Eastleigh Borough Council has integrated several key
systems by using browser-based functionality to give its staff and
local residents better access to property-related
services.
Over the past two years the
Hampshire council has developed an online system to provide
public access to map-based information and has set up a linked
website that makes details of all planning applications available
electronically.
The first of the systems to go live was the map-based service,
which was customised by GIS
(
geographical information system) specialist GGP based on a
model it first developed in partnership with Gosport Borough
Council.
The fact that only customisation was required meant that the
project was far cheaper than it would otherwise have been, making
it easier for Eastleigh to justify the investment.
The site launched two years ago this July, offering an
address-search function on the council's mapping website that
linked to its local land and property gazetteer.
The GIS software is now linked with a range of council functions
available to residents and staff, but integrating with the online
planning function was a key aim from the outset.
Working with GGP, the council went through a detailed evaluation
and development process to make this possible, taking in changes in
working and business practices within its planning unit alongside
the technical challenge posed by back-end integration.
The council also had to ensure that the quality of the
historical data it was loading onto the system was good enough,
which required a major investment of time and effort.
Since the system went live, the number of telephone enquiries
about planning applications has decreased substantially, and the
overall number of consultation responses has gone up, meaning
increased community participation has been made possible with lower
staffing overheads.
Online availability also means that users - both planning
officers and members of the public - have around-the-clock access
to up-to-date planning data.
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Eastleigh Borough Council
>>
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