This app enables you to report anything from graffiti to pest control to dog fouling directly to your local council
By: iTouch Vision and, in the UK, Abavus
Price: Free
Available on: iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad (BlackBerry and Android versions are in development)
What is it?
Report problems in your local area to the council direct from your phone.
Who is it by?
iTouch Vision specialises in developing government IT solutions for the iPhone, Android and the internet. Abavus is an established service provider to the UK public sector.
What does it promise?
"Submit reports for the following issues: graffiti, litter, fly-tipping, potholes, street lights, abandoned vehicles, pest problems, refuse problems, missed bin collections, dog fouling, dead animals and many more."
Is it easy to use?
The set-up is a little arduous. You have to fill in your country, region and council, along with your personal details – including your mobile phone number. To be fair, this enables you to upload details of a problem to your particular council so it's worthwhile taking the time.
Once that's all done, you can access your council's contact details easily enough and reporting an "incident" is simple, if a little drawn-out. You describe the location and nature of the incident, categorise it, take a photo or video of the incident and then submit it. Your history of reported problems appears on the home page.
A quick apology to Brighton & Hove council – I reported a phantom faulty street light in the testing of the app, though without a location or any further details.
Is it fun?
Let's be honest here – reporting dog poo on the pavement, dead seagulls on your lawn or a Banksy wannabe's latest work of art scrawled across the side of your garage is not the sexiest way to spend your time. But it is useful.
Is it pretty?
It's a shame the creativity behind the icon that appears on your phone – two stick men jumping for joy underneath the union flag, clearly delighted to be in direct contact with their local council – is not replicated elsewhere across the app. Instead, it's a uniformly dull blue and white palette with the odd integrated Google map to brighten things up.
Should you download it?
There are minor irritations. The entire news section reloads each time you click on it, rather than leaving the already downloaded links and reloading only the latest updates. Another minor quibble is that the event and info section wouldn't load on my set-up, due to an RSS feed problem.
But if you even occasionally find yourself outraged by fly-tipping, dangerous potholes or foxes slaughtering your chickens this will be worth downloading. Input the details, take a quick picture and, hey presto, you've informed your local council of the problem. It sure beats trying to speak to a real person in the notoriously labyrinthine communications departments of local councils.
The £1m question is, of course, how can you be sure the council is receiving your communique and, crucially, will act on it? The creators of the app say: "By default all councils will receive the report by email. Once a council has signed up to the premium services they will be able to receive reports by their preferred method." This means the council will receive your messages, but if it wants to manage them in a sensible fashion, it will have to pay Abavus a fee to download its software. Timeframes for responses will depend on individual councils.
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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/aug/02/my-council-services-consumer-app
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