SOUTHEND-ON-SEA CITY COUNCIL
Southend-on-Sea City Council ’ s Director of Digital & ICT , Carol Thomas , divulges the challenges of technology transformation for a growing population
Society is changing . As populations increase and myriad global challenges arise , governmentfunded organisations are becoming more digitally-savvy in a bid to meet the varying needs of diverse local districts . Many of these challenges remain the same region to region — particularly in the UK , where chronically-underfunded local councils are very much behind on their ability to leverage technology .
The result ? Public demands are changing and authorities are operating with legacy systems in need of updating .
It ’ s not very often you begin a conversation about digital transformation with a history lesson — though the subject itself dates back as far as the 7th Century — but in this case , it ’ s warranted .
Southend-on-Sea was recently granted city status and is situated on the south coast of the UK , but it wasn ’ t always a city , nor was it as digitally-driven as it is today . Southend came from humble beginnings , starting out as a small settlement called Prittlewell , which expanded over the years to accommodate the 180,000 residents that live here today . This gradual increase in population , and the size of Southend , led to public demand for a governing organisation that moves with the times — and on smaller budgets .
Addressing a common challenge in the modern day , Southend-on-Sea City Council ( SCC ) faces the demand for all the necessary services while the purse strings are tightened further , forcing localities to stretch their resources Example of wherever possible . an image caption
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