Agenda item

To seek Cabinet’s approval to the draft Corporate Plan 2020/24 and its initial proposals for consultation and examination by the Overview and Scrutiny Committees.

RESOLVED that Cabinet approves both the content of the draft Corporate Plan 2020 – 24, (as set out in Appendix A), as its Initial Proposals for consultation purposes and also the proposed arrangements and timetable for scrutiny, and consultation, (as set out in Appendices B and C to the report).

The Cabinet gave consideration to a report of the Leader of the Council (A.1) which sought its approval of the draft Corporate Plan 2020/24 and its initial proposals for consultation and examination by the Overview and Scrutiny Committees.

Cabinet recalled that at its last meeting held on 19 July 2019 it had decided to “instruct officers to work with Portfolio Holders to bring forward proposals for a new Corporate Plan for the period 2020 to 2024…” It had also been agreed that the current strategic Performance Management arrangements should remain in place, consisting of

Ø   A high level, strategic, long term Corporate Plan agreed by Council.

Ø   An annual programme of Priorities and Projects to deliver the Corporate Plan aspirations agreed by Cabinet.

Ø   Clear milestones and deliverables for the Priorities and Projects set out in the Performance Dashboard.

Ø   Quarterly reporting of the Performance Dashboard to Cabinet and the two Overview and Scrutiny Committees.

Ø   Monthly monitoring of the Performance Dashboard by Management Team.

The draft Corporate Plan, as attached as Appendix A to the Leader of the Council’s report, followed the principles which had also been agreed at the last Cabinet meeting, namely:

Ø   a “Plan on a Page”;

Ø   with Community Leadership at its heart;

Ø   with other cross-cutting themes identified such as Tendring4Growth; and

Ø   with a clear statement of the Council’s overall vision and values.

It was reported that a number of major topics and themes such as Jaywick, Garden Communities and support for local businesses, had been carried forward from the previous Corporate Plan into this new draft because they were very long term and ongoing. Key points were as follows:

Ø   Community Leadership remained as the predominant cross-cutting theme;

Ø   Economic growth - “Tendring4Growth” - was also highlighted as a theme which cut across a wide range of the Council’s service activities and projects;

Ø   Transformation – of the way the Council worked – no longer featured as a separate heading but was embedded as “modern facilities” and “24 hour digital services”;

Ø   The Council’s commitment to work towards Carbon Neutrality had been included alongside “minimise waste; maximise recycling”;

Ø   Effective regulation and enforcement, a proactive Planning service and effective planning policies reflected the key importance of those activities to have a positive impact on the wider District and its residents with hopefully the benefit of an adopted Local Plan in the first year of the life of the new Corporate Plan;

Ø   More emphasis and detail had been provided regarding working with partners as a Community Leader – setting out not just some of the key partnerships but what the Council aspired to achieve through that approach;

Ø   The plan to embark on new housebuilding had been included, as was the desire to see town centres within Tendring revitalized; and

Ø   A growing and inclusive economy that included developing and supporting existing businesses as well as attracting new businesses and a commitment to promoting not just the major Tourism attractions of Tendring but also the Heritage and Cultural offers.

Cabinet was aware that the success of the whole plan required a sound financial position over the long term and a continued commitment to the 10 year financial plan was vitally important. The Council was currently in year three of the Plan and the period of this Corporate Plan would see four years, when steady but significant reductions in the Council’s base, ongoing budget were required. This would be very challenging in a time when central Government funding would be fully withdrawn, but the long term financial plan held out the prospect of the Council’s budgets becoming balanced and self-financing without the need for further reductions in the following years.

Members were also aware that the success of the whole plan also required effective and positive governance in order to ensure the Council and its various resources – people, assets, IT and finances - were well managed in order to enable the Corporate Plan priorities and the full range of the Council’s services to be delivered.

Cabinet was informed that the Vision and Values of the Council had been reviewed and considered in the light of changing circumstances – both in the world of local government and more widely – and it was felt that they remained appropriate and relevant so they had remain unaltered from the previous plan.

The timetable for completion of the Corporate Plan, including a period for consultation with the Council’s two Overview and Scrutiny Committees, key public sector partners, businesses and community organisations, the wider public and an ultimate aim of the Plan being approved by Full Council in January 2020 was set out in Appendix B to the Leader of the Council’s report. The arrangements for that consultation were set out in Appendix C to the report.

Having considered the information provided in the report and appendices thereto:-

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

RESOLVED that Cabinet approves both the content of the draft Corporate Plan 2020 – 24, (as set out in Appendix A), as its Initial Proposals for consultation purposes and also the proposed arrangements and timetable for scrutiny, and consultation, (as set out in Appendices B and C to the report).