Memorandum by Northgate Information Solutions
(CTB 7)
INTRODUCTION
1. Northgate Information Solutions welcomes
the opportunity to respond to the Communities and Local Government
Committee's inquiry, Local Government Finance: Council Tax Benefit.
2. Northgate is committed to the intelligent
use of technology, and to ensuring that it can make a real difference
to people's lives—be they benefits managers, staff working
on the front line, or individual citizens wishing to access their
entitlements.
3. This memorandum makes some general comments
on citizen-centred services and public trust, and also focuses
on the need to improve the delivery of council tax benefit through
ensuring information is collected and shared appropriately within
and between local councils and other relevant public authorities.
CITIZEN-CENTRED
SERVICES
4. All citizens have the right to enjoy
accessible and responsive public services, able to deliver sustained
improvement to the quality of life. It is fundamental to community
well-being. Community well-being is founded on trust between local
citizens and public authorities. Where there is perceived inactivity
on the part of public authorities in dealing with citizens' day
to day concerns, people are less likely to trust their ability
to deliver fair and efficient public services.
5. There is no one-size fits all approach
to public service delivery. People may choose to access services
in different ways. What remains crucial is that services are easily
and equally accessible.
6. The challenge is to meet citizens' demands
for services that are more proactive, responsive to individual
need and keep pace with changing expectations, whilst ensuring
that information collected is used for clear and appropriate purposes,
in line with data protection and human rights legislation.
BUILDING PUBLIC
TRUST
7. A strong benefits system is at the heart
of a just society. Benefit delays can cause undue hardship, problems
with health and even homelessness. Yet as many as one in ten people
are also under-claiming on housing and council tax benefit. In
May 2007, The Public Accounts Committee also found that a third
of eligible pensioners were not receiving pension credit.
8. Recent changes in the income thresholds
for council tax benefit entitlement has also meant a significant
increase in the number of citizens eligible. Yet many are not
known to the benefits system, and may not themselves be aware
that they are missing out. It is clear that action must be taken
if we are to reverse declining take-up, build trust in the operation
of the benefits system and ensure that citizens are not missing
out on their rights.
UNDERSTANDING POOR
TAKE-UP
9. The Department for Work and Pensions
has recently accepted that it is not fully aware of the reasons
for the low take-up of benefits. Northgate therefore believes
that the case for re-branding council tax benefit as a rebate
cannot be proven at this point. We would like to see further research
undertaken into why people do not take up their benefits so that
appropriate and evidenced-based action can be taken. This research
should be suitably segmented so that entitlement and take-up levels
across key target groups can be identified and monitored, and
appropriate solutions developed.
10. One of the reasons for poor take-up
that has already been widely acknowledged is the complexity of
the benefits system. Citizens are required to negotiate their
way through the benefits maze and understand the claims processes
of different awarding authorities. Northgate believes there is
a strong case for greater streamlining of the benefits system
so as to present citizens with the simplest route to a range of
benefits.
11. We welcome the increased joint working
with the Pension Service, where local authorities have sought
to deliver a more citizen-centred service through conducting assessments
for pension credit, housing benefit and council tax benefit at
the same time. However, in our experience, local authority benefit
officers have found they are required to complete two separate
but very similar claim forms with the citizen—a process
which takes up to three hours.
12. Northgate would like to see consideration
of how one claim form could be developed and used to assess eligibility
for these benefits. This would enable citizens to enjoy a personalised
service and quickly access their entitlements whilst also delivering
efficiencies for hard-pressed staff.
13. Citizens in receipt of certain benefits
may still be missing out on others due to the fact that organisations
have not shared information. In our experience, informal joint
working is no longer sufficient to meet citizens' demands for
seamless services. Formal information-sharing and exchange networks
between a range of organisations can support the development of
proactive and holistic services tailored to individual need.
14. We would like to see consideration of
how information on citizen entitlement could be shared more effectively
between government departments to enable efficiencies and promote
improved benefits take-up.
REACHING OUT
TO COMMUNITIES
15. Citizens increasingly expect services
to be personalised to their needs and it remains essential that
these services are equally accessed by and accessible to all.
We would like to see greater use of new and innovative forms of
communication to reach out to the diverse needs of different communities
to promote increased take-up.
16. The proactive use of mobile technology
can support this process through ensuring that benefits advisers
are able to target and support hard-to-reach groups effectively
whilst delivering personalised services within people's homes.
Increased partnership working with third party organisations such
as CABs or registered social landlords can also extend the points
of contact for citizens who may be unaware of their entitlement
and raise awareness of the support that may be available as citizens'
circumstances change.
INFORMATION SHARING
AND JOINT
WORKING
17. Whilst the complexity of the benefits
system has been found to be a key contributor to low take-up,
data protection legislation has also caused confusion in relation
to whether personal information, for example that collected in
assessments for means-tested benefits, can in fact be shared without
consent.
18. Northgate believes that it is essential
for data collection, information and analysis to be effectively
managed, citizen-centred and meet any legislative requirements.
We welcome the recent statement on information sharing by local
authorities, published by the Information Commissioner's Office,
which outlines the key factors to consider before sharing data
and stresses that the approach should be one that balances the
need to comply with data protection legislation with the need
to deliver high-quality public services.
19. We believe that the type and volume
of data collected should be kept under review, using systems flexible
enough to respond to changing needs. There, are of course, dangers
with such an approach. People's civil rights and security need
to be protected, and people's nervousness about giving personal
information needs to be addressed. There are ways to overcome
this.
20. Step one is to define the services on
offer and to deliver them on an incremental basis. Step two is
to work with the public to educate and inform them on what whole-life
issues are to be addressed. If the public knows and understands
this, they are less likely to feel nervous about being drawn into
something for which they have not given consent. Step three is
to establish clear protocols and rules for shared data. Step four
is to offer proactive services on the basis of this consent.
SPEEDING UP
ACCESS TO
BENEFITS
21. Rules-based technology is already supporting
the effective delivery of benefits by local authorities through
ensuring that accurate entitlement decisions for council tax benefit,
housing benefit, and free school meals can be made quickly by
non-specialist staff, including those working out in the field
or at authorised third-party organisations such as CABs and registered
social landlords.
22. Rules-based systems present advisers
with only the relevant questions they need to determine a citizen's
eligibility and entitlement. They can then tell what evidence
is needed to support the claim and create a comprehensive decisions
audit trail showing how the decision has been made in law. Firstly,
information is captured and processed by a high-level calculator.
Using up to date and accurate legislative rules, the system then
provides details of potential entitlements and guides advisers
through a citizens' application for benefits. A "consent
to share information" document is then available which can
be digitally signed or printed off for citizens. Finally, an entitlement
summary is provided to the citizen with an indicative level of
benefit that would be awarded.
23. Northgate would like to see consideration
of how rules-based technology can be used more widely in the administration
of benefits to streamline processes and increase take-up.
CONCLUSION
24. In summary, Northgate would like to
see:
— research undertaken into low
take-up, segmented by key target groups, so that appropriate and
evidenced-based action can be taken;
— greater use of new and innovative
forms of communication to reach out to the diverse needs of different
communities to promote increased take-up;
— consideration of how one claim
form could be developed and used to assess eligibility for a range
of benefits to ensure that citizens can enjoy a personalised service
and quick access to their entitlements;
— consideration of how information
on citizen entitlement could be shared more effectively between
government departments to enable efficiencies and promote improved
benefits take-up; and
— consideration of how rules-based
technology could be used more widely in the administration of
range of benefits.
June 2007
| 
