Changes to Saturday Services

With recent figures highlighting that customers are not using Corby Borough Council’s One Stop Shop to its full potential during its Saturday opening hours, the Council has now made a decision to discontinue the Saturday service in line with the majority of other local authorities.

It was revealed in November 2011 that since opening the One Stop Shop on a Saturday morning only 400 enquiries had been made over the entire year. The Council called out to residents to use the service if they wanted it to continue and monitored it’s usage from November. Only 90 customers were recorded to use the service resulting in staff on some Saturday mornings within the One Stop Shop dealing with as little as 6 enquiries throughout the entirety of the opening hours.

Due to the low figures, Corby Borough Council has made a decision to discontinue to the Saturday opening hours after Saturday 28th January 2012.

Councillors’ surgeries will still continue to operate from 10am to 11.30am within the Cube on a Saturday and Corby Borough Council’s Customer Service Advisors will be asked to support this service on a rota basis to assist in resolving customers’ issues.

The decision will result in a reduction of the annual £6,000 cost to open the One Stop Shop every Saturday from 9am to 12 noon.  

Leader of Corby Borough Council, Cllr Tom Beattie, said:

‘After monitoring the One Stop Shop’s usage, unfortunately it was clear that it just wasn’t being used enough for us to justify keeping it going. With tighter and tighter budgets we have to ensure that all of our services are effective and efficient and we have to make difficult decisions on ones that are not.

‘Our One Stop Shop will remain open from Monday to Friday and what we have decided to do is ensure that our Councillors have support from our Customer Service Advisors at their Saturday Surgeries so that customers continue to have help and information available to them on a Saturday.’