North west town looks to increase scope of web platform to include sections on the NHS and carers
Credit: Chemical Engineer/CC BY-SA 4.0
Bury Council is looking to expand its online platform to help citizens connect with public services providers in the area.
The Bury Directory, which was first launched in 2014, now contains a range of listings and links to organisations that provide an array of citizen services. The site covers categories such as childcare, leisure and recreation, social care, health, and crime.
In recent months, the local authority has strengthened “the connection between intelligence and assets” by implementing a “channel” to connect the site with the Bury Joint Strategic Needs Assessment – which provides “an assessment of current and future health needs of the local community”.
Bury has also built, and will shortly implement, further channels to hook up the directory to services for Care Leavers, as well as the town’s Special Educational Needs and Disabilities service.
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“Going forward, NHS, carers and local business channels are being developed, alongside a Quality of Life Conversational Tool which will enable a referral to go through to the social prescribing team irrespective of being completed by the individual or during a supported conversation,” the council said. “The idea being that all the information required for the people of Bury is in one platform. People can be signposted and or referred to other Bury Services or groups effectively by professionals and or individually with a consistency of approach.”
The authority has published a contract notice seeking a supplier that could help deliver an underlying IT platform and develop and support a website that delivers its ambition to provide the local community with a hub where “all information is standardised across the whole of Bury and [that] provides an authoritative online source of information, advice and guidance”.
“The website will provide professionals and customers, patients and the wider members of the public with information to support signposting across the full range of services in the locality and be able to have access at the right time and in the right way,” it said. “Care workers will also be able to use the site to access professional guidance. Third parties will be able to contribute their own content subject to appropriate checks.”
Bids are invited until noon on 22 January, ahead of a scheduled contract start date of 1 April. Bury expects to award the chosen supplier with a three-year deal.
