§ Mr. Nicholas BrownTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his policy towards direct line telephone contact between the Contributions Agency and members of the public; and what measures he has taken to ensure that public inquiries are dealt with quickly and efficiently; [31040]
(2) what impact the business unit analysis restructuring exercise will have upon the number of local offices of the Contributions Agency; [31038]
(3) what steps he has taken to maintain standards of service to the general public provided by the Contributions Agency in light of the business unit analysis restructuring exercise. [31039]
§ Mr. ArbuthnotThe administration of the Contributions Agency is a matter for Mrs. Faith Boardman, the chief executive. She will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Mrs. Faith Boardman to Mr. Nicholas Brown, dated 3 July 1995:
As Chief Executive of the Contributions Agency, I have responsibility for answering questions about the operation of the Agency. I have been asked to reply to your questions about the restructuring of the Agency's Field Offices and the steps taken to maintain standards of service, and about telephone contact between the Agency and members of the public. In view of the nature of the questions I have combined the responses.185WIn 1991 the Agency obtained Ministerial approval to move towards a Field network of some 184 Field Offices supported by 90 Inspector outstations. Current research has shown that there is a need to match more closely Contributions Agency outlets to customer locations. Information has been obtained about density of businesses, density of population and locations of the self-employed. This information has been incorporated into the design of the new network; which will consist of around 100–115 locations; comprising 70–75 Field Offices and 30–40 Inspector outstations. This number of locations is similar to the number used by other Revenue collecting organisations dealing with similar operations.The proposed changes take account of research among customers which shows, in general, that they prefer to make contact by telephone or correspondence. The latest independent Customer Satisfaction Survey undertaken in November and December 1994 shows that 65% of the Agency's customers prefer to contact the Agency by telephone. This is also in line with the experience of other Revenue collecting bodies. The new network of offices will be supported by a fully integrated telephone system providing easier access for the customer to all parts of the Agency. The Agency's change programme includes installation of Information Technology systems which will improve response times for customers and enable quicker processing of work within local offices.As at present, customers who are unable to call at proposed outlets or who call at a DSS office which does not have a CA presence will be dealt with either by appointment by CA staff or by Benefits Agency staff under the terms of the National Service Statement.Staff in CA Field Operations will continue to provide a service to the business community advising them about how to operate the National Insurance scheme. This role will be further enhanced in the new organisation with increased emphasis on education and awareness about all aspects of National Insurance.Communication with customers and the business community will be ongoing to ensure that all those affected by the changes are kept informed and continue to receive an efficient service from the Agency.I hope you find this reply helpful. If I can be of any further assistance please let me know.
§ Mr. DenhamTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many local offices are proposed under the current restructuring proposals of the Contributions Agency; and how many people will, on average, be served by each office; [31240]
(2) what commitments under the citizens charter apply to the service provided by the Contributions Agency; and what account has been taken of these in the proposed restructuring; [31242]
(3) when he expects to lay before Parliament plans for restructuring the Contributions Agency; [31241]
(4) how many local offices of the Contributions Agency currently exist; and how many people are, on average, currently served by each office. [31239]
§ Mr. ArbuthnotThe administration of the Contributions Agency is a matter for Mrs. Faith Boardman, the chief executive. She will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Mrs. Faith Boardman to Mr. John Denham, dated 3 July 1995:
As Chief Executive of the Contributions Agency, I have responsibility for answering questions about operational matters relating to the Agency and the National Insurance (NI) scheme. I have been asked to reply to your questions about the numbers of local offices, the current restructuring proposals and our commitments under the Citizens's Charter. In view of the nature of the questions I have combined the responses.186WIn 1991 the Agency obtained Ministerial approval to move towards a Field network of some 184 Field Offices supported by 90 Inspector outstations. There are currently 267 Field locations. The Agency maintains over 60 million individual contributors accounts, and deals with over 1.2 million employers and 2.4 million self-employed people. Figures of the number of customers currently served by each location are not kept, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The number of staff currently employed varies considerably between locations from 4 or 5 in some outstations to over 50 in some offices which have already successfully consolidated their operations in one location.Current research has shown that there is a need to match more closely Contributions Agency outlets to customer locations. Information has been obtained about density of businesses, density of population and locations of the self-employed. This information has been incorporated into the design of the new network which will consist of 9 Regional units outside London, each containing roughly equal numbers of businesses and population. London will be served by 3 Regional units. There will be around 100–115 locations, comprising 70–75 Field Offices and 30–40 Inspector outstations. This number of locations is similar to the number used by other Revenue collecting organisations dealing with similar operations. The exact number of locations has yet to be finalised and it is not possible to give an average figure of the number of people to be served by each location, but overall the effect will be to move to larger numbers which will allow staff to be used more flexibility to meet customer needs and to develop their specialised functional skills and expertise more fully. The locations have been chosen to combine the business needs of the Agency with those of the customer.
- The Agency is fully committed to the Citizen's Charter principle and its standards of service are laid down in the Agency's Contributor's and Employer's Charters. These are:
- —to reply to complaints sent to the Chief Executive within 10 days
- —to respond to enquiries within 10 days
- —to reply to a request for a visit within one week and then visit within the next two weeks
- —to keep waiting time at our reception points to a maximum of 30 minutes
- —to arrange customer appointments within two weeks
The changes proposed by the restructuring take account of research among customers which shows, in general, that they prefer to make contact by telephone or correspondence. This is also in line with the experience of other Revenue collecting bodies. The latest Customer Satisfaction Survey undertaken in November and December 1994 shows that 65% of the Agency's customers prefer to contact the Agency by telephone. The new network of offices will be supported by a fully integrated telephone system providing easier access for the customer to all parts of the Agency. The Agency's change programme includes installation of information technology systems which will improve response times for customers and enable quicker processing of work within local offices.
As at present, customers who are unable to call at proposed outlets or who call at a DSS office which does not have a CA presence will be dealt with either by appointment by CA staff or by Benefits Agency staff under the terms of the National Service Statement. Implementation of the proposed changes within the Agency will result in an improved service provided by Field offices.
Changes within the Contributions Agency which may impact on customer groups and staff are only introduced after careful consideration of representations received. As re-organisation of a Next Steps Agency is an operational matter this falls within my delegated authority as Chief Executive, I understand that the Secretary of State has no plans to lay the Contributions Agency's restructuring proposals before Parliament.
I hope you will find this reply helpful. If I can be of any further assistance, please let me know.
187W
§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what assessment he has made of the role played by the local field officers of the Contributions Agency in monitoring the state of the informal economy and ensuring local employers implement properly the national insurance system. [31116]
§ Mr. ArbuthnotThe administration of the Contributions Agency is a matter for Mrs. Faith Boardman, the chief executive. She will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Mrs. Faith Boardman to Mr. Llew Smith, dated 3 July1995:
As Chief Executive of the Contributions Agency, I have responsibility for answering questions about operational matters relating to the National Insurance (NI) scheme. I have been asked to reply to your question about the monitoring role played by the Agency's local field officers.The Agency is responsible for ensuring compliance with the law on NI matters. To achieve this, NI inspectors, based in our Field Operations local offices, carry out surveys and educational visits to employers to ensure correct administration of the NI scheme. The Secretary of State sets a target for the number of surveys to be undertaken each year. There is currently a re-structuring exercise within our Field Operations which enhances the educational role played by the Agency with increased emphasis on education and awareness of the scheme, the intention being to help our customers "get it right first time".Proposals for the future include the setting up of dedicated teams specifically to investigate aspects of the informal economy.I hope you find this reply helpful. If I can be of any further assistance, please let me know.