WELSH local authorities have been warned that the dash to digitise their services should not risk poor value for money.
A report from Audit Wales says digital technology presents huge opportunities that could help councils meet financial pressures and improve services, but it also carries significant financial risks.
As councils look to transform their services and technology continues to change, we are likely to see an acceleration in the use of digital solutions.
Opportunities could cover the breadth of council services, whether focused on improving communication with service users, increasing efficiency or improving access to services. Audit Wales asked whether councils are well placed to exploit these opportunities and achieve value for money in the process.
After reviewing the strategic approaches to digital Wales’s 22 principal councils, Audit Wales found that, while many councils recognise the role digital can play in delivering their longer-term ambitions, weaknesses in their approaches pose value-for-money risks.
Auditors found councils often unclear on how they were going to fund their ambitions. They also found weaknesses in monitoring the impact and value for money of digital projects. Councils could also do more to involve citizens and work in partnership with other organisations to help achieve their long-term objectives.
Audit Wales found examples of good practices for councils to take note of.
- Powys Council views digital technology as pivotal for driving transformational improvement in all services. The Council’s digital strategy is supported by three business cases which set out funding over three years. The first two business cases allocated over £5.2 million for 2019 to 2025 and the third has secured £3.9 million for the next four years. The business cases clearly set out the risks, as well as possible mitigating actions. By allocating such funding to support the digital strategy and assessing the risks, the Council is increasing the likelihood that it will deliver its intended outcomes.
- Neath Port Talbot Council’s Digital Strategy is closely aligned to key long-term strategies, including its corporate plan, which states its digital intentions in 5 years and 20 years, and its strategic change and decarbonisation programmes. It established a Digital Transformation Board to drive the prioritisation of activities and ensure links to corporate priorities. The Council also works with partners outside the organisation to deliver its digital ambitions.
- Swansea City Council is undertaking many different collaborative activities with other councils in the region, the private sector and the third sector to improve digital connectivity, digital infrastructure, digital inclusion, and digital skills. They have also considered how the digital strategy can contribute to the Well-being of Future Generations Act’s national well-being goals, developing success factors based on the Act’s sustainable development principle.
Audit Wales identified five key areas for improvement across the 22 councils in evidence, collaboration, resourcing, impact and learning. Since these lessons will apply to each council differently, Audit Wales wants councils to consider them in the context of their individual reports.
- They could draw on a broader evidence base to inform a long-term, citizen-centred approach to digital.
- They could go further in working across internal boundaries and with external partners to deliver maximum value from their digital strategies.
- They could do more to identify the benefits that could be achieved and the resources required to help them turn ambition into reality.
- They need to make sure they can assess the impact of their digital strategies and individual projects.
- They could take a more systematic approach to learning so they can adapt and improve their digital work.
Auditor-General, Adrian Crompton said: “As highlighted in my report earlier this year, ‘From firefighting to future-proofing’, we are not always seeing clear evidence that investment in new systems is reaping the intended rewards across public services. It will be important for councils to put value for money, for both now and the longer term, at the heart of their work on digital transformation.
“Involving citizens and working with others will be key to that. I encourage them to consider the lessons and practice examples highlighted in the report as they continue to develop their work in this area.”
A summary of the report can be read here.
