The Citizen's Charter :sx improving the quality of the public services or furthering market values ?sx David Farnham .sx Portsmouth Polytechnic .sx The Government's White Paper , The Citizen's Charter , presented to Parliament by the Prime Minister in July , is the first in a series of governmental initiatives which are aimed , it is claimed , at making the public services more responsive to the needs of their users and raising their quality of service overall .sx Superficially , the White Paper is a glossy , colourful , user friendly document , which is strong on presentation and layout , and contains some sensible and pertinent proposals for producing higher quality public services .sx An alternative view is that The Charter , which is a complex and detailed document , is a subtle marketing device , concealing a covert agenda aimed at furthering market values in the public services .sx It clearly contains a mixture of concrete proposals , political assertions and New Right ideology , in varying proportions .sx But these raise more questions about the intentions and implications of the Government's plans for the public services than they seem to answer .sx The Charter applies to all public services such as government departments , 'Next Steps' agencies , the nationalized industries , the National Health Service ( NHS ) , the courts , police and emergency services and the local authorities , as well as to the 'privatized' public utilities .sx The purpose of this article is to summarize the main provisions of The Charter and provide an initial assessment of its provisions .sx AIMS , PRINCIPLES AND MEANS .sx The stated aims of The Charter are :sx to raise the quality of provision of the public services ; to increase 'consumer' choice for those using them ; to increase competition within them ; to raise standards of public service performance ; and to give " value for money within a tax bill the nation can afford " .sx The Government argues that it wants to continue upholding the central principle that essential public services must be available to all , irrespective of individual means , adding that " its consistent aim has been to increase choice , extend competition and thereby improve quality in all services " .sx With many of Britain's key industries having been privatized during the 1980s , the Government states that it is determined to drive its " reforms further into the core of the public services " , by " extending the benefits of choice , competition , and commitment to service more widely " .sx As such , it sees The Charter " at the heart of government policy in the 1990s " .sx Four main themes are stressed in the White Paper :sx quality , choice , standards and value .sx The White Paper puts forward a detailed programme for improving the quality of the public services , with choice between competing providers being seen as the best spur to quality .sx 'The Citizen' , it is asserted , must be told what public service standards are and be able to take action where that service is unacceptable .sx Since the citizen is also a taxpayer , it is stressed that the public services must give value for money .sx As consumers of the public services , every citizen is entitled to expect , it is argued , 'standards' , 'openness' , 'information' , 'choice' , 'non - discrimination' , 'accessibility' , and redress 'if things go wrong' .sx Standards should be explicit , published and displayed at points of delivery , with the presumption that they will be " progressively improved as services become more efficient " .sx There should be no secrecy about how public services are run , how much they cost , who is in charge , and whether or not they are meeting their standards .sx Full and accurate information , written in plain language , should be available about what services are being provided .sx The public services should provide choice wherever practicable , they should be available " regardless of race or sex " and they should be run " to suit the convenience of customers , not staff " .sx There should be well publicised complaints procedures and serious problems should be resolved where they arise .sx The means by which The Charter it to be implemented include :sx more privatization ; wider competition ; further contracting out ; more performance related pay ; local and national published performance targets ; comprehensive publication of information on standards achieved ; more effective complaints procedures ; tougher and more independent inspectorates ; and better redress for the citizen " when services go badly wrong " .sx It is the Government's intention to publish a new standard for the delivery of quality in the public services .sx This is to be called the Charter Standard , with a Chartermark , and will incorporate a number of principles .sx These will include :sx publication of the standards of service and of performance against those standards ; evidence that the views of those using the public services have been taken into account in setting standards ; clear information about the range of service provided ; courteous and efficient 'customer service' ; well signposted avenues for complaint where 'customers' are unsatisfied ; and independent validation of performance against standards .sx " Only those who meet the Charter Standard will be able to use the Chartermark " .sx The White Paper states that The Charter will be implemented locally and specifically .sx This is based on the assumption that services " work best where those responsible for providing them can respond directly to the needs of their clients " .sx This will be followed up by a programme of action across all public services and by detailed charters for patients , parents , passengers , taxpayers and others .sx The Prime Minister will also appoint a panel of advisors on the Charter initiative .sx The Government " will be taking immediate steps to encourage all public services to adopt Charter principles and to apply them to their own operations " .sx SETTING STANDARDS OF PUBLIC SERVICE .sx Separate charters are proposed for different areas of the public sectors .sx There will be charters for patients , parents , tenants and jobseekers .sx Measures are also to be introduced for setting standards in transport , the Social Security Benefits Agency , the Post Office , revenue departments , the police , and criminal justice and the courts .sx Health The White Paper claims that " the aims of the Citizen's Charter lie at the heart of the NHS reforms " .sx The Government states that it " will build on the NHS reforms " , by publishing later this year patients charters in England , Scotland and Wales .sx These national charters will set out patients' rights to the following :sx good quality care ; information about the options available for their care and treatment ; involvement in their care and treatment ; choice