Blaby transforms its back office system

04 June 2010, 7:28am

Blaby District Council has undertaken an award-winning project to revolutionise the quality and currency of address records within the Leicestershire based council. The annual comparison table shows that Blaby have worked exceptionally hard over the last year to be judged the ‘Most Improved Local Land and Property Gazetteer’ at a national Awards ceremony. Their database contributes to the National Land and Property Gazetteer (NLPG), the definitive property database for the whole of England and Wales.

Blaby recognised that their Local Land and Property Gazetteer (LLPG) was in need of some TLC. A Ministry of Justice Directive designed to transform the electoral process, whereby every entry in their Electoral Register has to be matched to their LLPG, gave Blaby the incentive they needed to address issues in the maintenance and application of the gazetteer.

A comprehensive review of existing working practices led to the establishment of a defined project team, the appointment of a new data custodian and an ongoing monthly reporting mechanism – direct to senior managers. Staff appraised the current software and technology was used to ensure the authority was getting best value for money from their investment. Staff training followed and the ongoing process of updating the LLPG was improved using newly created workflows.

“Drawing a line through existing operating procedures meant we were able to redesign work processes, create a defined project team and with the support of senior management, reinvent our gazetteer,” commented Diana Watt, LLPG Custodian.

The sheer hard work, enthusiasm and dedication of the team has meant that in less than a year Blaby District Council turned around both the quality and applications of the gazetteer data within the Council. Blaby has also significantly improved the coordination between the NLPG and other datasets such as Council Tax and Non Domestic Rates and has been able to extract data for the CORE (Coordinated Online Record of Electors) information system. Such is the confidence in the data it has now been used to populate a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system.

Photograph shows on left LLPG Custodian Diana Watt with Jo Hickling, Planning Systems Officer, both of Blaby District Council. Photo credit: GGP Systems.

CONTACT: Gayle Gander, Head of Marketing, +44(0)207 747 3500, E-mail: ggander@intelligent-addressing.co.uk, www.intelligent-addressing.co.uk

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