Meeting documents

Cabinet
Wednesday, 22 June 2005

CA220605-07

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ITEM CA7

CABINET - 22 JUNE 2005

IMPLEMENTING THE MANIFESTO PLEDGES

Report by the Leader of the Council

Introduction

  1. I have been privileged to be elected as Leader of the Council again and to head up a Cabinet of many talents. The platform on which we stood is one of low taxes, real choice and value for money and the new Cabinet portfolios reflect our determination to improve the quality of services, to make the Council more customer focused and to hold down Council tax rises.
  2. It is vital that the Administration keeps its election promises to the people of Oxfordshire and in this report I have set out the way in which our manifesto pledges will be taken forward in the short and medium term.
  3. In doing so I am mindful that we want to ensure that the County Council has a "can do" philosophy and is seen as delivering effective services. We will know that we have succeeded if people’s perceptions of us are that:
  4. " The County Council makes good use of our money and provides good services"

    "The County Council stands up for our interests"

    (And, as the biggest employer in the County) "The County Council is a great place to work"

    Our Vision for Oxfordshire

  5. Appendix 1 (download as .doc file) sets out our vision for Oxfordshire. If we are to deliver this vision, we need to work in partnership with many Oxfordshire organizations and a close working relationship with our District Council colleagues is an important priority for us. We know that we will not always agree completely on every issue but we are committed to an open and ongoing dialogue and seeing to find ways of serving our electorate well.
  6. Low taxes

  7. The current medium term financial plan includes provision for £5m efficiency savings in each of the next three years and currently assumes an annual 4.5% Council tax rise throughout the life of the administration. This will be reviewed in order to enable a reduction in the level of increase to be achieved each year.
  8. I have asked the Strategic Director for Resources, under the guidance of the Cabinet member for Finance, to bring forward revised proposals in September. For illustrative purposes, each 0.1% reduction in the rate of Council Tax increase costs about £200k, and we will seek to ensure that reductions are achieved without prejudicing our ability to deliver effective services.
  9. I am mindful that there are also potential major changes proposed in the way in which local government is financed and that the Government currently plans to report its conclusions from the Balance of Funding Review in December, with Council tax revaluation planned for implementation in 2007. In formulating our proposals, we will need to consider the consequences of these changes for the County Council.
  10. Real choice

  11. We intend to listen to the communities of Oxfordshire. It is a diverse County and we will not seek to impose a single solution to any issue but to reflect the varying needs and circumstances of different parts of the County. This comes back to our increasing emphasis on customer focus.
  12. Transport

  13. Arrangements are already in hand to introduce free parking at County Park and Rides. This has already been raised with Oxford City Council to give them the opportunity to do the same for their car parks so there is a combined approach.
  14. Proposals are being developed to pilot free on-street parking in Oxford in the evenings and on Sundays from the autumn. In the meantime options are being considered, alongside related decisions on City parking charges and residents’ parking charges.
  15. The philosophy of providing traffic calming where it is wanted is broadly the Council’s existing position, subject to scheme appraisal and funding limits. Under the new Government funding rules for the Local Transport Plan, assessment will be more rigorous and funding more limited.
  16. The needs of car drivers and the importance of rural bus services have already been reflected in the Local Transport Plan and bus strategy, which were agreed by the Cabinet on 7 June and which will be considered at Council on 21 June. Our opposition to congestion charging is also reflected in the Local Transport Plan, which explains why this would be inappropriate in Oxfordshire.
  17. Environment

  18. Retention of green fields and open spaces reflects existing County Council policy, which is reflected in the Structure Plan and in our position on the South East Plan and the Central Oxfordshire sub-regional strategy.
  19. The promotion of affordable housing, particularly shared ownership schemes, to help people onto the house owning ladder is largely existing policy and is reflected in our Structure Plan requirements and our PSA target. We will be developing our strategy in this area through the Oxfordshire community partnership, in conjunction with our District Council colleagues.
  20. We wish to work closely with District Council colleagues to help the homeless off the streets and into work, and will particularly focus on developing adult basic skills to help equip individuals with the means to be able to succeed at work. We will also ensure that the Supporting People programme is targeted at appropriate schemes.
  21. A fresh attempt could be made to vote for the abolition of SEERA to reflect the Administration’s opposition to the Regional Assembly and the imposition of housing numbers. However this is likely to be blocked by the social and economic partners on the Assembly. In the meantime we have relayed to SEERA the strong feelings on the South East Plan consultation that SEERA do not have a legitimate role.
  22. Sustainable development

  23. The promotion of the Oxfordshire economy and jobs will be supported through the Oxfordshire Economic Partnership’s Review of our Economic Strategy and through our own Economic Development Action Plan. The Chairman’s theme of supporting local businesses will provide additional opportunities for promotion.
  24. Scrapping the red tape and bureaucracy that holds back growth needs to be balanced against the Administration’s wish to preserve green fields and open spaces. In practice the Council has been very pragmatic on particular planning applications where there is a specific economic/employment need (eg BMW in Oxford, Owen Mumford in Chipping Norton) and it is envisaged that this approach would continue.
  25. Schools

