Case Study: Bournemouth goes on-line

How to get on the Web quickly

Leading coastal resort AND thriving business centre - Bournemouth and Centreline 2000. hit the Web.

Bournemouth means business

Bournemouth is one of the country's premier seaside resorts - attracting UK and overseas tourists and foreign language students from all over the world. Equally important, the town is a thriving financial services centre, tempting some of the very biggest names in banking and insurance to base their operations there. All of which means big business for the local economy.

So the Web is a perfect vehicle for ensuring the town's potential gets the exposure it deserves. And with Centreline 2000's help, the Council has been positioning the town for maximum exposure - across the Web and across the world!

New horizons

The Council gained unitary authority status (i.e. independence from the County Council) on the 1st April. New roles and responsibilities have accompanied this change in status as Alan Larcombe the Head of Corporate & Economic Development at Bournemouth Borough Council explains. "As a result of the reorganisation the Council's staff and workload have more than trebled. The Council is now responsible for the provision of all local government services in the Borough including Education, Social Services, Trading Standards, Council Tax collection and many more. We now have over 5,300 council employees."

Promoting character and potential

"But whatever the changes," he continues "our role remains the same. To develop and promote the character and potential of the town and explain why it should be the first choice for prospective tourists, conferences and businesses looking to relocate. With Centreline 2000's help, the Web really helps us to put this across."

As you might expect, the main industry of the area is tourism. But Bournemouth has also developed a thriving financial services sector. Major corporates in banking and insurance have elected to base their headquarters or back office operations in the town. Larcombe comments, "For example, Chase Manhattan and Abbey Life both have major facilities here. We find that companies are attracted by the prospect of a labour pool of skilled key workers. Also, the quality of life on offer means it is easier to attract and retain staff."

Lessons learned

Centreline 2000 were asked to help the council following recommendations from other local authorities and as a result of the Local Government on the Web Survey conducted by the company. The Council had seen the survey (evaluating how effectively local government was using the Web) in the Local Government Chronicle. The survey had also been discussed by a Dorset wide local authority IT group. "It was a case of learning lessons from the experience of others," commented Nigel Jenkins, Bournemouth Council's Head of IT Services. "From the survey, we could tell that Centreline 2000 knew the pitfalls and could advise us on them. We were looking for a company which recognised the needs of a local authority but also had a wider knowledge. Centreline fitted the bill precisely."

National and international markets

The Council's Information Technology Services and Corporate Development section worked together to develop a phased implementation plan. Debbie Clifton of the Corporate Development section explained, "We needed a web site. We wanted to target both the national and international markets and our local residents. We decided on a phased approach.

"In phase 1 we chose to focus explicitly on inward investment, targeting tourism, conferencing and economic development. Phase 2 will see the Council adding to the web site to promote our whole range of services to residents. To include useful information on, for example, education, housing, planning matters and their local Councillors."

Launch on time

The Council asked Centreline 2000 to build the site. One of the unique aspects of Centreline 2000's Web Manager is that it can be used to design and evaluate a number of iterations of "look and feel" very quickly. As a result, the Bournemouth site could be rapidly developed. "We are delighted with the way phase 1 has gone," explains Debbie Clifton. "We had to work to a very tight timescale and Centreline 2000 delivered exactly what we needed. We were able to launch the site on time."

Web Site Emphasis on inward investment

The site contains a wide range of information designed to help prospective visitors - with the emphasis very definitely on inward investment. As well as detailed briefings on the local economy, business accommodation, labour market and the town's prestigious conference facilities at the Bournemouth International Centre there is extensive reference documentation on the area, places to stay, sites of interest, food and drink etc.

The Council is already planning phase 2 . Alan Larcombe again, "Following the successful launch of our Inward Investment web site we are now going ahead with phase 2 which will put Council services on the web. We plan to cover all of the main services, plus general communication information such as transport strategies and other local issues."

Customer information point

"We are also examining the options for a customer information point - possibly perhaps within Bournemouth's library service. An information point would provide access to our web site - and perhaps even a mechanism for people to contact the Council."

Web address: www.bournemouth.gov.uk