We have hit some big milestones for the project in this sprint. Of particular mention is that Newark and Sherwood council will now be a partner of the project and we will be looking to implement the service for them. The team are really excited to be bringing them onboard and working with them.
As for the product itself we are pleased to say it is really taking shape now and is nearing requirements for a launch ready product. Some of the things we have achieved this sprint are:
- Tested new DRS configuration
- Scheduled repairs by area
- Integrated the Scheduling API with DRS
- Query availability and schedule repair job
- Completed set up of GOV.UK Notify
- Submitted application for continued funding
- Scheduled penetration testing
- Built MVP pages for the remaining repair types
- Identify repair – Electricals (Bedroom /Living Areas)
- Identify repair – Electricals (Bathroom)
- Identify repair – Worktop (Kitchen)
- Identify repair – Sink (Kitchen/Bathroom)
- Identify repair – Bath (Bathroom)
- Identify repair – Door (Kitchen)
- Identify repair – Electricals (Kitchen)
- Confirmation notification sent to resident
- Identify repair – Walls/Floor/Ceiling (Kitchen/Bathroom/Bedroom/Living areas)
- Identify repair – Heating/Hot water/Boiler or Radiator (Kitchen)
- Identify repair – Window (Kitchen/Bathroom/Bedroom/Living areas)
- Identify repair – Damp or mould (Bathroom)
- Identify repair – Door (Living Areas/Bathroom/Bedroom)
- CSA notifications
- Email template defined
- Internal Process agreed
- Fixed bugs 🐛
Tested new DRS configuration
This is such a milestone for the project, not only are we getting availability back form the system; but we are also booking the appointment directly into the system following the customers selection. All with the added complication of Lincolns “scheduled repairs” trial. The ability to do this has been the main ambition from the start of the round, understanding the importance of this to complete the customer journey, and it’s great to see this become a reality.
Our scheduling API makes requests to DRS via SOAP and provides results to the web front end for resident to select an appointment
Its also worth mentioning that this has been developed alongside the HACT data standard to maximise possibilities of reuse and supports our ethos of using existing components and working with partners in this sector.
Funding application
We have submitted our application to DLUCH to look to increase the functionality of the product, focusing on a few key areas to meet the needs of more councils. The areas we look to build on post this beta round are:
- make service live at Newark and Sherwood
- allow residents to amend or cancel appointments
- make requests for repairs to communal areas
- extending the service to council leaseholders
- integration directly with a housing management system
We have had some positive support from housing management system suppliers during this round and will be looking to delve into the available API’s to build a richer experience for both customers and councils, building on the foundations of the product so far. This could include creation of the job, risk warnings, identification of leaseholder property’s etc
Show and Share
The best way to digest our work from this sprint is to check out our recorded session. I hope you can see what a great team spirit we have, I’d encourage anyone working with council digital services to get involved and help develop what could be a real game changer in our sector.
Repairs Online 