What is Best Value?
Best Value is a method for ensuring the continuous improvement of our services. It places customers at the heart of the process by ensuring that customers are consulted about the services they receive and the way in which they receive them. It is a way of ensuring that our services are meeting the diverse needs of all our customers and that our services are fair and accessible to everyone. Finally, reviewing our services on a regular basis will ensure that customers are getting good quality services which also provide value for money.
How does Best Value work?
The aims of the Best Value process are:
- To increase the influence of residents over the design and delivery of the services they receive;
- To ensure our services are fair and accessible to everyone; and
- To ensure our services are delivered efficiently and provide both value for money and quality for our customers.
Best Value gives us the chance to improve services by:
- Thinking about other ways we could deliver the service to improve it (Challenge);
- Finding out what our customers think about our service and what they want (Consult);
- Finding out how other organisations deliver similar, high quality services (Compare);
- Working out which options are the best in terms of cost and quality (Compete); and
- Coming up with a Plan to deliver your improvements. (Service Improvement Plan).
Best Value at Coastline Housing
We undertook the first set of Best Value reviews in 2004 and we looked at the following service areas:
- Engaging with Customers
- Securing our Income
- Allocations and Lettings
- Equipping the Team
- Improving Homes
- Welcoming New Customers
The results of the reviews were developed into a Service Improvement Plan which details specific targets we must meet within a given time frame. The targets once completed, will demonstrate an overall improvement in our services.
Please click on the following link to view how we are progressing with the 2004 Service Improvement Plan.
We have almost completed all the recommendations on the 2004 Service Improvement Plan and only have 7 targets left outstanding.
In 2005, we looked at the following service areas:
- Access and Customer Care
- Sheltered Housing
- Information Technology
We have drafted a 2005 Service Improvement Plan and 3 departmental improvement plans which have recently been approved by our Board. The reviews highlighted a number of areas where we could improve services to our customers.
Please click on the following link to view how we are progressing with the 2005 Service Improvement Plan.
This year, we are reviewing the following services:
- Aids and Adaptations
- Grounds Maintenance
- Internal Communication
- Sheltered Housing
The reviews are progressing well and we have been pleased by the response from our customers to the many requests they have received for attending a focus group or completing a questionnaire. We are in the process of formulating Service Improvement Plans for these reviews and will keep customers updated with the progress of these.
