How Great Yarmouth Borough Council collected an additional £170,000 in Council Tax, using Voicescape Collections.

£170,000

 Improvement in in-year arrears collection 

 £25,000  

 Annual savings from reduced inbound calls admin

 1,804  

 Fewer inbound calls, saving 601 hours of advisor time 

In one of the most financially challenging years in recent memory, Great Yarmouth Borough Council achieved £170,000 in additional in-year collections, delivered £25,000 in recurring annual savings, and significantly improved resident engagement across a community facing rising hardship, using Voicescape Collections for Revs and Bens within their Council Tax and Business Rates service.

Great Yarmouth’s operational teams were under increasing pressure, and traditional recovery methods for collecting Council Tax were becoming less effective. That changed when they introduced Voicescape Collections.

The Challenge

In 2024/25, the maximum working-age CTS award dropped from 91.5% to 80%, placing an additional £1m burden on over 6,000 vulnerable households.

Historically, such a reduction would lead to a 0.5–0.6% fall in collection rates. Operationally, the council faced:

• Spikes of inbound calls after issuing notices
• Overwhelmed customer service teams
• Residents increasingly ignoring letters
• Less time for meaningful, proactive engagement

"Every time we issued recovery notices, customer services got flooded. Voicescape let us smooth this out. We could control campaigns and manage contact on our terms." – Mark Bodger, Revenues Manager at Great Yarmouth Borough Council.

At the same time, rising financial hardship and falling engagement meant residents needed support earlier – before debt escalated.

The Solution 

The council deployed Voicescape Collections to modernise and humanise their approach to Council Tax Collection and Recovery. The collaboration has not only improved collection rates, but also reduced operational strain and enabled earlier, more constructive engagement with residents.

"We were facing a rising tide of 'notice blindness' where residents simply weren't opening debt letters. We needed something innovative to cut through that silence." – Stuart Brabben, Head of Revenues & Benefits.

“This wasn’t about technology – it was about restoring engagement and dignity to the recovery process.” – Mark Bodger, Revenues Manager at Great Yarmouth Borough Council.

The Council deployed Voicescape Collections, a technology that automates outbound voice calls coupled with SMS Messages to residents in arrears, encouraging action earlier in the recovery cycle. Through this combination of human voice nudges and SMS Messages, Great Yarmouth targeted all stages of their recovery process steering residents to accessible, self-serve options. Instead of relying on letters, residents receive timely, personalised nudges to take action: pay, engage, or request support. By leveraging behavioral science, digital nudges reach residents earlier by intervening proactively with more human-centred engagement. Voicescape Collections is configured to adapt to the requirements of each recovery stage, including call-to-actions, timings and language, designed to prevent residents in arrears from feeling overwhelmed.

The Council took a bold approach, launching its first campaign with over 1,000 liability order cases, supported by:

• Behavioural framing
• Message testing
• Staff training

"We used the behavioural science expertise Voicescape offered to get the tone right. That made a huge difference." – Mark Bodger, Revenues Manager at Great Yarmouth Borough Council.

By utilising behavioural science, Great Yarmouth were able to better understand their residents and give their team the capacity to support earlier, more human-oriented engagement with residents in arrears. This was later attributed to a huge response from automated messages, which generated a huge increase in revenue collection.

The Results

In a year of unprecedented financial strain, Great Yarmouth Borough Council not only protected, but grew its public income. Through its partnership with Voicescape, the Council demonstrated a replicable model for ethical, scalable and human-centred debt recovery. This strategic shift in the Council delivered impressive, measurable outcomes for revenue and the team, including:

• In-year collections increased (when they should have fallen): 0.2% uplift in collection rate - despite the CTS reduction - a net swing equivalent to £400,000
• £170,000 improvement in arrears recovery: Better engagement at later recovery stages led to improved debt collection of prior-year debt.
• Reduced call volumes and admin burden: 1,804 fewer inbound calls to the Council Tax line saved 601 hours of advisor time.
• Recurring savings from reduced inbound calls: Projected £25k annual savings.
• Court Stage Engagement improved: A 40% increase in responses to digital nudges versus summons alone. 

The Strategic Impact:

• Residents are engaging earlier
• Teams can be more proactive and less reactive
• Costs are lower
• Outcomes are fairer
• Conversations are more constructive
• Financial recovery is more resilient

The success is now being expanded into:

• Sundry debt recovery
• Enforcement agent returns
• Direct Debit campaigns
• Further hardship fund support
• Behavioural segmentation

By applying behavioural science principles in Voicescape Collections’ nudge messaging, Great Yarmouth took a more strategic approach to their communication, delivering automated, relevant messages that encouraged residents to act. This drove more residents to self-serve and take accountability for their debt; proactively reaching out to Great Yarmouth rather than waiting to be contacted:

"What struck us was the shift in behaviour. People were getting in touch earlier, and the conversations were far more constructive. We weren’t just chasing payments; we were solving problems." – Stuart Brabben, Head of Revenues & Benefits.

"Voicescape isn’t just a tech tool; it’s changed how we think about resident engagement. It’s now a first-line solution." – Mark Bodger, Revenues Manager at Great Yarmouth Borough Council.

Great Yarmouth Borough Council proved that, even in the face of the Cost of Living crisis, increasing arrears, and operational pressure, a smarter and more human approach to engagement can deliver significant financial and social value.

Interested in seeing similar results for your Revenues and Benefits team with Voicescape Collections for Revs and Bens? Get in touch with our dedicated team today, and discover how we can help you drive further efficiency and results in your revenue recovery.