  26. The Executive agreed in April 2005 to provide £25m for school building improvements. Full delivery is dependent on schools agreeing to fund part of the borrowing costs in recognition of the benefits that they will achieve. This is being discussed with schools.
  27. A report will be going to the Cabinet on 19 July dealing with the recommendations of the "Faith in our Schools" Scrutiny Report, and we will provide strong support to schools to help them develop an appropriate range of faith specific facilities, where required.
  28. Work with schools to provide additional vocational teaching will be supported by the Secondary Adviser who took up post in February with a remit to lead the 14 – 19 Strategy across both the County Council and the Learning and Skills Council. The 14 – 19 Strategy will extend learning opportunities, particularly vocational options, for all young people. The Cabinet will consider this on 22 June.
  29. This pledge will also be supported by the Raising Attainment Campaign which will provide opportunities for a greater range of work and skills-based teaching and learning, including re-designing the curriculum to make it relevant for all young people, developing extended schools and extending business/enterprise links.
  30. Much of the red tape that stifles teachers is a result of statutory requirements. However, we will ensure that our own policies and forms are simplified wherever possible, with increasing use of plain English and user-friendly formats.
  31. Improved support to schools to improve exam results is being taken forward through the Raising Attainment Campaign. This is designed to achieve increased participation, raised aspirations and shared responsibility for raising attainment and was launched by the previous Executive in February 2005. The priorities are being developed through the Shadow Children and Young People’s Plan, which will be considered by the Cabinet on 22 June.
  32. The New Relationship with Schools requires a review of the way services are provided to schools and the way schools are monitored. A current review within the School Development Service is focusing on increasing schools’ leadership capacity and their capacity for improvement through sharply focused monitoring and challenge and the improved use of data to target resources effectively. A key decision for the Cabinet will be the extent to which, from 2005/06, the County Council operates traded services and/or acts as a commissioner of services which it quality assures.
  33. A Best Value Review of Catering and Cleaning is currently taking place and the outcome will take into account the Administration’s wish to encourage healthy, locally-sourced school meals. The responsibility for the provision of school meals lies with individual governing bodies and one of the possible solutions being explored in the Review is a move away from central provision to a consultancy arrangement whereby the Council would provide support and advice to schools on fulfilling their responsibilities. Local sourcing can be difficult to reconcile with statutory tendering requirements, but a group of officers is currently investigating how this can best be achieved.
  34. Children’s Services

  35. Officers have been asked to develop proposals for a new scheme to provide grants for community youth facilities through a new Youth Activities Fund to support (a) small building improvements and additional equipment in youth centres and (b) part-time youth work hours to provide summer and other holiday activities for young people. I expect this to be agreed later this year so that bids can be sought well in time to be approved for the start of the new financial year.
  36. Community Safety

  37. We will work closely with the Thames Valley Police on proposals to introduce a suitable Neighbourhood Policing model, which addresses our desire to see more police on the streets. The introduction of Local Area Agreements will give us the opportunity to consider how best to strengthen the partnership between the Police, Community Safety Officers and District Council Neighbourhood Wardens.
  38. The Council works with other agencies to tackle drugs through the multi-agency Drugs and Alcohol Action Team and is involved in its groups focusing on (a) the supply of drugs, (b) treatment and (c) young people. Learning & Culture have responsibility for a comprehensive drugs education programme. The Youth Offending Service screens all young offenders for substance misuse and has dedicated drugs workers to respond to identified problem usage. It also undertakes targeted "diversionary" work to provide positive alternatives to drugs and crime and reduce the likelihood of young people becoming future adult drug offenders.
  39. Health and Community Services

  40. A Day Services Strategy is in place, which addresses measures to support older people to remain independent, and in their own home.
  41. Several strands of work are already in place to deliver high quality personal care for older people with security and dignity. These include the Home Support Strategy and re-tendering exercise; improved response times; and the User/Carer Involvement and Consultation Strategy.
  42. We have opposed the government’s plans to build Asylum Seekers Centres in rural areas.
  43. Value for money

  44. The Administration is committed to improving the performance of the Council and we would stress that low taxes need not lead inexorably to service cuts. We expect to be able to work more smartly and to deliver better services for the same or less expenditure. Our aim will be top quality performance from a really efficient base and we will support staff to develop the skills and flexibility necessary to achieve this.
  45. We want to see a much more integrated process for financial and service planning, that clearly links our vision and policy targets with our corporate plan. There needs to be a "golden thread" running through all our plans so that staff can clearly see where they fit in and how their individual objectives contribute to our overall aims. Officers are already working on this so that we can take a more integrated approach to next year’s budget and corporate plan.
  46. Our approach is expressed very simply:
    1. we intend to strengthen accountability, starting with the Leader and Cabinet but enhancing a strong culture of ownership and accountability throughout the organisation.
    2. we expect the Council to be more customer-focused, with elected members, managers and staff placing themselves in the position of their customers to ensure the service is accessible, helpful and supportive as well as efficient.

  47. To achieve this we also need to pay attention to the culture of the organisation, that is, the way in which we do things to develop our themes of a "can do" philosophy with a strong accountability culture, a customer-friendly Council and joined-up governance. This will require officers to bring forward proposals for an organisational development plan, under the guidance of the Cabinet member for Change Management.
  48. RECOMMENDATIONS

  49. I RECOMMEND that the Cabinet:
          1. endorse the report;
          2. receive further reports on the specific items for implementation.

KEITH R MITCHELL
Leader of the Council

Background Papers: Conservative County Group Manifesto

June 2005

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