Walsall MP urges council to re-open face-to-face services

Valerie Vaz made the call to Walsall Council bosses over the First Stop Shop which has remained closed since the first Covid-19 lockdown in March 2020.

Residents had been able to visit the Civic Centre and talk to staff directly when they had issues in areas such as council tax and housing, before its closure.

But despite restrictions coming to an end earlier this year, the service has remained closed with people instead being signposted to access services online.

It has led to a petition being set up calling for the authority to re-open the First Stop Shop – a move which has now been backed by the Walsall South MP.

She said: "It is unacceptable that the (First) Stop Shop and other frontline services remain closed. When my constituents who need support or just to pay their council tax arrive at the Civic Centre, all they find is a sign that says ‘Walsall Council is closed until further notice’.

"With a cost of living crisis the council has a responsibility to help residents who are in need. Some of my constituents cannot or do not know how to contact the council using the internet, including some vulnerable residents.

"The Conservative-led council have made services harder to access when my constituents most need them. The whole country has returned to its work, and so should the council.”

Walsall Council bosses said they had asked residents about how, and where, they would prefer to access advice and services in 2021 after the initial part of the Covid-19 pandemic.

And this feedback was used to develop a new strategy with a focus on improving the quality of their website, online services and telephone support. The feedback highlighted some vulnerable, elderly and "digitally-excluded" residents will continue to need frontline support on a face-to-face basis.

Councillor Gaz Ali, portfolio holder for customer engagement at Walsall Council, said last month: "As a result, first line advice, digital assistance and free wi-fi is available in the Walsall Library on Lichfield Street (just over the road from the former First Stop Shop and next door to the Town Hall).

“The council is also in the process of rolling out first-line support and digital assistance across the other six libraries in Walsall, community hubs and a range of other trusted partner locations, as part of our ‘Walsall Connected’ campaign.

"We are in the process of developing plans to modernise the Civic Centre and as part of that intend to introduce a reception space in the building, which will help with signposting the support that is available.

"The reason for the change in approach from a Walsall Town Centre-only location, is that our vulnerable and elderly residents overwhelmingly said that they would prefer to access advice and support in locations closer to their own homes, to keep travelling time and transport costs down."