In accordance with Council minutes 77 and 78 (12 December, 2011), the Committee is requested to consider those parts of the Corporate Plan within its remit.

In accordance with Council minutes 77 and 78 (12 December, 2011), the Committee considered those parts of the Corporate Plan within its remit. The Committee had also had sight of a motion which had been referred to all Overview and Scrutiny Committees by the Council at its meeting on 12 December, 2011 (minute 76 refers) and which was considered in connection with the Corporate Plan.

The Draft Corporate Plan and report of the Chief Executive which had been considered by Cabinet at its meeting on 8 December were considered by the Committee and the Chair sought the views of Members. He commented also that the Council Excellence O&S Committee had a coordinating role in relation to the overall production of the Corporate Plan and he had requested that the views of the other themed O&S Committees were presented for Members’ consideration. The Director of Law, HR and Asset Management submitted the following minutes –

·  Minute 39 – Economy and Regeneration O&S (16 January 2012)

·  Minute 44 – Health and Well Being O&S (19 January 2012)

·  Minute 49 – Children and Young People O&S (26 January 2012)

·  Minute 62 – Sustainable Communities O&S (30 January 2012)

The Chair referred to an email he had circulated to Members of the Committee, which contained extracts of the Audit Commission’s Corporate Assessments of Wirral from December 2002 and from December 2005, both of which contained comments in relation to the development of the Corporate Plan.

Members expressed a diverse range of views in relation to the Corporate Plan, including –

·  That although it is a very important document, it should be more concise.

·  That if it does not contain clear and quantifiable targets, it will do nothing to improve performance.

·  That the Plan is aspirational and lacks clear targets.

·  That the Plan contains no reference to the Strategic Change Programme.

Members commented also –

·  That the Corporate Plan is all-encompassing and detailed enough for members of the public to engage with and that there is clear indication of where to access specific more detailed information.

·  The Plan should not contain specific targets or high levels of detail, but should give an indication as to the general direction of the Council.

·  That, being a 3 Year Plan, it should contain goals for the life of the Plan, rather than targets. Future reports from officers will then include specific targets for the achievement of the goals set out in the Plan.

·  That the need for change is clearly set out in the introduction to the Plan

On a motion by Councillor Gilchrist and seconded by Councillor Brighouse, it was –

Resolved –

(1)  That the comments of the Committee be referred to the Cabinet.

(2)  That the Council Excellence O&S Committee welcomes the principal of the Corporate Plan as a Statement of the Council’s Priorities.

(3)  That Committee looks forward to the Plan being produced in a more accessible format.

(4)  That Committee looks forward to targets being provided,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 76

In accordance with Council minutes 77 and 78 (12 December, 2011), the Committee is requested to consider those parts of the Corporate Plan within its remit.

In accordance with Council minutes 77 and 78 (12 December, 2011), the Committee considered those parts of the Corporate Plan within its remit. The Committee had also had sight of a motion which had been referred to all Overview and Scrutiny Committees by the Council at its meeting on 12 December, 2011 (minute 76 refers) and which was considered in connection with the Corporate Plan.

The Draft Corporate Plan and report of the Chief Executive which had been considered by Cabinet at its meeting on 8 December were considered by the Committee and the Chair sought comments from Members.

A Member made a number of general points in relation to the Corporate Plan and some specific issues that were relevant to the work of the Sustainable Communities O&S Committee. The Chair also commented that the Corporate Plan lacked detail in relation to specific targets.

On a Motion by Councillor Wilkins and seconded by Councillor Hale, it was –

Resolved (10:0) – That the following comments form the basis of this Committees response to the Corporate Plan –

A. GENERAL POINTS

(1)  There are dozens of priorities that have been either omitted from the current corporate plan or so severely watered down as to be meaningless.

(2)  It shows a loss of commitment to engagement, consultation and involvement – these are scarcely mentioned.

(3)  In particular there is no mention of any annual budget consultation.

(4)  There is no mention of the Strategic Change Programme, or of the need for the Council to change.

(5)  There is no reference to reducing the costs of running the council / bureaucracy.

(6)  There is no reference to delegation or devolved decision making or budgets.

(7)  There is no mention of Area Forums.

(8)  There is no mention of the Voluntary and Community Sector, or of grants.

B. SOME KEY ISSUES RELEVANT TO THIS COMMITTEE

(9)  There is no mention of Libraries

(10)  There is no mention of 20mph zones

(11)  There is no mention of Alcohol Harm, despite recent public health reports saying how bad Wirral is for alcohol related hospital admissions and conditions. (Cabinet agreed on17 March that the recommendation of the Alcohol Scrutiny Review (Tackling Alcohol Harm) be picked up in the Corporate Plan).

(12)  There is no mention of Green Technology / Solar Energy. The pledge in the current plan “we will make sure all future Council projects incorporate green technology and sustainable products and urge private developers to do the same” has been deleted.

(13)  There is no mention of Community Justice.

(14)  That the Plan contains no detail in relation to targets

The Chief Executive presented the Council’s draft Corporate Plan for 2012-2013. He commented that the Plan reflected the needs of Wirral and the priorities for local people and it also put in place a clear commitment and actions to ensure that the Council’s corporate governance failings were addressed through engaging the entire organisation in the challenge and opportunities this presented.

The Corporate Plan provided a clear framework for budget and departmental planning for 2012-2013 and it would directly inform the Council’s budget for 2012-2013. Departments would prepare individual business plans, which would set out in more detail how the actions set out in the Corporate Plan would be delivered.

Resolved – That the draft Corporate Plan be approved and referred for adoption by full Council on the 12 December 2011, for implementation from the 1 April 2012.