“The Christchurch City Council Citizen Hub Strategy is intended to:
– Identify how citizens and customers want to interact with Council regarding services, channel choice and community facilities
– Identify why citizen hubs may be best positioned to service and meet customer expectations
– Identify the current state and what changes are required to meet the future state implementation phases
– Provide a basis against which Council can measure success.
We currently operate a very “bricks and mortar” service arrangement, where different Council services have developed stand-alone service locations and approaches (often all in the same neighbourhood).
The review has found that this siloed legacy service model is no longer fit for purpose. Customers increasingly expect joined up services, easy one-stop transactions, and channel choice in how they engage with us.
We are proposing a shift to integrated service delivery arrangements whereby Council physical services are grouped together in convenient locations for citizens to access – a Citizen Hub with no wrong doors. This will be supplemented with an assisted-digital strategy whereby most simple Council service transactions can be automated, or completed on-line.
A set of design principles have been developed to guide improvement opportunities and the future state model. An implementation approach whereby council libraries will form the base for integrated, multi-discipline citizen hubs is proposed.”
https://ccc.govt.nz/the-council/plans-strategies-policies-and-bylaws/strategies/citizen-hub-strategy/
Customer Experience for Integrated Service – Citizen Hub Strategy
(As at 30th October 2015. Endorsed by Council 30th November 2015)
https://ccc.govt.nz/assets/Documents/The-Council/Plans-Strategies-Policies-Bylaws/Strategies/Citizen-Hub-Strategy.pdf
“More and more I think libraries need to become community hubs and reflect the needs of the community.”
“More staff interaction, give people the choice between “automated self check out” and an old fashioned check out desk.”
(Source: yourvoice.ccc.govt.nz/your-library/what-are-your-must-haves-for-new-central-library, Page 11)
“There is a synergy between the information that libraries provide and the service that Citizens Advice Bureau provides to the community.”
(Long Term Plan 2015-2025 – Citizen Submissions/ Feedback, Submission # 12990, Page 11)
“There is a worldwide trend towards establishing community hubs – and Christchurch City Council has already signaled its intent to adopt this concept by the development of our first co-located services in Papanui, Shirley, Fendalton, South Library and now, more comprehensively, at Te Hāpua: Halswell Centre.
Hubbing enables the delivery of service outcomes from a common location, making it easier for the customer, as well as enabling the efficient use of Council resources.
A hub can be far more than a place from which service is delivered.
It can bring community services together, be a gathering place for the community to play, learn, and engage with each other.
The key is integration; this strategy will look at how and where Council services can become the platform for more deeply integrated citizen hubs.”
(Shared vision for hub services, Page 13)
“In February 2013, the Auckland Council Executive Leadership Team approved a human-centred design approach for their new service centre.
Human-Centred Design Approach:
1. Scope – create a service delivery framework that enables Council to deliver an integrated and relevant in-store experience
2. Look & Listen – a refreshing and insightful view of the world through the eyes of the customers
3. Understand – distilling observations into insights
4. Solve – involve the wider organisation and external participants
5. Build – make it happen!
A deliberate and conscious flow was created for citizens to:
– Enter
– Orientate
– Experience their first point of contact
– Interact
– Transact
– Exit & extend”
(Case Study: The Auckland Council In-Store Experience, Page 14)
“Each element of the future omni-channel strategy needs to be enabled by the right tools and capability. For citizen hubs, this means exemplary service standards, well trained staff to support our customer groups in one engagement, supported by a customer relationship management (CRM) system.
Christchurch City Libraries have already incorporated human-centred design principles in their facility design, fit-out, and service model.”
(What does a hub mean for Christchurch City Council?, Page 15)
“Integrated, multi-discipline hubs will be created where it makes sense, and will be the preferred future model:
– Customers can go to one location to meet their requirements
– Lower building maintenance costs
– More efficient use of staff through rostering
In the longer term hubs can become a gathering place for more community services
Facilities are fit for purpose for the community it serves:
– Reduction in costs to council
– Community continues to have pride in their facilities and maximise use
– Locations meet customer demand and are centrally located in our communities
– Higher return on investment in facilities”
(Hub Principles, Page 16)
“Integration of Community Hubs will occur at existing Library facilities:
– In many locations, service desks are already co-located with libraries and therefore optically it does not seem a big change for the community
– The older demographic, likely to be using assisted service channels, are assumed as visiting libraries more frequently than recreation centres, making the assisted service more accessible for these users
Existing recreation building facilities do not have space to house libraries:
– Geographic distance will continue to occur in existing facilities due to facility constraints (i.e. size) and type of utilization (e.g. recreation services and quiet break out spaces do not have natural synergies)
Consistency is valued and enables standardisation:
– By initially establishing all hubs as a library/service desk integration customers will be able to expect and have the same service experience at any community hub
– Cross skilling of these employees will enable them to cover other services as required providing more job variety”
(Hub Assumptions, Page 17)
“The future integrated hub model provides for council libraries to act as integrated, multi-discipline hubs, simplifying and streamlining the customer journey.
