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Digital by Default

What it means for us

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Government Policy• Government’s aim for the majority of services and transactions to be ‘Digital by default’ by March 2015

• ‘Assisted digital’ approach

• Single government online presence relaunched in Oct 2012 – GOV.UK

• Similar channel shift approach adopted at local government level

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Welfare reform

Why?

Implementation - Phased between 2013 and 2017

• Benefit cap & Size criteria - From April 2013

• DLA change to PIP - From April 2013 for new claims from working age people

• Universal Credit (more on next slide) – From April 2013 for Pathfinders, national roll out from October 2013

• Social Fund

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Universal Credit

• Payable to non-working and some working people

• Paid monthly, not fortnightly

• Income taper: 65p withdrawn for every £1 earned but preceded by an income disregard (i.e. you can earn up to a certain amount before the taper kicks in)

• Capital disregard: probably c £16,000 (not yet set)

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Social Fund

The Welfare Reform Act abolished the Community Care Grants and Crisis Loans

These are to be replaced by non-ring fenced discretionary local authority support from April 2013

KSAS for Kent No cash payments

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SCL response

• Information Offer - part of a range of national offers aiming to advocate the role of public libraries

• Work with ACE, GDS and other partners to develop tools to help citizens to effectively navigate national information sources.

• National survey of public libraries identified priority information areas – Careers & jobseeking, health, benefit advice, personal finance

• 8 Pilot projects over 6 mths in 2011/12 looking to demonstrate capability of Public Libraries to deliver and try various approaches

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Kent pilot• Signpost page created but content fed into KCC

corporate pages

• Taktix specified, commissioned and developed – launched post pilot end

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Pilots outcomes nationallyDemonstrated• Potential public libraries’ role in ‘assisted digital’ service provision • High levels of trust put by citizens in information accessed through libraries, mediated by library staff• Users value the resources offered, find them helpful and relevant, and welcome the support of library staff• Mix of local and national resources is necessary to meet users needs• Public libraries ideally placed to broker the gathering of appropriate information resources at the local level• Partnership working added real value to the public library’s provision of online information and support

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National Roll outFour strands of work:

• Advocacy – launch of offers end Jan 2013

• Workforce development – Survey done Jan 2013

• Infrastructure

• Content development

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Public Focus

Bookmark your library

• Single Digital Presence for UK public libraries

• Partnership with OCLC/ HROC

• Search for local libraries, search joint catalogue, home to national offers, Enquire, advocacy

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LRA current positionWe do offer

• free access to IT

• basic IT support

• information

• signposting/ referral

We do not at this time

• complete forms or transactions for people

• provide advice or interpret information

• certify documentation

• do ID checks

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Pressure points• Increased and sustained demand for

* access to the internet

* IT support

• IT-related issues around browser requirements, connection speed, immediate access, length of bookings

• Increased need for support in use of Universal JobMatch, National Careers Service site (job search and CV building)

• Safeguarding of vulnerable people, privacy and data protection

• Expectations beyond our offer

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Moving forward

Looking at

• Collaborations with other parts of KCC

• Improving Clubs & Organisations database

• Use of Anywhere interface on public PCs

• Potential ‘IF..’ app

• Partner surgeries in libraries

• Chat surgeries by partners

• Staff training