Information sharing and strategic planning made easier by Kent Connects

With funding from the Kent Improvement Partnership (KIP), Kent Connects has recently developed information sharing portals for a number of officer groups and networks across Kent and Medway.  Now these have been joined in a collaboration to link up on-line networks in a central, accessible place.  Nicknamed the ‘portal of portals’ www.kentconnects.gov.uk is a central hub sitting between the different, specialist, information sharing portals.

 The individual portals were only recently introduced as a tool to support joint working between officers working in different authorities and organisations.  Fifteen portals are so far up and running, each providing an online calendar of meetings and events, links to agendas and reports, and facilities such as on-line discussion forums and email alerts.

 Now the new ‘portal of portals’ provides a single point of access to each specialist portal, as well as combining diary dates and meeting papers onto a central calendar.  Dominic MacDonald-Wallace, Programme Manager of KIP explains: “This central hub serves as a vantage point - a ‘birds eye view’ of all the various activities being undertaken.  For a Chief Executive or senior manager planning ahead with limited resources this can be extremely useful – helping them to stay abreast of progress, prevent duplication of effort and exploit new ideas and opportunities.”

Debbie Wisdom is Strategic Director at Kent Connects, now Kent and Medway’s leading technology partnership.  “This simple, practical and affordable application of technology behind the scenes is helping Kent and Medway’s public sector professionals to improve the quality and efficiency of public services.”

 Use of the central ‘portal of portals’ is free.  Individual information sharing portals linked to the central portal are priced from £500 including hosting and support.

 ENDS

ISSUED: 20 February 2008 

Note to Editors (if applicable):

1.     Log onto www.kentconnects.gov.uk to view our media centre, with information for journalists.

2.     A full list of the officer networks involved in the project is: Kent Audit Group; Kent CCTV Partnership; Kent Connects Partnership; Kent Customer Services Network; Kent Finance Officers; Greenspace Forum; Kent Innovation Forum; Kent Leadership Group; Kent Legal Secretaries Group; Kent Public Service Network; Technical Officers Group; Kent Waste Partnership; East Kent Electronic Services Provision Project; Maidstone Shared Business Transformational Project; and Visit Kent Forum.

 For further information please contact Debbie Wisdom of Kent Connects, Tel 01622  221929, e-mail kentconnects@kent.gov.uk.