At the meeting of the Council held on 17 October 2016 (minute 67 (5) refers), the attached Notice of Motion, ‘Performance Management Reporting Arrangements’ proposed by Councillor Phil Gilchrist and seconded by Councillor Stuart Kelly was referred by the Mayor to the People, Environment and Business Overview and Scrutiny Committees for consideration.

In accordance with Standing Order 7 (6), Councillor Gilchrist has been invited to attend the meeting in order for him to be given an opportunity to explain the Motion.

The Chair of the Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee reported that at the meeting of the Council held on 17 October 2016 (minute 67(5) refers), the following Notice of Motion proposed by Councillor Phil Gilchrist and seconded by Councillor Stuart Kelly was referred by the Mayor to this Committee for consideration –

“PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT – REPORTING ARRANGMENTS

Council notes:

1.  the training session on the arrangements for Performance Management held on 7September 2016, attended by a wide range of Members across all parties, at which Members were informed regarding the range of indicators chosen for future reports based on the progress with the Wirral Plan;

2.  the concern expressed at that meeting that these reports and proposed indicators do not cover the range of established indicators that Council Members have always followed and expected to see, such as progress with staff appraisals, the level of staff sickness and absence and other issues;

3.  that many Members at the training session made the case for a wider range of indicators to show how Council services are performing;

4.  that the former Families and Wellbeing Policy & Performance Committee received performance monitoring data on a range of indicators that are and remain sensitive and significant in the light of OFSTED’s recent findings.

Council, therefore, requests that:

(i)  as the data is still being collected and analysed by officers, a set of such wider indicators should be presented to Members on a regular basis;

(ii)  accompanying quarterly performance data, there should also be information as to the target expected in that quarter, in addition to the year end and Plan end (2020) target;

(iii)  the choice of indicators needs to be relevant to the 2020 pledge and undertakes to review those indicators chosen to measure pledge success prior to reporting for Quarter 2 performance;

(iv)  officers report to each Overview and Scrutiny committee the ‘added value’ expected for those indicators that have been included within the 2020 Vision Plan and, in respect of indicators flagged as under or over preforming, additional information and actions proposed in respect of those indicators.

In order to secure a transparent and open review, Members should be invited to submit details of the key areas that they wish to see reported upon by the end of October.

The Spokespersons of each of the newly created Overview and Scrutiny Committees should be requested to examine these suggestions and ensure a sufficient, timely and readily accessible mechanism for such data in future reports.”

As neither Proposer nor Seconder of the motion was in attendance, the Chair informed that, in accordance with Overview and Scrutiny Procedures Rule 16(e), the matter would be considered ‘in absentia’.

A Member commented that it was his belief that the majority of the requirements as embedded in the Notice of Motion were being achieved. Another Member stated that there had been good reports regarding the initial meeting of the OSC Chairs, Vice Chairs and Spokespersons and that further meetings should be organised.

Similar comment was made regarding the Performance Management Member training session held in September 2016, although concern was expressed in so far as time delays in reporting could mean that information may be quickly dated.

A Member expressed a view that the referral of this particular Notice of Motion to all Overview and Scrutiny Committees had resulted in a lot of Member time having been spent on the matter, compared to it having been debated at Council as originally hoped. Another Member countered this argument stating that as a result of its referral the matter had probably received more detailed consideration than may have occurred in the course of a busy Council meeting.

On a motion by the Chair, duly seconded it was –

Resolved - That

1)  the Notice of Motion be supported; and

2)  a further meeting of the OSC Chairs, Vice-Chairs and Spokespersons would be welcomed to consider feedback from the OSC Committees on the presentation and content of performance data.