| Wednesday 7th June 2006 |
199/2006 |
When it comes to public service Wigan & Leigh Housing’s Contact Centre is among the best there is – and that’s official!
The Leigh-based centre has just been named as one of the top performers by taking a coveted runners-up spot in the prestigious Public Servants of the Year national competition.
Winning Ways: Staff at WALH's Contact Centre celebrate being highly placed in the Public Servants of the Year Awards.
Now in their sixth year the awards aim to recognise and reward the commitment and dedication of individuals and teams who have made ‘an outstanding difference to the services received by the general public’.
A small group of staff from the contact centre recently travelled to the Grosvenor House Hotel on London’s swish Park Lane for the glittering awards ceremony hosted by newsreader Trevor McDonald OBE and Al Jazzera International presenter Felicity Barr.
Felicity said about the WALH contact centre: “Clever and innovative use of new technology is at the heart of the success being enjoyed by the centre.
“It now offers high quality contact services to more than 23,500 council tenants, using software that enables tenants to report repairs required by text and e-mail.”
“When the contact centre was rolled out across the borough in 2004, calls rocketed from 7,000 to 17,000 in just one month! Staff have worked hard to create a Solutions Forum to handle the larger volume of calls and this has ensured that all service targets are now being met. “
“We are very proud of the contact centre,” says WALH Chief Executive Peter Gee. “To be nominated as one of the three finalists from more than 300 outstanding teams is a great achievement. What is most important is that we continue to provide a first class service that meets the expectations of all our customers in the future.”