The Corporate Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee met to discuss the Performance Management and Improvement Framework, and to review the committee's work programme for the coming year. The committee agreed to note the findings of the Task and Finish Group on the Performance Management and Improvement Framework, and agreed the next steps in reviewing the framework. The committee also reviewed the work programme for future meetings and made no additions.

Performance Management and Improvement Framework (PMIF)

The committee received a report setting out the initial findings of the Task and Finish Group, established to consider options for refreshing the Performance Management and Improvement Framework (PMIF) and enhance the role that overview and scrutiny can undertake to performance management. The Task and Finish group was established in June by Corporate Resources OSC, with Councillor Kathryn Walker and Councillor Ron Beadle undertaking the work as Vice Chairs of the Committee.

Councillor Ron Beadle outlined the background and methodology of the work, noting that the group met on four occasions throughout July and August 2025. At these meetings, information was presented by officers from Policy and Performance in relation to:

• Feedback from an officer workshop, attended by representatives from all directorates within the council, to discuss the current PMIF and opportunities for development.
• The LGA Peer Review recommendations.
• The development of a CMT dashboard, to be reported on a monthly basis, providing organisational focused high-level data on key performance across services.
• The current indicators reported on within the PMIF.
• Examples of performance reporting designs and content from other public sector organisations and some private sector organisations.
• Local Government Outcomes Framework - Priority outcomes and draft metrics.

Councillor Ron Beadle noted that the work by the task and finish group would help to make better use of time for OSCs, and support OSCs in the development of work programmes and identifying opportunities for contributing to policy development.

Councillor Kathryn Walker then presented the findings of the task and finish group, categorised under breadth of information; ease of interpretation; SMART¹; and frequency of reporting and work programme shaping.

Breadth of information

The current PMIF reports present the full set of performance indicators to all four OSCs, making it challenging for members to engage with the information in a meaningful way and get a clear understanding of performance in specific areas. The group proposed that the performance indicators/measures be divided in accordance with the current remits of the OSCs and those reduced sets of indicators only be presented to each committee.

Ease of interpretation

Through reviewing performance reporting from other local authorities and organisations, the preference of the task and finish group was to incorporate into the format of future reporting a red/amber/green rating for every performance indicator and an indication of the direction of travel, i.e. improving/stable/deteriorating. The group also recommended taking a reporting by exception approach, highlighting areas of strength and concern to direct discussions at committee meetings towards the actions identified and implemented to remedy performance under the anticipated target. The aim of this would be to make it easier to plan appropriate officer attendance to answer questions and facilitate a focused discussion.

SMART

The task and finish group highlighted that ensuring that any performance measure should be tested against SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) criteria, to ensure targets were clear and meaningful.

Frequency of reporting and work programme shaping

The group discussed the importance of benchmarking performance with statistically comparable local authorities and noted that most benchmarking data is only available annually. It was therefore suggested that an annual benchmarking report be submitted to the first OSC of each municipal year, to set out a baseline context for current performance and the indicators that will be used to monitor and track performance for the rest of the year. This annual benchmarking report would also help the OSCs in shaping work programmes for the year ahead, helping members to identify areas of priority for service improvements.

The report outlined the next steps to take regarding the PMIF:

• To seek input and feedback on the suggestions received to date via a members seminar and to seek officer and member feedback.
• To engage with elected members and relevant officers on the specific measures to be included in the framework and reporting lines for each measure.
• Following further consultation, each OSC should receive a mockup of a proposed future performance reporting style, along with a set of indicators relevant to the remit of that OSC.

The committee agreed to note the work and findings of the Task and Finish Group and agreed the next steps in reviewing the Performance Management and Improvement Framework.

Work Programme 2025/26

The committee reviewed the work programme for future meetings and made no additions.