PAPER C1

Committee: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, PLANNING, TOURISM AND LEISURE SERVICES SELECT COMMITTEE

Date: 22 AUGUST 2002

Title: SERVICE PLANS AND PERFORMANCE INDICATORS – ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

REPORT OF THE HEAD OF PAID SERVICE

SUMMARY / PURPOSE:

This report summarises information on the 2002/03 Service Plan for Economic Development service together with information and commentary on past performance in 2001/02.

BACKGROUND

Service Plans have been prepared to a standard format for all major service areas within the authority. The Plans contain a range of information including :

• Details of services provided
• Resources
• Staff structure
• Service aims, objectives, tasks and targets

Following preparation of a Corporate Plan (draft approved for consultation at Executive on July 2^nd 2002), a revised Service Plan format is to be introduced for the next financial year – this will ensure that service activities directly link to the approved corporate goals.

The Council also collects a diverse range of information regarding service performance through both national and local Performance Indicators (PIs) which are published each year in the Best Value Performance Plan (BVPP). In the 2001/02 BVPP, a “traffic light” system has been introduced to classify PIs by the following categories :

• Better than average and improving
• Better than average and worsening
• Worse than average and improving
• Worse than average and worsening

SERVICE PLAN

Attached to this report (Annex 1), members will find summary information for the following service areas :

• European Unit
• Research Team
• Economic Development

The information provided in Annex 1 includes :

• Numerical indicators, targets & standards & comparisons (Section 7 of the Plan)
• Performance achievements (Sections 8a and 8b of the Plan)
• Service aims, objectives, tasks and targets (Section 11 of the Plan)

Members should note the following :

• This is the first Service Plan that has been drawn up for Economic Development
• No Performance Indicators have been previously set for this service.
• There is no Nationally agreed Framework for Benchmarking for this service
• Actions arising from the Economic Development Best Value Review Improvement Plan are included in section 12 of the Service Plan. They have not been included here but are available for separate scrutiny should this be required.
• Strategic themes for Economic Development are laid down in the “Island Regeneration Strategy 2001-2005”. This document is to be reviewed in light of the changes that have occurred in the structure of the Isle of Wight Economic Partnership (IWEP) and the subsequent changes in delivery of the service.
• IWEP deliver part of the Economic Development service on the Island for the Council. The terms and conditions of this are laid down in an agreement between the two parties, which is currently under review.

Members are invited to comment upon the Service Plan. Areas for enquiry may include :

• Does it support achievement of the Council’s mission “to improve Island life”?
• Does it give a clear view of the service aims and targets?
• Are the targets sufficiently “stretching” and do they meet identified priorities and needs?
• Does it provide sufficient information to inform members decisions on budget priorities?

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

As there have been no Performance Indicators previously set for the Economic Development Service it was not possible to measure performance against these when the Best Value review was carried out. However, under Section 7 of the Service Plan targets have been set for the current year and Section 8 identifies non-numeric achievements and areas for improvement.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

None as a direct result of this report.

BACKGROUND PAPERS

Best Value Performance Plan, 2001/02

RECOMMENDATION

That the Committee :

1. Consider and comment upon the Service Plan

2. Consider and comment upon the Performance Indicators for the service and identify priority areas for improvement

Contact Point : Lesley Williams, Acting Head of Economic Development; Ext 3797

Alan Kaye

Head of Paid Service

ANNEX 1 : SERVICE PLAN

7. STATEMENT OF PERFORMANCE 1

NUMERIC INDICATORS, TARGETS, STANDARDS AND COMPARISONS

PERFORMANCE INDICATOR AND SOURCE

PERFORMANCE Note: No Performance Indicators previously set

BENCHMARKING Note: No Nationally Agreed Framework available

	ACTUAL 01 / 02	ESTIMATE 02/03	TARGET (& DATE)	COMPARATIVE PERFORMANCE (DATE)	SOURCE OF COMPARISON
Review of Island Regeneration Strategy in light of Community Plan		1 Revised Strategy	December 2002
Revise Service Level Agreement between Council and IWEP		1 new SLA	September 2002
EU and Brussels Office Strategy reviewed		1 strategy	December 2002
EU funding approved for the Isle of Wight	£1.2m	£850k	March 2003
Total value of Research Consultancy contracts won	£105,000	£50,000	March 2003
Development of Funder-finder service to maximise levels of external funding to support economic development activities		Service defined and resources identified and in place	December 2002

8. STATEMENT OF PERFORMANCE 2

NON NUMERIC PERFORMANCE STANDARDS, SIGNIFICANT ACHIEVEMENTS OR AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT

During last 12 months

Achievements.

