Vol. 475 No. 8
220 Dr. Woods asked the Minister for Social Welfare whether customer panels under the aegis of his Department or its agencies are in existence; if not, the plans, if any, he has to establish such panels; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6284/97]
Customer service is one of the key priority action programmes within the strategic management initiative in my Department.
Meaningful consideration with customers has been identified within their programme as the key to understanding their needs and expectations and a number of mechanisms have been put in place to elicit the views and perceptions of our direct customers. These include customer panels, surveys on a systematic basis and the provision of comment cards in all local offices.
To date customer panels of unemployed people have been established in Dublin, Cork and Longford, while a lone parents panel is in operation in Limerick. Panel members are selected on a random basis and meet regularly with officials of the Department to discuss various issues and express their views regarding the quality of the service delivery process. The panels have also proved to be a useful sounding board at the development stages of new initiatives or procedures. Feedback on action taken in relation to issues that are raised by panel members is a particular feature of the meetings. Among the issues raised to date have been the timely provision of information, access to and privacy in local offices, queueing times and the back-to-work initiatives.