The future assisted service model delivers a number of financial and non-financial benefits:
– Integrated: One location for multiple transactions
– Tailored: A choice of either assisted or self-service options
– Cost Effective: Savings on travel costs for customers using the digital channel options or traveling to a single integrated hub instead of multiple locations.
There are also options to reduce the Council physical foot-print through decommissioning of existing end-of-life facilities, or siloed facilities in the same community.”
(Meeting Customer Expectations, Page 17)
– Libraries: Shirley (Burwood Ward, 5 Council libraries: Parklands, New Brighton, Aranui, Shirley, Linwood in the Waitai Coastal-Burwood-Linwood Community Board area)
– Service Desks: Shirley (Burwood Ward, 2 Council service centres: Shirley, Linwood in the Waitai Coastal-Burwood-Linwood Community Board area)
– Governance Services: Shirley (Waitai Coastal-Burwood-Linwood Community Board)
There are 3 Christchurch City Council services co located in the Shirley Library and Service Centre building, located in The Palms carpark.*
But there is no suburban sized Library or Service Centre in the entire Innes Ward.
(Location map for Christchurch City Council Libraries, Service Desks and Recreation and Sports Centres, Page 19)
* For more info on the current Shirley Library and Service Centre:
https://www.10shirleyroad.org.nz/south-library-report/
Sustainability and Community Resilience Committee, 01 June 2022
“Joanna Gould spoke in regards to Item 10. South Library Te Kete Wānanga o Wai Mōkihi – Earthquake Repair Options.
Her deputation focused on Shirley Library and the former Shirley Community Centre. She questioned the priority on South Library, when Shirley Library has issues around variety of books available and capacity.
She also queried why the rebuild of the Shirley Community Centre has been delayed until 2030/31, and whether this aligns with the Council’s policies on sustainability and environmental outcomes.”
Her presentation slides:
https://christchurch.infocouncil.biz/Open/2022/06/SACRC_20220601_MIN_7539_AT_ExternalAttachments/SACRC_20220601_MIN_7539_AT_Attachment_36676_1.PDF
Shirley Library and Service Centre building plan/layout
https://christchurch.infocouncil.biz/Open/2022/06/SACRC_20220601_MAT_7539.PDF#PAGE=19
“The founding principle of citizen hubs is to bring together the services council provides across the community in a common location, enabling the customer and community experience to be an integrated one.
Initially this includes libraries, and service desks.
Future builds of new citizen hubs should encompass all council facilities required by the community it serves, integrating recreation and sports, libraries, service desk and community governance services where it makes sense.
This will vary by community, depending on factors such as community demographics, land availability etc. and should be designed in conjunction with the community to ensure the hub is fit for individual community requirements (i.e. some of the new facilities in communities may not require all services).
As a result of the earthquakes there are a number of new community facilities and re-builds already underway.
The implementation plan will align with the Community Facilities Activity Management Plan and Community Facilities Network plan as well as the various facilities rebuild plans for the community facilities, libraries, and service desks.”
Facilities Rebuild Plans: Alignment = X, Most facilities have replaced ‘like for like’.*
Therefore, the integrated hub strategy has not been considered when deciding on the design and co-location of facilities.
(Interdependencies, Page 26)
* When I wrote https://www.10shirleyroad.org.nz/imagine/ in 2018, I saw the potential in this site at 10 Shirley Road, Shirley Community Reserve.
At that time I hadn’t even read the ‘Christchurch City Council Citizen Hub Strategy’.
Since 2018 I have been advocating for a new ‘Citizen/Community Hub’ at 10 Shirley Road & the redevelopment of the Shirley Community Reserve:
https://www.10shirleyroad.org.nz/submissions/
The Shirley Community Centre, has not been ‘replaced’, not even ‘like for like’.
In 2015 when this Strategy was written, why wasn’t a new integrated service delivery Citizen Hub option considered, at 10 Shirley Road, Shirley Community Reserve, site of the former Shirley Community Centre?
21: Shirley Community Centre, Replace. Section 38 (claim insured value).
26: Shirley Library, Cosmetic repairs.
Christchurch City Council Facilities Rebuild Plan – Tranche 1
https://christchurch.infocouncil.biz/Open/2022/06/SACRC_20220601_MAT_7539.PDF#PAGE=25
