Agenda item

To provide Cabinet with the proposed Peer Review Action Plan for information and approval.

That –

(a)    the Peer Review Action Plan be approved;

(b)    Cabinet notes that further updates will be provided in October 2018 and March 2019; and

(c)      the report be referred to the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee for its information and review.

During the consideration of this item when the discussion touched on the emerging Community Interest Company in Jaywick Councillor P B Honeywood declared a personal interest insofar as he held a position of general control and management in that Company.

There was submitted a report by the Deputy Chief Executive (A.5) which provided Cabinet with the proposed Peer Review Action Plan for its information and approval.

Cabinet was aware that the Local Government Association (LGA) Corporate Peer Challenge of Tendring District Council had taken place from 6^th to 9^th March 2018 and that the purpose of the review was to look at how the Council worked in terms of its internal processes and how it interacted with partners, businesses and residents in order to shape Tendring as a District.

The Feedback Report from the Peer Challenge, which had been provided to all Members, highlighted a number of actions which had been formulated into a Peer Review Action Plan (Appendix A to the Deputy Chief Executive’s report). The key recommendations in the Feedback report were:

1.      Improve how you tell the story of your ambition, your plans, your successes and the positive impact you are having across the whole district.

2.      Devise a TDC approach to programme management, project delivery and performance reporting and be consistent in using it. This should include a focus on improving governance.

3.      Bring the four key elements of your transformation programme together: office accommodation, digitalization, customer service and people.

4.      Review how you deal with under-spends, savings, risk and phasing of the capital programming.

5.      Add housing to the existing key strands of joined up working (health, education and community safety) and incorporate this into your emerging housing strategy.

6.      Be confident in your plans for Jaywick Sands. Build a shared commitment with community and other partners, setting this out in a strategic development plan.

It was reported that some of the actions fell within the remit of Cabinet, some within the remit of the Human Resources and Council Tax Committee whilst others were operational management issues but that the Action Plan had been reported to Cabinet for the sake of completeness.

Cabinet was informed that a number of the actions proposed had already been completed whilst others had been incorporated into the Cabinet’s priorities and performance reporting arrangements which had been agreed by Cabinet at its previous meeting held on 20 April 2018 (Minute 182 referred). However, notwithstanding the above, progress reports would be made to Cabinet (and subsequently to the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee for scrutiny) in six and twelve months’ time.

Having considered the information submitted:-

It was moved by Councillor G V Gugliemi, seconded by Councillor Stock OBE and:-

RESOLVED that –

(a)    the Peer Review Action Plan be approved;

(b)    Cabinet notes that further updates will be provided in October 2018 and March 2019; and

(c)      the report be referred to the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee for its information and review.