Technology offers an opportunity to transform public services for the better.
From registering to vote, to data solutions for the NHS and laptops for our schools, delivering excellent digital, data and technology products and services is critical for the public services that we all rely on.
The role of digital, data and technology (DDaT)
The paper discusses the critical role of DDaT in the process of local government reform.
It highlights:
- The importance of addressing significant ICT challenges, such as fragmented technology and outdated systems to create a more efficient and cohesive enterprise architecture.
- That local authorities should conduct thorough planning from the discovery phase to the post-implementation review to ensure sustainable and effective reform.
Integrating DDaT at every stage is essential to
- Support decision-making.
- Streamline processes.
- Enhance transparency.
- Improve the overall experience for citizens.
Socitm aims to offer practical support and best practice guidance to help local governments navigate their reform processes. With the goal of improving public services and enhancing community engagement.
Introduction
The English Devolution White Paper (published on 16 December 2024) set out the government’s long-term vision for simpler local government structures.
Simpler structures which can lead to:
- Better outcomes for people, communities and places.
- Improved local accountability.
- Savings that local governments can reinvest back into public services.
Reorganisation proposals should seek to achieve, for the whole of the area concerned, the establishment of a single tier of local government that must:
- Be the right size to achieve efficiencies, improve capacity and withstand financial shocks (population of 500,000 or more).
- Prioritise the delivery of high-quality and sustainable public services.
- Meet local needs and be informed by local views.
- Support devolution arrangements.
- Enable stronger community engagement and neighbourhood empowerment.
- It is for councils to decide how best to engage locally and provide evidence of that activity in proposals.
- Consider issues of local identity, cultural and historic importance, ensuring ceremonial rights and privileges can be maintained.
However, there are significant IT challenges in devolution and reform.
The local digital landscape, technology and data are fragmented and underused.
While there are pockets of good practice, little coordination exists between local governments, creating unnecessary duplication and missed opportunities to share learning and address common problems.
Critical services depend on decades-old legacy technology, leading to frequent critical outages, insufficient incident management plans and high reliability issues.
The State of digital government review points out some of these challenges.
Our response
Socitm is focusing on enabling local governments to take ownership of DDaT in their reform journeys.
As a membership organisation with deep expertise in local government, we can provide practical, hands-on support, tools and best-practice frameworks to guide local authorities towards building their own capabilities, ensuring long-term resilience and self-sufficiency.
Importantly, significant digital, data and technology transformation is required to enable this change.
Discussion
Digital, data and technology underpins everything we do.
Government, in its broadest sense, provides vital services for millions of citizens every day.
Substantial improvements in efficiency and productivity can be achieved by digitising operations, freeing up capacity and improving resident’s experience.
Digital ways of working can also enhance transparency and accountability through automated workflows and publicly accessible databases, making it easier for constituents to access information and track government processes.
Local government reform – 3 scenarios
We can think of a number of different scenarios for the outcome of local government reform (LGR).
| 1. Merged corporate function | 2. Merged and automated services | 3. Services reimagined for community outcomes |
|---|---|---|
| Political structures remain separated | Political structures remain separated | Combined strategic political oversight |
| Senior management integrates with corporate functions | Corporate and service functions are combined | Political structures in transition or fully integrated |
| Traditional silo structures persist | Shift to interoperable digital systems | Corporate and service functions reimagined and transformed |
| Dependence on legacy digital infrastructures | Individuals viewed as customers | Integrated networked structure |
| Focus on operations | Emphasis on operational, business-focused outcomes | Holistic approach to enhance social, economic, and environmental outcomes |
| Internal organisational emphasis | Processes are restructured and automated | Policy and resource allocation driven by data |
| Services are evolving with many legacy systems still active | Emphasis on relationship building and collaboration | |
| Certain functions are automated | Residents, communities, employees, volunteers, visitors, private, third and other public sector organisations treated as stakeholders |
An effective implementation team will need a variety of roles to manage different aspects of the reorganisation process.
DDaT integration lead responsibilities:
- Integrate IT systems, data infrastructure and digital tools for new governance structure.
- Consider shared services.
- Align local authorities’ databases and systems for efficient data sharing.
- Implement cybersecurity and data protection measures.
- Ensure a seamless and secure transition by addressing IT challenges.
Top Tips
1. Plan for extra time to integrate or build new IT systems, as it will be more complex and time-consuming than expected. Skill sets are in high demand.
