The Scrutiny Coordinating Committee of Waltham Forest Council met on Tuesday 29 April 2025 to review the progress of the council's Corporate Peer Challenge, discuss the draft Scrutiny Annual Report for 2024-25, and consider the overall scrutiny report. The meeting focused on reviewing the council's performance, strategic direction, and the effectiveness of its scrutiny processes.

Corporate Peer Challenge

The committee was scheduled to receive an update on the council's Corporate Peer Challenge (CPC). This included a review of the progress made against the recommendations from the CPC visit in June 2024, as detailed in the council's Action Plan published in November 2024. The committee was also to be informed about the Peer Challenge Return Visit, which had taken place on 7 April, and the next steps to conclude the CPC process. The CPC is a tool coordinated by the Local Government Association (LGA) to provide assurance and support for local authorities, involving a review of key finance, performance, and governance information. The council's Action Plan, developed in response to the CPC recommendations, is structured around four themes: Investing in our people, Strengthening partnerships, Building a strong culture of assurance and measuring impact, and Setting up Mission Waltham Forest for success. The report highlighted that while the council is expected to make the return visit report public by 23 June 2025, there is no legal obligation to uphold all actions in the action plan.

Scrutiny Annual Report - Draft Committee Summary of Activity 2024-25

The committee was due to review the draft summaries of committee activity for the 2024-25 municipal year, which will form part of the Scrutiny Annual Report. This annual report is a key responsibility of the Scrutiny Coordinating Committee and outlines the work of all scrutiny committees, including themed reviews and collaborative working. The full draft report was scheduled to be presented to the committee in the summer before going to Full Council. The committee was invited to review and comment on the draft summaries, suggesting any necessary amendments. The report noted that while the annual report is not statutory, the Forward Plans agreed by each committee are, requiring Full Council sign-off. The summaries provided in Appendix 1 of the report detailed the activity of various scrutiny committees, including Budget, Children and Families, Climate, Communities and Public Protection, Health and Adult Social Care, Housing and Inclusive Economy, and Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committees (JHOSCs).

The Scrutiny Report

This item involved a review of the action and recommendation trackers, with members invited to ask any necessary questions. The Scrutiny Report also provided an opportunity for members to suggest items for the 2025/26 draft work programme for the incoming committee, as this was the final meeting of the municipal year. The committee was also asked to review the draft summary of committee activity for the annual report and suggest amendments or additions. The report outlined the function of the Action Tracker, which captures tasks requested of officers, and the Recommendation Tracker, which details the committee's conclusions on how services should change or improve. The Forward Plan, a working document, was also presented for review, with members able to nominate items for the work programme. The remit of the Scrutiny Coordinating Committee was reiterated, covering the corporate framework, corporate performance, central/corporate services, oversight of scrutiny committee work plans, coordination of the annual report, monitoring the Cabinet forward plan, and commissioning time-limited informal groups for cross-cutting issues. The PAPERS prioritisation tool was mentioned as a method for deciding which items should be explored.