Agenda item

To consider the attached report (FPM-009-2018-19).

The Head of Transformation, D Bailey presented the outturn position for Quarter 1 2018/19, in relation to the achievements of the Corporate Plan for 2018/2023.

The Corporate Plan 2018-2023 was the authority’s key strategic planning document which laid out the journey the Council would take to transform the organisation to be ‘Ready for the Future’. The plan linked the key external drivers influencing Council services, with a set of corporate aims and objectives, grouped under three corporate ambitions.A Corporate Specification for each year, which were previously called the Key Action Plan detailed how the Corporate Plan was being delivered through operational objectives, with these in turn linked to annual Service business plans.The success of the Corporate Plan was assessed through the achievement of a set of benefits, each measured through one or more performance indicator, focussed on what the Council achieves for customers. Management Board, Cabinet and the Scrutiny Select Committees had the overview and scrutiny roles to drive improvement in performance and ensure corrective action was taken where necessary.

The Head of Transformation advised that at Quarter 1 - 2018/19, the within the three Corporate ambitions, Stronger Communities had two Performance Indicators below target, Stronger Places had one Performance Indicator below target and Stronger Council had one Performance Indicators within the amber warning.

Further details were given on these Performance Indicators, as follows;

Stronger Communities

·         M2.1 Number of safeguarding concerns. This was a new measurement with possible seasonal variations and the baseline had been set with a 1% increase on the cumulative 2018/18 statistics. A truer reflection may be realised later in the year for any corrective actions. 

·         M2.2 Number of days to process benefit claims. The performance had not been on target due to a lack of resources and long term sickness which was expected to improve in the next quarter.

Stronger Places

·         M3.1 Number of Community Champions and Volunteers. The first quarter had been used to establish the project and the Voluntary Action Epping Forest (VAEF) were currently finding out where volunteers had been placed and pushing the recruitment process for community leaders and volunteers.

Stronger Council

·         M10.2 Annual Council Tax Collection.

The target had been missed by 0.01%.

The Cabinet Committee were concerned about the lay out of the information supplied and asked that Performance Indicators which missed their targets, be supplied as a separate document to clearly set out areas of concern. Furthermore clarification was sought on how these Performance Indicators would get back on target. The Senior Project Manager’s advised that they consulted with the Project Managers and Project Sponsors to ensure action was being taken.   

Resolved:

(1)        That the outturn position for Quarter 1 2018/19, in relation to the achievement of the Corporate Plan for 2018-2023 ne noted.

Reasons for Decisions:

This combined report brings together the performance of the Council against the Corporate Plan and gave ‘clear line of sight’ for performance across the Council via the new benefits maps and performance indicator set. The benefits maps provided an opportunity for the Council to focus attention on how specific areas for improvement would be addressed, and how opportunities would be exploited and better outcomes delivered. It was important that relevant performance management processes were in place to review and monitor performance against performance indicators to ensure their continued achievability and relevance, and to identify proposals for appropriate corrective action in areas of slippage or under performance.

Other Options Considered and Rejected:

No other options were appropriate in this respect. Failure to monitor and review performance and to consider corrective action where necessary could have negative implications for judgements made about the Council’s progress, and might mean that opportunities for improvement were lost.

The Committee could, in consultation with the Head of Transformation, agree that specific components of the proposed performance indicator set, targets and/or benefits maps be further reviewed, amended or removed, or new components be considered and included (Report to Cabinet, 7 December 2017).

The Committee could ask for specific components of the Corporate Plan be further reviewed, amended or removed, or new components be considered and included, as authorised by the Leader of the Council in consultation with the Chief Executive (Report to Council, 21 December 2017).