Purpose

To note the annual performance report which measures progress of
the Council Plan.

Content

 The Cabinet considered a report of the
Director of Corporate Services, which sought to update on the
Council’s performance on delivering the Council Plan, which
had been agreed in 2023.
 
The Head of
Corporate Policy, Performance and Improvement and the Assistant
Director (Interim) Communications and Policy were in attendance to
present the information and to address the questions and the
comments of the Cabinet Members.
 
The Officers
informed that the report set out the strategic context and a
summary of what had been delivered since the Council Plan had been
agreed as well as a summary of the Council’s financial
performance over the 2024-2025.
 
The report also
contained information on a set of agreed key performance indicators
(KPIs) (appendix A to the report). As this was the first annual
report of the new Council Plan, the KPIs were established as
baselines. Finally, the report also set out key achievements and
‘real life’ examples of work the Council had done and
which had contributed to the delivery of the Council
Plan.
 
Resolved:

1.    
That the progress made on a range of measures since the
Council Plan had been agreed be noted;

2.    
That the set of key performance indicators as measures of the
performance of the Council Plan be noted.
 
Reason for
decision:
Performance
management was needed to ensure that the Council was delivering its
priorities, which would in turn improve services and outcomes for
the borough’s residents, businesses and other key
stakeholders. Delivering effective performance management was a key
way in which the Council could take responsibility for its own
performance. It also helped the public and the Government to hold
local the local authority to account, ensuring that it was
responding to local needs and that public money was being spent
effectively.
 
A key
recommendation of the Council’s 2023 Local Government
Association (LGA) Corporate Peer Review was to ensure more regular
reporting to members on performance. A key action to deliver that
recommendation was the production of a report with a suite of KPIs
to monitor. The LGA had further recommended the report should be
accompanied with a section on financial performance.
 

 It had been recommended that the Council
continued to refresh the KPIs at regular intervals. This was
particularly pertinent in light of the Government ‘s new
draft Local Government Outcomes Framework. Finally, this report
provided the first update on progress and achievements since the
Council Plan was agreed by members as well as a brief summary of
financial performance. A process for regular monitoring of data was
being developed with a view to more regular reports being provided
at suitable intervals throughout the year.
 
Alternatives
considered and rejected:
None.