Disrupting Public Services

South Kesteven District Council is developing a new, collaborative, housing strategy using the tools and techniques learnt by working with the LGA and Design Council.

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As seen in the LGA Innovation Zone at the LGA Conference 2017; mastering a collaborative approach to public service delivery…

  • See problems turn into opportunities, with real buy-in from stakeholders;
  • Understand who needs to be involved in conversations, when they need to input, and what their value is;
  • Ensure your projects are properly resourced and fully supported from the outset;
  • Realise early delivery of outcomes through the use of prototyping and incremental development; but only once you’ve properly explored the issue at hand!

…evidenced through a unique approach to housing strategy development by South Kesteven District Council

The challenge:

We know what our housing need is, and we know we have allocated enough land to meet that need. The problem is, though; housing delivery is not meeting that need.

The solution:

As it happens, it's not about housing, but about the wider economy: the housing market will only deliver what people demand, and the best way for a Local Authority to influence that demand is to consider how it can meet the wants and needs of the key stakeholders in the district: businesses, landowners, education providers and developers.

How is the new approach being sustained?:

South Kesteven District Council is developing a new, collaborative, housing strategy and has used the tools and techniques learnt by working with the LGA and Design Council achieve a deliverable plan of action which has the buy-in of members, officers and the housing industry.

Lessons learned:

That using a collaborative approach to design, at whatever level; achieves outcomes in an iterative manner that supports learning, user buy-in and ensures success.

Contact:

Paul Thomas: [email protected]; 01476 406162

Lee Sirdifield: [email protected]; 01476 406524

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