What does the future look like for people who want services provided for them?

In my previous post, I talked about what the future looks like for people excluded from the economy and who weren’t able to influence change. In this post, I will focus on another group who are people benefiting from economic growth and wanting services to be provided to them.

They are people who are in work and have sufficient financial assets, through property or business ownership. They are likely to say:

“I pay tax, therefore I expect the public services I want to be provided for me”.

How do they look after themselves?

They use private health services, for specialist care and fall back on public health services when they can’t afford private.

What do they want?

They want the services provided to them the way they want and are used to.

What do they consume?

They pay for the convenience of providers selecting and getting them the best products & services.

What motivates them to engage with public services?

They are people who want basic services and infrastructure to enable them to live their lives freely.

How do they get along with others?

They are people who prefer to mix within the increasingly homogenous communities they live in, not claiming to feel any real attachment to where they live.

Due to a feeling of segregation and suspicion, there may be tensions between communities.

How do they use technology?

People want their non-domiciliary digital activity supported through a mix of publically and privately funded and widely available network coverage. They will expect to pay for services they currently pay for and may resist the inclusion of a fee due to level of provision shift in terms of some public services i.e. library services. They are likely to happily adapt to digital channels.

They own a vehicle/uses public transport for work and pleasure. They view gentrification as economically positive but changing fabric of local area.

What are the challenges for councils?

How do we encourage people to look after themselves and each other and support them when they need it?

How can we develop activities that help people grow or start a business? How can we help them navigate services in a very easy way? How can we monetise the use of spaces for them to rent out?