of GP ; a right to give or withhold consent to medical treatment ; freedom to participate or not in medical research and student training ; respect for privacy , religious and cultural beliefs ; consideration for people visiting patients ; ability to comment on treatment received ; access to information held about them ; and satisfaction if these standards are not achieved .sx It is intended that local health authorities will produce charters specific to their own services .sx Health authorities , for example , will set standards for service in their contracts with hospitals .sx " They will publish targets for how long their residents will have to wait for admission for treatment " .sx The Government will also require standards to be set and published for hospital outpatient appointments .sx It is intended that the practice of calling large number sic !sx of patients for appointments at the same time will cease .sx The NHS Management Executive will set out the main areas in which local standards of service will be set , monitored and published so that there is consistency throughout the Country .sx In primary health care , it is intended to ensure that GPs give good service to all patients .sx The Government wants the public to be given clear information about the precise services offered by each general practice to help people choose an appropriate GP .sx The patients of dentists are to be entitled to clear information too .sx Education The Charter will also reinforce the Government's recent reforms in the schools sector , by carrying them further .sx It will provide for :sx school reports on the progress of all pupils , at least annually ; publication of the results achieved in schools ; comparison of results among schools ; independent inspection of schools ; and " more information to parents to help them exercise the choice that the education reforms have given them " .sx A parents' charter has already been published , setting out parental rights in schools , the choices they can exercise and information about schools , the choices they can exercise and information about school performance .sx The Audit Commission will be empowered to publish comparative tables , schools and colleges will be required to publish their public examination results in a common format and schools will be required to publish truancy rates .sx Comparative information will be required to be collected and published locally .sx All parents will receive a school report on their child's progress , with all reports having to be up to a minimum standard within 1991-92 .sx The Government will lay a duty on local education authorities to disseminate and publish results in a standard format .sx Housing For tenants , the Charter will mean :sx an improved tenants' charter for local authority tenants ; opportunities for tenants to transfer out of local authority control ; a stronger tenants' guarantee for housing association tenants ; and the extension of competitive tendering into housing management .sx Strengthening tenants rights will improve the rights of council tenants to the repair of their homes , ensure that all tenants receive information about the standards and performance of their local authority in housing management and encourage tenants to exercise their right to transfer to a new landlord .sx The tenants charter will also encourage local authorities to introduce refurbishment contracts and to delegate management to tenant bodies .sx The Charter states that " housing associations will be the principal providers of new subsidized housing for the 1990s " .sx As part of this , the Housing Corporation will issue a stronger tenants' guarantee .sx It will add three new principles of accountability .sx These are :sx performance information to be produced and made directly available to tenants ; regular consultation to be provided through satisfaction surveys ; and more active involvement of tenant representative organizations to be promoted .sx The Employment Services The Charter will reinforce the Employment Service's aim of giving the unemployed the personal service they need , with the Service publishing its own charter for jobseekers later this year .sx The proposals include providing details of all services offered in local offices and establishing national targets for service delivery .sx Local targets will include :sx waiting times ; how quickly telephones are answered ; standards for promptness and accuracy ; and information relevant to the local labour market on performance against targets .sx Where possible , people coming to Jobcentres for advisory interviews will see the same person on each occasion .sx All full time Jobcentres are to open for a minimum of 36 hours a week .sx National customer surveys will continue to be undertaken annually , supplemented by customer surveys at local level .sx " All offices will have easy to use complaints arrangements " .sx Transport For transport , The Charter states that improving the performance of British Rail ( BR ) " can only be achieved if the way is opened to innovation , private investment , and competition " .sx That is " why progress towards the privatisation of the railways is integral to the Citizen's Charter " .sx The 'passenger's charter' for people using BR will set out clear commitments and rights .sx These will include targets for performance , what to do if things go wrong , and what compensation is available .sx BR already contracts out some catering and cleaning services and intends to extend this to other activities .sx Further , with pay increases for some BR staff directly related to performance , " BR is discussing with the unions further restructuring of packages for drivers , station platform staff and other key groups " .sx In London Underground ( LU ) , the Government will be setting and publishing tough new quality of service targets .sx Those using LU will be able to expect quality of service including cleanliness of trains , courtesy of staff and the quality passenger information .sx It will encourage LU to accelerate its contracting out programme , " to improve quality and value for money " , and will link a larger proportion of Board members' pay to the achievement of these objectives .sx The Government wants " to see performance-related pay extended to drivers , guards , signalling staff and other grades " .sx Social Security .sx The Social Security Benefits Agency ( SSBA ) , established in April , will publish its own customer charter .sx It will incorporate :sx published national targets for benefit services ; published targets of each district ; a published annual report ; clear procedures for handling customer inquiries and difficulties ; a programme to improve service by telephone ; clean office environments ; more flexible opening hours ; and customers being dealt with by staff who can be identified by name .sx