A mobile app that allows Dudley Council’s residents to quickly and easily report problems, such as fly-tipping, potholes and faulty streetlights, and lets tenants submit requests for housing repairs has kicked off 2015 by passing a landmark 1,000 downloads. Since the app went live in November 2014, more than 550 street issues and over 250 housing repairs have been reported using the app.
Commissioned as part of Dudley Council’s ‘Love Your Community’ campaign, the app enables residents to send in pictures of problems, including roads in need of repair, dumped rubbish, faulty street lights and graffiti, which are then forwarded to the relevant council department. The app pinpoints the exact location of the report to aid a speedy resolution. Dudley’s housing tenants can also send in pictures relating to housing repairs.
The Dudley Council mobile app, built by public sector-owned technology developer Looking Local, is available free to local residents and tenants on iOS and Android smartphones.
Guy Giles, director, Looking Local, said, “We are delighted that Dudley’s app has been taken up with such enthusiasm by local residents. In common with all our clients, we worked with the council to develop a versatile, bespoke solution based, in this case, on our MyLandlord platform. Our aim is to create a product that residents find easy to navigate and convenient to use, and that cuts down on time-consuming and costly face-to-face and telephone contact with council staff.”
Stuart Turner, responsible for finance and ICT, Dudley Council, said, “The Looking Local app is already popular with our residents because it offers quick and easy access to council services, and a convenient route for reporting street issues and requesting housing repairs. It also allows our customer advisers to maximise the time they have to help more residents.”
