Southwark website overhaul receives industry acclaim
Published 15 November 2010
The rapid and radical redesign of the council's website received industry acclaim as the authority – and its partner Vangent – beat off private sector competition to scoop a prestigious IT award.
The team behind the website revamp received the title of IT project team of the year at the 2010 UK IT Industry Awards on Thursday (11 November).
In the space of just six months the council's web team working with Jadu, a leading web content management provider and Vangent Ltd, the established customer services provider for the council completely overhauled the council's website.
Using resident's feedback as the starting point, the main aim of the redesign was a smoother and more efficient experience for customers.
Speaking after the awards night, Councillor Richard Livingstone, cabinet member for resources, said: "In the space of just six months the council’s web team working with Jadu and Vangent completely overhauled the council’s website. This award is testament to the hard work of the team.
"Today the website is firmly at the heart of some of the council’s most important work.
"But this is just the start. More and more services are now accessible to residents just this week parking services have gone live. This means a better and more efficient service.
"We have a vision of a borough where everyone can take advantage of the opportunities that come from being in the centre of London.
"But at a time of massive reductions in public sector spending, we know cannot deliver this vision alone.
"We want to work with residents, businesses, charities and neighbouring boroughs to find innovative solutions. Our new website sits at the centre of this ongoing discussion."
Background
Before the overhaul the council's web team worked closely with residents from across the borough to find out exactly what they wanted from the council website, what they liked about the old site and, particularly, what stops them from using it.
They carried out focus groups, surveys, and one-to-one interviews to gather a wealth of data and insight.
The new website enables customers to access a number of services online such as council tax and housing benefit accounts and resident parking permits.
