Corporate Plan 2012-15 BARNSLEY Metropolitan Borough Council
Contents page Foreword page 3 What this document is about page 4 The changing context page 5 Our vision page 6 Our priorities page 7 growing the economy page 8 improving people s potential and achievement page 9 changing the relationship between the council and community page 10 How are we going to change and improve page 11 future people and culture page 12 planning for the future page 13 future leadership page 14 investing for the future page 15 Making a difference page 16 Delivering and reporting improvements page 17 Further information back page
Foreword by Leader of the Council and Chief Executive What this document is about Welcome to the Council s Corporate Plan. This sets out what Barnsley Council aims to achieve over the next three years for our customers, and wider community. It highlights what we are going to do and why and how we are going to do it. This is especially important given the extent of challenge and change facing Barnsley Council, like many other public sector bodies, given the extent of the financial and other pressures facing us now and over the next three years. This is at a time when the Borough as a whole faces many more economic, social and demographic challenges than before. We are committed to responding positively to these challenges, and making a real difference to people s lives. In light of the above, we need to be clear about our priorities, how we are going to work, and what we are going to achieve with the reducing amount of resources available to us. We are clear that this will require us to change, think and act differently and find creative ways to do more with even less money. We are also clear that we continue to have a high level of ambition and aspiration for Barnsley and to do our very best to see Barnsley and its people thrive and achieve. Leader of the Council Stephen Houghton Chief Executive Diana Terris This document tells everyone Councillors, Council employees, partners, customers and, members of the public what the Council is going to do, in what way and what it is aiming to achieve over the next three years. It reflects the organisation as a whole in terms of what we are describing as our overall priorities, how we are going to change and improve to deliver these priorities and what outcomes we are hoping to deliver to make a difference to people s lives. 3 4
The changing context Our vision The context for the work of local Authorities is changing rapidly, and Barnsley MBC is no exception to this. There are a number of challenges facing us as we respond and adapt to a changing world. These include:- Economic challenges given the national context, the economic outlook for Barnsley as a whole will be a key consideration for the Council and others. With key indicators such as employment levels, the levels of worklessness and the extent of business growth showing a gap compared with the rest of Yorkshire and Humber, we know that we have a lot of work to do to help bridge this gap. The number of people claiming out of work benefits in Barnsley is also higher than most other areas, with a significant impact anticipated of the national welfare reforms on the local economy. Demographic challenges who lives in the Borough, where, and how old and healthy they are will be a key challenge over the next few years. With a growing number of older people predicted, there will be greater demands on social care and health services. In addition, the health of the population, whilst improving, still compares unfavourably with most parts of the country, reflecting an ongoing challenge relating to health inequalities, at a time when the Council will be given greater responsibility for this issue from April 2013. Financial challenges as a result of national budget reductions, the Council has already reduced its budget by 30m over the past 2 years, and is facing a likely further 37m over the next four years (2013/14 2016/17). This is a huge proportion of our resources, a quarter compared to the resources we had available in 2010/11. This has led to the council undertaking an ongoing, fundamental look at what we spend our resources on and why. We have agreed a clear vision with our partners within the Local Strategic Partnership (One Barnsley), as part of what we call our Community Strategy. This sets out the shared vision for Barnsley: Vision for Barnsley A successful, uniquely distinctive 21st century market town that offers prosperity and a high quality of life for all. This vision for the Borough is complemented by a vision to reflect the work and aspirations of the Council. The Council s Vision Enabling the improved wellbeing of individuals, families, communities and businesses in a healthy, safe and more prosperous Borough. Our focus is on improving our organisation and making sure that the very best services are provided to the people of Barnsley. Cultural challenges the culture of a place, area or organisation often determines how we do things around here and runs throughout not only what is done, but in what way. Changing how things are done, and in what way, is a key challenge given the extent of financial and other challenges the Council is facing. 5 6
Our priorities Growing the economy Whilst we will continue to deliver a range of other services and functions, we have agreed that the three overall priorities should be the areas that warrant greater attention, emphasis and possibly resources, in order to influence other areas of activity and make the greatest impact and difference overall. These are also the areas where we will focus our performance management and reporting arrangements to keep a closer eye on how well we are performing. The three priorities are:- We have developed a long term plan to grow the economy for the Borough in order to support the creation of business opportunities, jobs and growth for the area. In doing this, we are keen to work with and support the private sector and create better conditions to help safeguard existing jobs and businesses and stimulate additional growth. We are keen to ensure that there are greater employment opportunities for Barnsley residents, to help the local economy, provide positive role models for young people, and to reduce the extent of worklessness and poverty across the borough. We will:- Create the conditions for economic growth and greater prosperity. Create more jobs and businesses through appropriate provision of business, enterprise and employment programmes. Reduce worklessness amongst those currently unemployed and increase skills levels of our current and future workforce. Develop a vibrant Town Centre. Prioritise the economic renewal of Goldthorpe and the wider Dearne area. Significantly strengthen our visitor economy by further developing our key cultural assets and events. 7 8
