Issue - meetings

The item was introduced by Steve Smith (Assistant Director, Commissioning Support Unit), who told members a new performance framework had been introduced and it had been considered at September’s Cabinet meeting. The framework looked at the progress of 81 key business measures, of which 27 fell under the remit of the Committee. The framework encompassed the new Integrated Delivery Plan, which looked at 224 actions and projects taking place across the Council Plan. Of those, 60 were of relevance to the scope of the Committee. Steve Smith said the information was available for members to view on Power BI. Also included within the framework was an update on the current financial management situation. This included a commentary that highlighted the key risks that were of relevance to the Committee.

Steve Smith drew members’ attention to the performance of the 21 key business measures that were available at the end of quarter one. Of these 15 were on track to be met and six were not. More data was now available that would show if the performance level was improving over time, remaining static, or declining. Some areas of particular focus were highlighted in the main report. Two of the key business measures not on track related to the number of fire-related deaths and injuries, which had already passed the yearly target. Councillor Sarah Boad noted the latest figure and target for fire-related deaths listed in the report was zero, but said this information was unhelpful as it was unclear what the cumulative total was for the year. It was agreed a cumulative total would be included going forward. Responding to a point raised by the Chair, Steve Smith confirmed that in cases of fire-related deaths officers had to wait to receive the report from the coroner to confirm the cause of death.

Steve Smith reminded members that a summary of the progress being made was shown in the report appendices. The majority of activities and actions were on track to be met, but those areas that represented the greatest amount of risk or were most likely to be compromised had been highlighted in the report. Members’ attention was also drawn to the forecast financial performance in terms of either being on budget or showing an underspend of at least two per cent. Steve Smith informed members that an item on the cost of living crisis was due to be considered at the next Cabinet meeting.

Responding to a question from the Chair, Steve Smith said a new solar energy provider had been found and the backlog of cases was now being worked through.

Members noted the contents of the report.