Agenda item

(a)       That the findings of the Corporate Self-Assessment 2022/23 be accepted and approved; and

(b)       That the opportunities for improvement identified in the Corporate Self-Assessment 2022/23 be approved.

The Chief Executive introduced the report on progress with the Corporate Self-Assessment for 2022/23 which summarised feedback from consultation and stakeholder engagement on the findings from analysis against the eight themes.  He thanked the Committee for their involvement in the drafting process.

The Internal Audit, Performance & Risk Manager outlined improvements made to the self-assessment model following the pilot undertaken for 2021/22 and the range of consultees throughout the three-stage process.  The final report indicated that overall, the Council had performed well against the assessment with areas identified for improvement currently being actioned.  The report also detailed progress with areas for improvement identified from the 2021/22 pilot.  The report would be considered by the Governance & Audit Committee prior to final approval by Cabinet.

The Chair queried whether the workshop in June had been open to all Members as attendance had been low.  It was clarified that representatives from this Committee, Governance & Audit Committee and Cabinet had been invited.  The Chair highlighted the importance of Culture, Resilience, Value and Ethics, as raised during the workshop, and questioned whether these had been clearly reflected in the document.

On the theme of ‘Customer and Community Engagement’, Councillor Bernie Attridge called for greater engagement with members of the public and elected Members, including use of social media.  He said that corporate ownership should be led by senior officers and that the provision of support for customers, for example in Connects offices, required urgent review.

In response to the Chair’s comments, the Internal Audit, Performance & Risk Manager drew attention to the areas identified for improvement where themes relating to culture, value and ethics detailed actions to be embedded across the organisation and measured accordingly.  Examples were shared on reports and policies which reflected increasing resilience within the Council, and plans to develop a performance culture through the framework.

In acknowledging the importance of embedding those issues across the organisation and structure, the Chief Executive spoke about ongoing work to improve corporate ownership of service delivery.  He provided clarification on the senior leadership academy referenced in the document which was one method of implementing a more unified approach to service delivery across the Council.  He went on to state that the culture of the Council was led from the top and influenced by the behaviour of officers and Members, with the aim for a collective consistent approach to achieve the delivery of high quality services.

Councillor Bill Crease stressed the importance of performance management being driven by data interrogation to help focus on areas of under-performance, for example the recent data shared on telephone response times in the Contact Centre.  During discussion, the Chief Officer (Governance) reminded Members of the ongoing issues which had been regularly reported and corporate actions being taken to improve staff turnover across the Council.

The expectations and demands upon the Contact Centre were recognised by Councillor Linda Thew who was assured that options were being explored to increase resilience.

Councillor Gina Maddison commented on potential links between Connects Centres and libraries which the Chief Executive said was one of a number of possibilities under consideration.

The Chair and Councillor Crease acknowledged the issues and spoke about the importance of customers being assured of responses and actions.

The recommendations were moved and seconded by the Chair and Councillor Allan Marshall.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the findings of the Corporate Self-Assessment 2022/23 be accepted and approved; and

(b)       That the opportunities for improvement identified in the Corporate Self-Assessment 2022/23 be approved.