Barnsley Council

Barnsley Council are embarking on an ambitious strategy, building on their double Council of the Year award-winning success, to ensure that they continue to be modern, inclusive, efficient, productive, and high performing. A place where its culture enables staff to be bold, innovative, and brave in delivering the ambitions for Barnsley as the place of possibilities.

Technology forms a key part of this. Making sure that they don’t just invest in technology, but in the right technology for them. Ensuring it is fit for purpose, future-proof, and enables people to do their jobs effectively.

When Barnsley came to us, they knew they wanted to buy new devices for staff. It was crucial however that everyone was given the right device based on their job roles and technology requirements, rather than through a ‘one-size-fits-all' approach. 

To help them achieve this, we carried out a comprehensive assessment of how they were working today, to allow them to plan for tomorrow.

The ‘How You Work’ Survey was developed to assess current digital skills, define personas, and recommend the best possible device to suit each type of worker.

After creating the survey, we put together an engaging internal communications plan to drive awareness and sign ups.

We’re delighted to say that through these effective comms, we received over 1,175 responses to the survey. That’s a 60% response rate among staff targeted. Allowing us to gain a real, true picture of current digital maturity across the council.

We analysed the findings and tested them through focus groups and workshops, before collating all of this information and providing the council with a number of reports. These reports outlined the current personas, level of digital skills, and the best devices to suit each persona.

The project, which ran for 100 working days from start to finish, was a huge success.

Wendy Popplewell, Barnsley Council’s Executive Director of Core Services, said: "The Device Review Project aimed to improve the digital skills of our staff by assessing their digital abilities and requirements to offer personalised devices and learning plans.

"We had a fantastic response which highlighted various digital needs among five different staff personas. The project also recommended important improvements to accessibility to create an enabling and inclusive work culture."

Want to address your digital skills gap? Why not download our latest eBook, Digital Skills Assessment eBook.

Or get in touch with a member of our team.