As local authorities face tightening budgets, organisational change and rising public expectations, one thing is clear: councils must rethink the way they engage with residents. Citizens are not just service users, they’re people navigating complex lives, often at moments of vulnerability. In this context, customer experience becomes not a nice-to-have, but a fundamental measure of local government’s legitimacy and effectiveness.
Why experience matters
Councils don’t have customers, they have communities. And unlike private companies, councils serve everyone, often without choice or competition. This makes the quality of the experience even more important. Residents want to feel heard, understood and respected – not passed between departments or handed bureaucratic explanations in jargon.
Traditional service metrics, like the number of calls answered and the speed of bin collection, no longer meet the mark. Yes, people want outcomes. But they also want to know that someone cares. In the private sector, customer satisfaction has a direct impact on profit. Councils don’t have the same financial incentives, yet satisfaction drives something even more valuable: trust.
What can we learn from the Private Sector?
Local government isn’t a business, but that doesn’t mean it can’t borrow smart ideas from one. In the private sector, tools like customer journey mapping, satisfaction surveys and design thinking help organisations understand people’s needs and create better experiences. These techniques can also offer valuable insights for councils, if adapted with care.
While tools like these can and should be used to improve experience in local government, it’s essential to tailor the techniques. Businesses often prioritise customer convenience, sometimes at the expense of all else, while councils are constrained by geography, duty of care and statutory obligations.
It’s tempting to think of residents as customers. But they’re more than that. They’re people with emotions, expectations and lived experiences. That’s why we need to design services that resonate with both the head and the heart. It’s not just about transactions – it’s about building trust, empathy and human connection. For example, instead of simply logging a damp issue and dispatching a contractor, the housing repair service could check in with residents before and after the visit. A tenant could receive a call to explain what will happen, be offered an appointment time that suits their routine, and get a follow-up to ensure the issue was resolved and they feel safe.
This small shift, from transaction to relationship, builds trust, reduces complaints, and shows the resident they’re more than a case number. It’s experience designed with empathy.
Experience starts from the top
Experience in local government isn’t only about frontline staff – it’s about leadership. In periods of reorganisation and reform, such as those sparked by Local Government Reorganisation (LGR), leaders must prioritise how citizens experience change.
Theresa Grant, former Chief Executive of Northamptonshire County Council, led her organisation through a radical overhaul, and speaking to a webinar hosted by Penna, the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) and The MJ she warned that transformation can’t wait until structural change is “done.” “If you go into the new organisation safe and legal without a transformation programme that’s well advanced and already delivering, you will never get it off the ground.”1
Her insight applies equally to customer experience. Ignore how people feel during change, and you risk losing trust, even if the new structure works on paper.
This small shift, from transaction to relationship, builds trust, reduces complaints, and shows the resident they’re more than a case number. It’s experience designed with empathy.
Designing with, not for, citizens
The best experiences are co-created. Councils must actively involve citizens in shaping services – not just through consultation, but through meaningful collaboration. This is particularly important when addressing marginalised groups who may not be well-served by traditional channels.
Designing for great customer experience also means tackling digital exclusion. Digital services must be intuitive and accessible, but not the only option. A human touch – whether through a phone call, home visit, or community centre – remains essential. True choice empowers residents to access services in ways that work for them.
A human approach to service design
Efficiency used to mean speed and scale. Today, it means designing services that deliver what really matters to our citizens, not just the system.
In a world of rising expectations and deepening complexity, how residents feel when they interact with their council isn’t a soft metric. It’s a vital sign of public value. The councils that will lead the next generation of public service will be those that build not just effective systems, but meaningful experiences.
Councils must stop asking, “Did we deliver the service?” and start asking, “How did it feel?”.
Looking to rethink the way you deliver services to deliver what really matters to our citizens?
Get in touch to find out how we can help you create great services that deliver meaningful experiences.
