Land and Property Services (LPS)

Client Profile

LPS is an agency operating within the Northern Ireland Department of Finance. The body is responsible for the administration and management of land and property-related matters in Northern Ireland. It successfully oversees taxation for more than 900,000 properties and 700,000 ratepayers, amounting to £1.2 billion in revenue and facilitating over ten million financial transactions annually.

LPS handles various essential tasks, including property valuation, maintaining valuation lists, conducting general revaluations, and offering valuation, estate management, and property information services to both government departments and the public sector. They are responsible for issuing rate bills for domestic and non-domestic properties, processing payments and refunds, inspecting vacant properties, and managing rate-relief schemes.

Challenges

The rating system's significant changes had rendered LPS's rate collection software outdated and rigid, incapable of adapting to future reforms and meeting new requirements. LPS sought a modern, adaptable, and scalable solution that seamlessly integrated with the organisation's business functions.

This solution was intended to enhance overall business operations and service provision while effectively handling complex processes. A crucial aspect of the requirement was the system's capability to manage LPS's vast data volume, providing comprehensive management information systems and data mining tools for swift responses to ad hoc data requests from the public and politicians. Additionally, the system needed to review and process re-assessments on data spanning over the past ten years.

Our Solution

ITS successfully implemented a tailored, fully managed software suite, ensuring Land and Property Services (LPS) compliance with the latest legislation while enabling swift response to future changes. The comprehensive rate collection system, provided by ITS, significantly improved LPS's business operations and service provision, efficiently handling complex processes.

The Results

The system efficiently handled complex processes related to rate collection and included:

• Advanced assessment and collection software.
• A sophisticated accounts package.
• Workflow management.
• Business intelligence tools.
• Robust security administration to ensure data safety.
• Disaster recovery measures were put in place to protect against data loss or system failures.
• Ongoing technical and application support to maintain the system.
• Management information software to access various data cubes.
• Ad-hoc query and reporting tools for rapid data interrogation which were used to respond to parliamentary inquiries, queries from politicians, the media, and the general public.
• Adherence to current legislative requirements, including rate relief, lone pensioner allowance, education, training, leaving care allowance, small business rate relief, and large retail levy.
• The system adhered to stringent service and security standards to ensure compliance.