Digital and Data Strategy foreword

I am delighted to be able to introduce you to this Digital Strategy for Richmond upon Thames, the key strategic document that sets out the digital programme for supporting Richmond Council's priorities to make our borough greener, safer and fairer for all.

As we approach the second half of this decade, the challenges our communities face are becoming ever starker and the need to deliver local public services differently is critical. The cost of living crisis means people have less money in their pockets and are struggling to afford food, heating and housing costs. The impacts of climate change are increasingly present in our communities, with more frequent flash flooding, more extreme weather events and poor air quality. And we have an aging population, many of whom need care, but may others who just need help to continue to live active, healthy and independent lives.

Richmond Council is working hard to help our residents face these challenges, but we are doing this against a backdrop of the significant financial challenges facing the entire local government sector. Delivering good quality services, as efficiently as possible is essential - this is where digital comes in. Advances in technology, digital and the use of data open up a world of opportunities for us, our partners and local people.

We have already done a lot. We are part of a market-leading Internet of Things project with four other London boroughs, through the South London Partnership. In Richmond, the project has piloted air quality and traffic sensors, to give a data-led view of our public highways; gully sensors, to allow our street teams to prioritise the clearing of gullies and mitigate against surface water flooding, and in-home sensors, that monitor activity patterns and identify where a person may have had a fall or have been taken unwell. 

We have also used data as part of our cost of living response, bringing together multiple data sets to identify households most likely to be struggling financially, so we can tailor support and make it as easy to access as possible. 

And we have created a Richmond app, to make it more simple for our residents to access their council accounts, report issues and find out local information from their mobile device. 

But as emerging digital solutions provide more and more opportunities, we must make sure we are adaptable so we can make our systems and processes as efficient as possible, meet modern expectations with our customer experience, and ensure our residents and staff have the skills, tools and connectivity they need to make the most of everything available to us. This strategy sets out how we will do this - building on our successes and continuing to innovate so we can realise efficiencies, deliver better services for everyone, look after our most vulnerable residents and support all local people to thrive and contribute to a better future for our borough.

Councillor Gareth Roberts
Leader of Richmond Council