Issue - meetings

Report of Chief Executive, Gareth Edmundson

RESOLVED THAT: 

1.    the LGA Peer Challenge Report in Appendix 2 is noted;

2.    the Peer Challenge Action Plan in response to the recommendations within the Peer Challenge Report, as set out in Appendix 3, is approved;

3.    a further visit by the LGA Peer Team, expected in early 2024, to review the progress in delivering the action plan, is welcomed.

The Leader introduced the report, telling Members that the council invited the Local Government Association to carry out a peer challenge exercise – this is not compulsory, but is beneficial to learning and development.  The LGA team of Members and officers had prescribed areas to examine and investigate, and also looked at additional areas as the visit progressed.  They came in summer and have now published their full report, which includes the requirement for the authority to publish an action plan and invite the peer group back within a year to check on progress.  The action plan has been developed and some significant actions have already been taken, arising from the recommendations for improvement.  It is hoped that the LGA team will return in February 2024 to review what has been addressed at that stage.

The Cabinet Member for Finance and Assets said he had experienced a number of peer reviews over the years, and they are hugely beneficial – it is too easy for a council to get set in its ways and not look outside itself.  They bring an external view, and an extensive list of experience and knowledge. The reviewers acknowledged the high standards that CBC sets and works to, but with the many changes local government is currently undergoing, the report and self-examination is hugely beneficial, and working through the action plan will pay huge dividends.

The Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities welcomed the peer group’s inclusion of the council’s No Child Left Behind (NCLB) campaign to tackle deprivation.  She pointed out that not only does the council work with schools, but also with NHS partners, businesses, the Chamber of Commerce, and a whole host of organisations to help young people in difficulty.  She said it is a privilege to be part of this, and thanked the council, Members and officers for the work done over the past three years.  We will all learn from the report, and continue to grow and attract more organisations.

The Leader agreed that it is good to look outside what we do – as an LG peer reviewer herself, she takes ideas away from other local authorities.  It is a two-way street for learning and benefits, looking at good practice and good ideas from elsewhere.

RESOLVED THAT: 

1.    the LGA Peer Challenge Report in Appendix 2 is noted;

2.    the Peer Challenge Action Plan in response to the recommendations within the Peer Challenge Report, as set out in Appendix 3, is approved;

3.    a further visit by the LGA Peer Team, expected in early 2024, to review the progress in delivering the action plan, is welcomed.