This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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New guidance to improve call centres
03/02/2003
New guidelines were published today that aim to help the
public sector provide more customer-focused services
through Call and Contact centres.
The guidelines - announced by Minister for finance and
Public Services Andy Kerr - were produced in partnership
with the Call Centre Association. They describe the many
areas that must be considered to achieve a well focussed
and well run centre which will meet the needs of the
community it serves.
The guidelines encourage service providers to take a
joined-up approach to the development of call and contact
centres, covering areas as diverse as buying the right
technology, recruiting the right staff, and measuring
improvement.
The Minister was speaking at the second Transforming
Scotland event looking at the direct impact the Modernising
Government Fund has had on public services.
Mr Kerr also highlighted a number of schemes across
Scotland that have benefited from the Modernising
Government Funds including;
- Renfrewshire Council's contact centre where 50 per
cent of the community are already using the service and
where 70 per cent of calls are provided with a 'right
first time' service,
- The Dalmellington Area Centre which has received
the NHS Estates 'Building Better Healthcare Award
2002'. This is the first time a Scottish project has
taken the top honours in this UK wide scheme.
- The Three Isles Partnership which is a network of
service points using technology to provide a
one-stop-shop for the 3,631 islanders on Islay, Jura
and Colonsay.
Mr Kerr said:
"Call and Contact centres can often be a cause of great
frustration to members of the public wanting to access
public services easily and quickly. The guidelines I have
issued today aim to put an end to this frustration by
creating a user-friendly one-stop-shop service.
"It is not only vital that people can access services no
matter where they live, but we must also strive to provide
the most simple, comprehensive service we can and I believe
we are already doing that in a number of ways through the
Modernising Government Fund.
"I greatly appreciate the hard work so many people are
doing across Scotland. The Scottish Executive is here to
support that work and that is why the Modernising
Government Fund is now worth over £95 million and it is
going into its third round.
"There is clear evidence already that it is working by
building partnerships across the public sector. We are
presently working with councils on development of the
Citizen's Account and smartcard, we are also working with
partners to look at developing an interactive digital TV
pilot for Government services and we are also looking to
establish a common e-procurement platform in Scotland.
"All these initiatives show how committed the Executive
is to providing a more open and responsive government. We
have also making major legislative changes to ensure this.
Last year we passed the Freedom of Information (Scotland)
Act to ensure greater openness in the public sector and we
have also approved legislation to encourage community
planning and joined up working.
"I believe people are the key in delivering services. I
know we can all learn from each other by sharing
experiences and working together. By delivering
improvements in public services we can make a real
difference in communities across Scotland."