The Customer Service Excellence, (previously the "Charter Mark") is an
accreditation
Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...
for organisations, intended to indicate an independent validation of achievement.
History
The Charter Mark was an award demonstrating the achievement of ''national standard for excellence in customer service'' in
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
public sector
The public sector, also called the state sector, is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public sectors include the public goods and governmental services such as the military, law enforcement, inf ...
organisations. Introduced in 1991, it was replaced in 2008 by Customer Service Excellence standard, with the last issued Charter Marks expiring in 2011. The Charter Mark was one of the consequences of a political initiative, the
Citizen's Charter
The Citizen's Charter was a British political initiative launched by the then prime minister, John Major, on 22 July 1991, less than a year into his premiership.
Aims
It aimed to improve public services in the UK by:
*Making administration acco ...
, by
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...
John Major in 1991, to improve customer service and performance in the public sector.
In 2005, the system was reviewed, and it was recommended the scheme be replaced. Accordingly, the Customer Service Excellence standard was launched, and a phased transfer was initiated. Applications for Charter Marks were officially closed on 30 June 2008, with the official final validity date becoming 30 June 2011.
Recipients
The scope of public sector organisations includes departments of local councils, voluntary organisations having more than 10% public funding, and also private subcontractors on public contracts. It also includes public transport operators and the gas, electricity and water utilities. A number of
Park and Ride bus schemes gained Charter Marks, displaying the mark on their
bus
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
es.
Fotopic image of an Ipswich Park and Ride bus prominently displaying the Charter Mark
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The first Council in the UK to achieve the Corporate Customer Service Excellence award was Fenland District Council Fenland may mean:
* Fenland, or the Fens, an area of low-lying land in eastern England
** Fenland District, a local authority district in Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England, forming part of the Fens
** Fenland Airfield, an airfield near Spalding, ...
, Cambridgeshire.
Assessment
The Customer Service Excellence Standard is made up of 5 criteria with 57 elements in total. Assessment is carried out via a desktop review by an authorised assessor followed by an on site visit lasting one, two or three days (sometimes more) depending on the size of the department or organisation being assessed. As well as viewing physical documentation, and carrying out observations, the assessor speaks to customers, staff and partners to review the company's attitudes and working practices along with details of their customer focussed initiatives and performance.
See also
* Artsmark
*Sportsmark
Sportsmark is Sport England's accreditation scheme for secondary schools. The scheme recognises a school's out of hours sports provision.
References
External links
*
.
Quality
Programmes of the Government of the United Kingdom
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