Issue - meetings

The Customer Experience Officer introduced the Annual Voice of the Customer Report for 2019/20. She highlighted an increase in compliments, particularly for customer facing roles, and notably at the start of the global pandemic. There had also been an increase in complaints over a range of service areas however there was also an increase in overall customer satisfaction. She explained that the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) had paused their work during the pandemic however prior to that, of the complaints referred to the LGO, only three had been investigated and there had been no fault found against the Council. Customer contact methods were summarised for Members to explain that most contacts were undertaken via the telephone or online and that online enquiries were increasing in comparison with telephone contact.

Members thanked the Customer Experience Officer for a clear and detailed report and there were discussions around which services were included and whether positive feedback was encouraged as much as making a complaint. It was confirmed that all feedback was encouraged and staff members were reminded to put forward any positive comments or thanks they received, as well as knowing when to direct people to the complaints process.

The Chairman enquired about the star rating and how each star was weighted to gain a percentage representation of customer satisfaction. The Customer Experience Officer confirmed she would clarify these ratings for future reference.

            RESOLVED that the Annual Voice of the Customer Report be noted.