LGRCamp: Making the LGR Pause Count

Use the LGR pause to understand services, strengthen foundations and build cross-council relationships, with work that delivers value today. Practical digital, data and technology work that delivers value now and builds readiness for LGR. This practical one-day event will help councils use the pause in Local Government Reorganisation to understand their services, strengthen their foundations and build relationships across organisational boundaries. The focus is on work with lasting value: improving services today while reducing the discovery, duplication and uncertainty councils will face when LGR moves forward. We are looking to make the day as interactive and participatory as possible, while covering some issues and content we may not have covered previously. Building on LGRCamp East Midlands, which explored process capture, the minimum viable council, managing change, digital blueprints, lessons from previous reorganisations and income management, this follow-on event turns those themes into practical preparation. The agenda is fluid and will be shaped around participating councils and contributors. Topics will include: • Why process mapping matters to councils going into LGR • Service design and citizen checkpoints • Cyber resilience through transition • Data, systems and contracts • Process mapping and knowledge capture • Digital front door, low-code and AI • People, skills and cross-council collaboration • Data and AI governance Speakers and contributors Dave Richardson, AD Customer & Digital, Newark & Sherwood DC will talk about what Newark & Sherwood have been doing and provide further insight into cyber security. Craig Barker, Senior Manager, Digital & Customer Experience, Cumberland Council has been instrumental in the low-code, web and data activity around Cumbria’s LGR journey and the creation of two new unitaries. In Day one and beyond: how Cumberland delivered digital through LGR, Craig will share how low-code was used to rebuild and harmonise processes quickly, and how multiple legacy websites were brought together ready for vesting day - including what worked, what was harder than expected and what he’d do differently. Anne-Louise Arkle, Head of Service Design & Digital Adoption, North Yorkshire Council has: • Led digital delivery for LGR, supporting the merger of eight organisations into one new council serving around 600,000 citizens and over 10,000 staff • Delivered key corporate digital platforms including a harmonised website, staff intranet, IT self-service portal, over 100 online forms and AI-enabled customer support tools • Led the development and growth of North Yorkshire’s customer portal, consistently achieving over 80% online take-up for services managed through the platform Anne-Louise’s session, Before the TOM, before the Tech: where does Service Design fit in LGR?, will explore where service design should sit alongside technology design, the Target Operating Model and system selection, and how “citizen checkpoints” can build user testing into every harmonisation decision. We are also looking to have a session covering Data & AI Governance - more details to follow.