Improving people s potential and achievement Changing the relationship between the council and the community Ensuring that children, young people and adults have the right skills and qualifications to be better placed to access the employment and other opportunities available, whether in Barnsley or elsewhere, will be important to the future of the Borough. Equally, improving physical, mental and emotional wellbeing will be crucial if people of all ages are able to thrive and achieve their potential. Improving health and wellbeing will be an increasingly important part of what councils do, cutting across many services and functions. Where children and adults are vulnerable and/or at risk of harm, the Council has a crucial role in protecting and safeguarding their safety. We will:- Improve the quality of learning and leadership in schools to support better educational attainment levels. Ensure high quality partners are engaged in our new relationship with schools. Target young people, families and communities who may need extra help in gaining the skills and experience they need to succeed. Prioritise the safeguarding of vulnerable children and adults, and ensure that the risk of them getting harmed is kept to an absolute minimum. Make the improvement of people s health and wellbeing everybody s business, with an emphasis on prevention and the contribution that all services can make. Prioritise the reduction of health inequalities between different parts of the Borough and the Borough and the rest of the country. Ensure that the Council plays a strong part in keeping the Borough safe and work with others to improve community safety. We are clear that our reducing resources will mean that we will need to look for different ways of doing things, alongside changing expectations regarding what can be delivered and why. This will require a different relationship with the many different communities across the Borough, with the Council taking a more enabling role with others taking greater responsibility for delivering services in a different way, or doing more for themselves. In many cases, this will be one where we will look to involve local people in the design and delivery of services, challenge others to make services more responsive to different areas, or provide support for more people to do more for themselves. We will also promote volunteering as an effective way for things to get done, and for members of the community to gain new skills and experiences. This will be a key change in how the Council will work over the next few years and represent a shift in how we work. We will, however, continue to work with the most vulnerable across the Borough, particularly in safeguarding the most vulnerable adults, children and young people. We will:- Ensure people of all ages have a much greater involvement in designing services and actively participating in improving their lives and Barnsley. Support the many benefits of volunteering and foster our many and diverse opportunities for residents to gain new skills and experiences through volunteering. Ensure customer services and the citizen experience of access is improved we are a successful customer service organisation and our plans facilitate greater self-help. Engage local communities in helping them shape the decisions and services in their neighbourhood. Ensure the Council operates fairly and demonstrates total commitment to equalities in policy and practice. Establish new models of delivering services guided by local choice and need. 9 10
How are we going to change and improve Future people and culture - Having the right people with the right skills We are clear that in order to deliver our priorities and better outcomes for our customers and communities that we need to work in a different way. Whilst the changing relationship priority will be crucial to achieving a different way of doing things, there are other things that describe 'how' as an organisation we are going to ensure that we improve and change these cut across all that we do and include a number of key areas that underpin our day to day work. These will be crucial for the development of the organisation as a whole as it evolves and moves forward, amidst the constant need to improve and change. We have four headings to capture 'how' we are going to change and improve:- Taking each one in turn, it is important that each one makes a contribution that supports the other in how we work across the whole organisation. Whilst we will employ fewer staff we will need to continue to lead and develop our workforce to be highly skilled and productive and more business like, so that they can respond effectively to local needs. We also know that our staff will need to be flexible and have skills that can be deployed in different ways, not just in traditional job roles or professions. Being agile and using their skills to work with others to deliver services to customers, rather than directly themselves, will also be a crucial area, alongside effective and regular communication with employees. 11 12
Planning for the future - Doing things differently and embracing change, including the use of different delivery models Future leadership - Ensuring clear and shared leadership across the organisation and with our partners and communities We need to understand all our customers, ensure that we take full account of the needs of the many equality groups across the Borough, and target commissioning and service delivery accordingly. This will mean that we will look to deliver services in different ways. This will necessitate the use of different delivery models, with a greater emphasis on doing things on a shared basis with others, encouraging greater self-reliance and targeting services towards those with the greatest needs. We are clear that leadership - politically and managerially - will be crucial as the Council evolves and adapts to the many challenges that it faces now and in the future. This leadership will take many different forms as we steer the Council forward as an organisation and put in place more effective arrangements with partners and local communities to deliver the priorities in this plan and the Borough wide Community Strategy. 13 14
Investing for the future - Making the most effective use of resources Making a difference Making the most of the limited resources available, maximising the opportunities that exist and ensuring that they are invested to best effect will be increasingly important for the short, medium and long term effect and impact. We want to deliver value for money services and ensure that all our processes and support services are as business like and efficient as possible to support front line delivery. We are clear in relation to what we want to prioritise and how we want to work differently, but we are also clear that we want to make a difference to the Borough, to people s lives. As a result, we will have an increased focus on outcomes and making every penny count. We will ensure that we put in place clear plans, actions and ways in which we can know how much progress we are making and what more we need to do to make further improvements. We will continue to make the best use of our land, buildings and other available assets with the aim of reducing running costs and share resources where appropriate to do so. 15 16
Delivering and reporting improvements We know that, given the challenges set out and the resource pressures that we face, that delivering the priorities and outcomes outlined in this document will be challenging. We are, nevertheless, steadfastly determined to make a difference and ensure that we know that we are making a difference. We will do this in a number of ways:- Having robust arrangements to performance manage our progress and report and challenge where we need to focus our efforts. Reporting progress in an easy to understand format on a quarterly basis, and making this available on our website as part of our approach to transparency. Ensure that the key plans, programmes and projects are appropriately resourced to maximise success and deliver the priorities and outcomes we have set out. Undertake an annual learning and evaluation review process to thoroughly assess where we are and where we are going. We are committed to delivering and reporting the improvements we are making, the challenges we are continually facing and what we are doing about it, via an annual update report on what we have achieved and where we will continue to focus our efforts. 17 18
Further information This document provides a succinct overview of the Council's Corporate Plan and acts as a signpost to other more detailed documents. Further information regarding the Council's progress and performance in relation to the Corporate Plan will be published on a regular basis and allow a transparent reporting of the progress we are making. BARNSLEY Metropolitan Borough Council G7408 12 12