We want to know
what we do well so that we can share good practice across the
council. See the Contact Us section for details.
Related information