The Corporate Overview and Scrutiny Management Board were scheduled to meet to discuss the Reform Interim Priorities and Council Plan. The report pack included a recommendation to note the proposed framework as the interim strategic direction of the council’s priorities, and to contribute to the consultation of the proposed framework to inform the development on a new council plan for 2025-2030. This plan is intended to reflect the priorities of the new administration following the local elections in May 2025.

Reform Interim Priorities and Council Plan

The report pack included a report of the Corporate Management Team, led by John Hewitt, Chief Executive Officer, regarding the Reform Interim Priorities and Council Plan.

The report stated that following the local elections in May, the new administration is operating at pace and that it is critically important that its priorities are set out so that everyone in the organisation, partners and communities are clear on the new approach.

The report pack stated that the proposed framework focuses priorities on the immediate, tangible needs of County Durham's residents and delivering efficient, effective services that residents can see, value, and afford, making residents proud to live in County Durham and providing financial stability for the council.

The report pack stated that the current version of the council plan was agreed in February 2025 and sets out the political priorities of the previous administration, and that the new administration has very clear expectations and as such it is appropriate that these are set in an entirely new plan for 2025-2030.

The report pack stated that the new plan will be set in the context of Best Value principles¹, the council's medium-term financial planning, council tax and budget setting arrangements, and will meet the requirements of the council's corporate peer challenge in October 2025. The report pack stated that the council plan explains how the council will effectively deliver its day-to-day services, as well as how it will contribute to achieving the County Durham Vision 2035, albeit this will also be refreshed later this year.

The proposed framework is structured around five core ambitions:

• Reforming the Council for efficiency
• Supercharging the local economy
• Building Better Communities
• Caring for the people
• Adopting a Practical Environmental Stewardship.

The report pack stated that each ambition is underpinned by objectives and specific priorities designed to deliver efficient, effective services that residents can clearly perceive, value, and afford, ultimately fostering a sense of pride in living in County Durham.

The report pack stated that the interim priorities signal a fundamental shift towards a residents-first approach, rooted in pragmatism, fiscal prudence, and a direct focus on delivering tangible improvements that resonate with the daily lives of local residents.

The report pack stated that within this strategic allocation and prioritization of resources, there is a discernible shift away from areas deemed less impactful or 'ideological' towards core services and initiatives that provide immediate, demonstrable benefits to residents, exemplified by the fundamental review of climate policy and the intensified focus on preventative social care, both aimed at ensuring efficient use of council resources.

The report pack stated that the five ambitions are symbiotically linked by these underlying principles, for instance, 'Reforming the Council' by cutting red tape directly enables 'Supercharging Our Economy' by fostering a business-friendly environment and supports 'Caring for Our People' by freeing resources for critical social care.

The report pack stated that the immediate actions to deliver the ambitions will be delivered through the council's transformation programme:

• Comprehensive spending review
• Contract review
• Staffing audit
• Performance framework redesign
• Digital transformation plan
• Capital programme review

The report pack stated that the consultation process is in line with good practice, which sets out that involving communities in setting priorities and shaping improvements leads to better services and outcomes for residents and the county.

The report pack stated that once these priorities are established, they will be incorporated into a new council plan for 2025-2030, and that the development of this will involve internal service engagement and the design and production of a new sharper format, giving greater focus to the priorities.

The report pack included a proposed timeline for the approval of the council plan, with the final draft to be considered by Cabinet on 15 October 2025 and by full Council on 22 October 2025.

Best Value and Organisational Planning

The report pack stated that all councils must legally deliver 'Best Value', which concerns making arrangements to secure continuous improvement.

The report pack stated that in May 2024 the government published statutory guidance which provides clarity to councils of their Best Value Duty, listing the 'characteristics of a well-functioning authority', which the council will continue to set out in a new plan, and the 'indicators of potential failure'.

The report pack stated that the Best Value Duty statutory guidance places an expectation on local authorities to arrange a corporate or finance peer challenge at least every five years, act promptly on any recommendations given, and publish the review report and progress updates. The council's corporate peer challenge is due to be held in October 2025.

Consultation and Engagement

The report pack stated that a 7-week consultation was held in 2024, with 307 responses received, and that the vast majority was good quality feedback, leading to changes to existing priorities and some new priorities.

The report pack stated that some aspects were vague or not understood, with issues caused by the use of local government language, locations, a focus on existing rather than new priorities, and specific / individual points.

The report pack stated that service engagement will be through Leadership Teams, and that responses can be sent to letstalkcountydurham@durham.gov.uk.

The report pack stated that the Let's Talk consultation went live 22nd July, asking:

• Do you agree / disagree with our ambitions for the next 5 years?
• Why?
• Is anything missing?
• Do you agree with the objectives and priorities?
• Comments regarding the objectives and priorities

The hard deadline for responses was 18th August.

Measuring Impact

The report pack stated that measures of success are linked to current objectives, aimed at monitoring progress against the council plan, not performance management of all services, and that it is part of a wider Performance Framework .

The report pack stated that the framework needs to consider the new Local Government Outcome Framework (LGOF).

Quarterly Performance Report Scheduling

The report pack presented options for the scheduling of the Quarterly Performance Report:

• Accept the timing issues this isn't optimal to Scrutiny Committees or the performance and assurance framework across the Council.
• Scrutiny committees receive the performance report prior to it going on to Cabinet – this would mean Scrutiny comments could be included in the report to Cabinet and as such hold the Cabinet to account, however, this would lead to significant delays in the report being received by Cabinet which would not be good practice and would potentially be considered to be problematic by auditors, regulators and through the lens of Bets Value standards.
• Hold a quarterly informal briefing of COSMB members when the quarterly performance report to Cabinet is published this would give the advantage of ensuring chairs and vice chairs were briefed prior to the formal Cabinet meeting and as such could ask questions of the Cabinet in line with existing protocols. It would also give Scrutiny Committee members the opportunity to read the Cabinet report when published and raise any issues through their respective chairs. The report could then carry on to Scrutiny Committees in the usual way, which wouldn't solve the timeliness issue but would ensure that scrutiny through CSOMB members are well placed to hold Cabinet to account. It would however require the commitments of CSOMB members to attend four additional meetings per year.