Data is key to enabling us to target those families we know could be hitting crisis point and, without it, we would be working in the dark.
The LIFT platform lets you identify the
so you can get the right support to those
LIFT lets you explore your data over time
You can identify people in danger of crisis before it hits and target support where it will be most effective, preventing hardship. Then track changes to see which of your activities are working.
Administrative datasets can yield powerful insights that give a fuller picture, and help drive change. LIFT allows local authorities to combine their datasets with our policy engine to make better decisions.
You can see how individual households are impacted by policy changes, now and in the future. Use the information to identify the most vulnerable families, target support to them, and track the change.
Our local authority clients use
LIFT to:
- Tackle problem debt and arrears
- Maximise the income of households
- Evidence return on investment in support
- Identify and support families at risk of eviction
- Avoid unnecessary cost by preventing hardship
- Limit and mitigate the local impact of COVID-19
- Understand current and future demand for services
Features of the LIFT platform
Functions of the LIFT platform
The LIFT Dashboard has given us the opportunity to be even more targeted with the take-up work we’re doing and become much smarter in using our resources. Now we’re targeting people who we are much more confident are likely to be missing out on benefits.
We used LIFT to target those who should be eligible for a DHP. In November we had 26 applications for DHP with 22 awarded and in December we had 72 applications and 62 awards. So our numbers reflect that the campaign did have an effect with maximizing people’s income.
Nick Harvey, Folkestone and Hythe District Council
The LIFT Dashboard has been invaluable in helping us help our customers to maximise their income and helping the most vulnerable of the people in our district to help themselves. One household identified as at risk by the LIFT dashboard was behind with their council tax and they had liability orders. Because of the money we were able to get for them they cleared out the old debt and they are now paid to debt for 2019 and 2020.
I’m proud to say that over the past couple of years the team have helped over 4,000 households which we’re able to evidence through the LIFT Dashboard.
One of the first households identified by LIFT as at risk was behind in their council tax, tax debt, and they had liability orders. Because of the money that we were able to get for them, they cleared the old debt and they are now currently paid to debt for 2019 and 2020.
Nick Harvey and Jane Worrell, Folkestone and Hythe District Council
We’ve had a LIFT Dashboard for a year and it’s given us the opportunity to be even more specific with the take up work we’re doing and much smarter in using our resources. Now we’re targeting people who we’re much more confident are likely to be missing out on benefits. In the current climate of having to prioritise resources it’s important to show the results we can get and the impact we can make.
Previously we took data from different systems and manually tried to identify those that needed support. Or we just put a form to apply for support on our website. But we wanted to identify those people that were in crisis – to be proactive rather than reactive. LIFT allowed us to move away from the traditional approach and run highly targeted campaigns. Within a fortnight, we had identified 100 vulnerable households and supported 95 of them.
Pat Knight
Service Manager (Revenues and Benefits)
Working with Policy in Practice, we have used the information to develop the right tools and new practices to create an early intervention and prevention approach that makes a real difference for our residents going through hard times.
With LIFT we can see our caseload changing and the different types of households that are being impacted by the economic downturns. This lets us understand how we can reflect our support to match the impact that’s occurring as people move off housing benefit and predominantly onto Universal Credit as they become made redundant. We can be specific with our targeting of resources of help, which we wouldn’t be able to do without the LIFT Dashboard.
Clive Jones, Luton Borough Council
