The old cliché would have you believe council officials never travel anywhere without a clipboard, but Wolverhampton is breaking the mould with the launch of a new mobile app.

Type=image;ImageID=4918;ImageClass=left;ImageTitle=The new 'Wolverhampton Report It' mobile app;TitleClass=strong;

The free app - called Wolverhampton Report It - enables the public and council workers to report issues such as potholes, fly tipping or litter directly from the scene via a mobile phone or tablet.

The reports then get sent straight to the council's customer contact centre which assigns them for action.

The app will be used over the next fortnight by 2 city council inspectors who are going out and about on foot along all 10 main arterial routes in and out of Wolverhampton looking for unsightly problems that need putting right.

The annual Summer Challenge inspection sees 80 miles of main road and their junctions with minor roads checked over. In the past, the workers have logged every defect on paper and taken a separate photograph. The results have filled up several large files.

Using the new app on their phones will mean any problems they find can be logged immediately, complete with a photograph, and transmitted electronically to the Civic Centre - speeding up the entire process and meaning the public get quicker results.

Councillor John Reynolds said: "Our annual Summer Challenge project sees 2 employees get out on foot and walk 80 miles of main roads looking for issues that need fixing.

"They look for things like damaged or dirty signage, overgrown shrubs, potholes, litter - anything that creates a bad impression of Wolverhampton as people travel in and out.

"Anything they spot will be programmed in for repair, we want our city to look its best for the people that live here and those who come and visit us."

Keith Ireland, the council's strategic director for delivery, said: "Our new Wolverhampton Report It app is completely free and is available for the public to download from the Apple App Store and the Android Play Store.

"Our employees will use it during the Summer Challenge project, but it is mainly a tool for the public. We want them to be our eyes and ears and tell us about the issues in their neighbourhoods that need putting right.

"We are continually looking at ways to make it easier for the public to contact us and Wolverhampton Report It is a really simple way of being able to let us know about problems with a few clicks of their mobile phone or tablet.

"Once they have told us about an issue, we will keep them informed directly through the app."

More information about the Report It app is available from Type=articles;Articleid=1160;Title=Report a problem;.

To download the app, simply search for 'Wolverhampton Report It' in the Apple App Store or Android Play Store.

  • released: Tuesday 5 August, 2014