Agenda item

Report number PPMO05 by the Head of People, Projects and Performance.

Enclosures:

The Council’s Performance Management Officer presented report number PPMO05 on the 2012/13 annual report: ‘celebrating our success’. The report was designed to inform Councillors and members of the public about the Council’s performance as well as progress against its projects. Heads of Service were present at the meeting to answer any questions raised by Councillors.

Projects highlighted within the report included:

·         Olympic torch relay

·         Gravity Fields Festival 2012

·         A district-wide recycling education campaign

·         Wherry’s Lane and Bourne Core Area

·         Southern Quadrant, Grantham

·         Green flag status for Wyndham Park, Grantham

·         Local Authority Mortgage Scheme

·         Bourne Community Access Point

Improvement plans had been drawn up to augment performance in respect of sickness absence and planning targets. Officers reported that attendance had improved and that as they started to receive reports for 2013/14, Members would notice improved end-to-end times in the determination of planning applications.

The authority had seen an increase in the number of people in receipt of benefits. The weekly average wage had remained stable an there had been a positive increase in the percentage of people who were economically active.

Members were informed that the Council had not met targets on the level of CO2 emissions because of additional heating required throughout the drawn-out winter in 2012/13. This was reflected across the Council’s estate and the leisure centres.

Levels of household waste sent for reuse, recycling and composting had fallen below target. It was hoped that a district-wide education campaign would increase performance. Targeted campaigns would also be rolled-out following a detailed audit of the waste in the areas from which a high proportion of contaminated recycling was collected.

Members were invited to ask questions and make comments.

One member asked how income raised through the green bin service was used to support broader clean-up activity. Officers said they would supply this information directly. Reference was also made to street-cleaning in Bourne; an appropriate solution that provided a high quality product would be identified.

Action Point

·         Information to be supplied on distribution of income from the green waste scheme to conduct broader environmental clean-up work

·         Identify a street-cleaning solution for Bourne

A further question was asked on the number of reports regarding fly-tipping following increases in the cost of skip hire. It was suggested that this should be monitored on an ongoing basis. Officers hoped that high profile publicity of any successful enforcement action would help act as a deterrent.

Officers advised members that they hoped shops at Wherry’s Lane, Bourne, would be available for tenants by the end of December 2013. Reference was also made to changes in car parking arrangements as a result of the development. Five public parking spaces would be lost to residential properties however consideration was being given to whether contractors could use them in the short-term.

Councillors suggested earlier advertising of Gravity Fields 2014 across the district to optimise opportunities for individuals from South Kesteven to attend events. The contribution of community groups to the success of the festival in 2012 was acknowledged.

Members queried why the 2012/13 target for leisure centre visits was lower than the actual number of visits for 2011/12. Officers stated the target was set at a cautious level as the number of visits in 2011/12 was significantly higher than previously experienced.

Councillors were informed that there were a number of measures that were recorded but against which no target was set. These measures recorded performance over which the district council had no influence, for example average rent levels in the private sector. This information was collected as it assisted the delivery of the authority’s services. There were also a number of new indicators where there was no target as performance in 2012/13 formed the baseline.

The Committee was informed that it would receive a report on performance in the first half of 2013/14 at its meeting on 26 November 2013.