Collective Impact

SmartStart, Department of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Social Development, Inland Revenue, Ministry of Health

SmartStart eliminates the need for new parents to navigate their own way around government services upon the birth of a child. They can access 51 services (a total of 34 different service providers) in one place. Through the SmartStart website parents can register the birth with DIA, access benefits through MSD, receive an IRD number and more.

SmartStart supports integration of services between three government agencies, for example MSD clients can consent to share birth information from DIA so they can access extra benefits. Over 90% of customers integrate at least two services.

Partnering between the four government agencies and other service providers, particularly Plunket and the College of Midwives, has helped gain wide support for the service. SmartStart has broken public sector development norms in many ways, including engaging with customers in the design of the product. Social media posts show this has changed the way people think about how government serves the public. In the first two months of operation, SmartStart had 27,252 visitors (up to 25% of the total target audience).