Luton's council housing residents set to get faster support with new software

Social housing residents in Luton are set to get faster response times for their issues after the council teamed up with a software business.

Luton Borough Council has worked with the Civica housing platform in a bid to improve how fast residents get help. The £1.09 million venture will see the use of an improved customer portal with self-service options to answer queries faster.

Colin Moone, service director for housing at Luton Borough Council, said the council wants its resident to ‘self-serve’ online to get their queries sorted and has streamlined its processes. He added: “The new Civica platform will improve resident and stakeholder engagement, allowing us to better capture feedback and ideas from a much wider demographic – ultimately leading to better, safer homes for everyone.”

Residents can also tailor their communication preferences, for example being contacted via email or telephone. The council says the new Cx platform will help its workers through automation and easier access to information, freeing them up for more community training and therapy sessions.

Civica’s social housing managing director, Michelle Tyler, said that the company was delighted to support LBC. She added: “Our cloud housing platform will help to transform services at Luton, ensuring a complete picture is available across residents, assets and repairs.”

Homelessness cases will be moved into the joined-up system, with all data in one place to support those without homes. The council currently manages more than 7,000 properties in the town, including 1,100 temporary accommodations and 1,500 garages.