2. Check the skills you need: IT management, systems integration, data governance, cybersecurity.
3. Understand the role of DDaT at each stage - from discovery through to post-implementation review - is essential for ensuring that the reform journey is well-supported and sustainable.
How DDaT contributes to various phases of the reform process
| Phase | Role of DDaT |
|---|---|
| Discovery | Assess the current state and maturity of your organisation. Gain insights into existing governance arrangements and processes. Identify inefficiencies and understand the needs of the community. This stage will: help to identify the baseline and opportunities that may be realised through reform. |
| Due diligence/Inventory | Compile an inventory of assets, policies, DPA registrations, contracts, staff, skills and capabilities. Track and value physical and digital assets, conduct skills assessments, safeguard sensitive information and assess readiness to adopt new technologies. This stage will: ensure a common understanding of the capabilities and assets of existing organisations. |
| Plan | Generate actionable plans aligned with the strategic business model for the newly reformed local authority. Define a target Enterprise Architecture for the new organisation. This stage will: generate a holistic appreciation of the role of DDaT in the plans for the newly reformed local authority. |
| Consolidate | Identify commonalities and determine what to retain, create and acquire. Essential considerations include people (culture, vision, leadership, skills, adaptability), processes (governance, policies, design, innovation), and technology (systems, platforms, standards, resilience). This stage will: ensure a streamlined and cohesive structure moving forward. |
| Transition | Execute the reform plan, manage the transition, monitor progress. Address integration, migration and the adoption of new technologies. Important aspects include: – people (adaptability, training) – processes (methodologies, compliance, user experience) – technology (resilience, contracts, services). What do we need to do? What approach will we take to change? How can we sustain the changes? This stage is: crucial for implementing and sustaining the new systems and processes effectively. |
| Post-implementation | Assess the impact of the reform, identify lessons learned. This stage will: provide insights into the effectiveness of the changes that have been undertaken, evaluate the success of the reform and adjust. |
How it worked in North Yorkshire
Based on the experience of the North Yorkshire Council, during their recent local government reform, the following principles and details highlight key recommendations for successfully managing transitions and consolidations.
| Principles | Details |
|---|---|
| Reduce the number of systems and processes | Reduce, reuse existing systems and recycle systems within the organisation |
| Infrastructure consolidation | Seek opportunities for early consolidation, identify easier tasks to tackle early, avoid postponing difficult tasks |
| Supplier readiness | Build internal capability and focus on talent retention, map and document the complexity and communicate clearly, adapt to supplier’s culture. |
| Organisation readiness | Be directive with an enterprise architecture view, consider reversing the people-process-technology approach, consolidate first, then transform. |
| Staff readiness | Address small issues such as Wi-Fi and desk setup early, and resolve these matters quickly. |
| Other considerations | Plan for data migration and archives, set standardised standards as soon as possible, eliminate unnecessary tools, streamline software use, leverage business-side IT maturity, focus on key platform programs and manage BAU workload carefully. |
Invitation for feedback
We would like to invite you to provide feedback, comments and examples on how your organisation have or is tackling the reform process, with or without consideration of DDaT.
Please reflect on the following questions:
- How is your local authority approaching the discovery phase of reform?
- What digital tools and data analytics are you employing to assess the current state and identify inefficiencies?
- During due diligence, how will you evaluate assets, skills, and capabilities?
- Which digital inventories and asset management systems are in use?
- How will you address cyber security during the evaluation process?
- What steps are you taking to assess the readiness for adopting new technologies and digital solutions?
- In the implementation phase, what digital tools and technologies will you be using to manage the transition?
- How will you handle staff training and integration of new systems?
- What methods will you employ in the post-implementation review to assess the impact of the reform?
- How will you capture and utilise lessons learned from the reform?
We look forward to your contributions.
Conclusion and next steps
This discussion paper outlines the critical role of DDaT in the process of local government reform.
It highlights the importance of addressing significant ICT challenges, such as fragmented technology and outdated systems, to create a more efficient and cohesive enterprise architecture.
The engagement in thorough planning, from the discovery phase to post-implementation is key to ensure sustainable and effective reform.
The integration of DDaT is essential at each stage to support decision-making, streamline processes, enhance transparency and improve the overall experience for citizens.
Socitm is committed to provide practical support and best practice guidance to empower local governments in navigating their reform journeys, ultimately leading to better public services and stronger community engagement.
We would appreciate your feedback and examples of how your local government has approached reform. Your contributions will help us to understand the diverse approaches to transformation and service improvement that are being planned in the reform of local government in England.
How to respond and contact details
Please contact us with your questions and indeed answers.
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