Online services still way off the pace

Electronic service delivery in social care and
social housing is undeveloped, says research carried out for the
Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

However, researchers from York University’s
Centre for Housing Policy found that most local authorities and
registered social landlords had plans to introduce it. Nearly all
local authorities were keen to develop their online applications
for services and use the web as a major source of information for
service users.

However, although most councils had websites,
the research found that they were not a major means of
disseminating information on services.

Only 15 per cent of social services
departments reported they were providing “detailed” information on
community care. And those councils that provided housing services
tended to supply only basic information, with nearly one-fifth of
councils providing no such information at all.

“Online information on eligibility for
services or how to complain about services was rare,” says the
report. “By contrast, tourist information on local authority
websites was far more common.”

– housing.support.org.uk: Social Housing,
Social Care and Electronic Service Delivery; available from
01904 430033.