Swindon Borough Council

Swindon Borough Council is one of the most advanced Local Authorities in the UK.

When they began their digital transformation journey, the ambition was simple yet bold: to create public services that truly worked for residents, whilst saving money and building a council that’s fit for the future. The task ahead was big. Service teams were drowning under manual processes, legacy systems were holding back innovation, and resident demand was rising faster than capacity.

In 2017, Swindon Borough Council established a long-term partnership with Jadu and created a dedicated Business Improvement Team to redesign and enhance service delivery, resulting in a significant transformation in how the council operates.

Since then, Swindon has streamlined hundreds of processes, moved most resident interactions online, and integrated digital tools into daily operations.

The Challenge

Before its transformation, Swindon faced challenges familiar across UK Local Government: rising demand, outdated technology and increasingly complex services.

The council handled around 32,000 contact centre calls each month, with just 8% of transactions completed online. They relied heavily on paper, using around 15 million sheets a year, which meant residents often had to phone or visit in person. Disconnected systems across departments created duplication, slowed services and made change difficult. Internally, traditional development cycles and entrenched ways of working further limited progress.

These pressures were especially visible in Waste Services. The Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC) struggled with long queues, congestion, complaints, safety concerns and strained staff. At the same time, the council needed to save £30 million in 30 months while improving, not reducing, essential services - making clear that incremental change would not be enough.

The Solution

Swindon Borough Council responded by building agile digital capability through the Jadu Digital Platform, led by a small but impactful Business Improvement team.

Using Jadu’s no-code tools, the team could quickly design and deploy forms, workflows and integrations without relying on lengthy development cycles. This enabled closer collaboration with service areas, consistent and accessible online experiences for residents, and seamless journeys across the website and MyAccount.

Integrations were key. Connecting with Bartec enabled end-to-end garden waste subscriptions, while Office 365 streamlined bookings for residents and staff. Jadu Connect bridged gaps in legacy systems, allowing the team to rapidly create new workflows where existing software fell short. A new delivery model emerged: services brought problems, not solutions, and the team co-designed improvements alongside colleagues from web, data and development.

When COVID-19 hit, this approach proved critical. The council launched new services within days, processing over 20,000 business grants and 6,000 test-and-trace applications, while enabling proactive communication and remote working - cementing Jadu as essential digital infrastructure.

The Results

Swindon’s transformation delivered a measurable, lasting impact. Within two years of launching Jadu, online transactions rose from 8% to 60%, significantly reducing pressure on phone, face-to-face and back-office teams.

Today, more than 350 forms and 150 case types run through Jadu Connect, used by over 1,600 colleagues. Complex processes such as safeguarding referrals, FOI requests and invoicing now operate through structured digital workflows.

The standout example is the Household Waste Recycling Centre. During the pandemic, a Jadu-powered booking system introduced timed slots and QR code entry. The result was 23,000 bookings per month, visits reduced to around 25 minutes, improved air quality and safety, better accessibility, and overwhelmingly positive feedback. What began as a crisis response became the council’s most visited digital service.

Beyond service delivery, the transformation reshaped organisational culture. Teams collaborate more closely, services evolve using real user data, and staff are empowered to make improvements quickly. With continued investment in MyAccount, accessibility and enhanced reporting, Swindon has built a flexible, trusted digital ecosystem - proving that transformation is not about replacing systems, but empowering people and strengthening communities for the future.

Swindon Borough Council