Despite a period of major organisational changes in the IWEP staff continued to deliver an effective service including:

· Successful Leader + bid (£2.5m grant funding)

· Help in accessing over £1.7 m ESF funds for the Island

· Successful winning and executing over £105k of commercial consultancy work, including some key sector skills work that has led to the development of projects for the Island in the composites sector

· Continued delivery of a valuable information service both regarding European issues and statistical information and analysis

Areas for Improvement.

Three main areas for improvement were identified in the Best Value Review carried out in March 2002:

· Establishing a sustainable organisational structure for service delivery (of economic development services)

· Maintaining and improving performance in service delivery

· Establishing effective monitoring and evaluation arrangements

In addition the following are considered in need of improvement:

· Communication with both internal departments and external organisations

· Promoting “success stories” of achievements

· Ensuring that funding approved is spent

· Quality of projects submitted for funding and quality of their delivery

· Ensuring that environmental considerations permeate ALL aspects of economic development activities

Over last 1 to 3 years

Achievements.

Establishment of Isle of Wight Partnership (regeneration partnership for the Isle of Wight) whose main achievements have been:

· A number of notable new investment projects attracted to the Island creating or safeguarding over 1,000 jobs

· Establishment of an Innovation Centre on the Island which will be the focus for a “composites cluster”

· Significant new development at Somerton, Cowes with over 7,000sq m of new industrial floor space

· Expansion of a number of existing businesses. SP Systems have established a purpose built headquarters in St Cross, Newport; Pascall Electronics have similarly expanded into a new building in Ryde

· Success in accessing over £20m UK and EU regeneration funding since 1996 to support a range of comprehensive regeneration initiatives and training projects throughout the Island

· Successful delivery of SRB and RDP regeneration programmes for which funding has been granted.

Areas for Improvement.

· Communication with both internal departments and external organisations

· Promoting “success stories” of achievements

· Ensuring that funding approved is spent

· Quality of projects submitted for funding and quality of their delivery

11. SERVICE AIMS, OBJECTIVES, TASKS AND TARGETS

SERVICE AIM /OBJECTIVE	TASKS	TARGETS AND DATES	RESPONSIBLE OFFICER	DIRECTORATE OBJECTIVE TO WHICH THIS TASK CONTRIBUTES
a. The creation and safeguarding of employment	1.Assist in the development of projects to support employment / training 2.Help in identifying and accessing funding to support training and employment projects 3. Continue sector skills research to identify key areas of employment opportunities 4. Encourage / work with the LSC, Business Link and the Enterprise Company to continue services for business support to the Island	1. Ongoing 2. Ongoing 3. Ongoing 4. Ongoing	1 All staff 2 Head of Economic Development , EU Unit 3 Policy and Research Manager 4 Head of Economic Development	1 1,2 and 4 2 1 and 4 3 1 and4 4 1,2 and 4
b. Maximise benefits from EU and UK funding opportunities	1. Continue providing support for ESF funding – seminars / workshops / newsletter / one-to-one advice and guidance 2.Develop funder-finder service to enable this service to be extended to non-EU funding 3.Encourage partnership working to avoid duplication of effort in projects 4 Promote information on success stories 5 Encourage better quality projects and better quality of delivery through workshops and promotion of best practice	1 Ongoing 2 Service defined, resources identified by December 2002 3 Ongoing 4 Ongoing 5 Ongoing	1 Principal European Officer, EU Officer 2 Policy and Research Manager / European Officer 3 Head of Economic Development 4 Head of Economic Development (all staff to contribute) 5 Head of Economic Development , Prinicipal EU Officer, EU Officer	1 1,2,4 2 All objectives 3 All Objectives 4 All Objectives 5 All Objectives
c. Maximise potential to influence UK and EU policies for the benefit of the Island	1 Respond to relevant consultations both directly and through associations such as the Islands Commission, LGIB etc 2 Play an active part in the lobbying activities of associations such the Islands Commission which benefit the Island by attending conferences, participating in joint activities 3 Ensure that the message sent in response to different consultations is consistent	1 As required – dependent on external bodies (eg EU Commission, UK Government etc) 2 Islands Commission Conference – May 2002 CPMR conference 0 Sept 2002 3 Ongoing	1 Head of Economic Development 2 Principal European Officer 3 Head of Economic Development	1 provides support to all objectives 2 provides support to all objectives 3 provides support to all objectives
D Ensure that as far as possible the tenets of environmental sustainability permeate through all economic development activities.	1 Encourage environmental awareness in all project development work (a requirement of ALL EU funding already) 2 Lead by example by ensuring the Economic Development Unit adopt these principals as far as possible (eg use both sides of paper, recycle envelopes, turn of lights and PCT when not needed etc) 3 Assist the IWEP in the drawing up of their environmental policy (a requirement of the TEP project) 4 Ensure that this principal is incorporated in the SLA between the IWEP and the Council	1 Ongoing 2 Ongoing 3 July 2002 4 September 2002	1 All Staff 2 All Staff 3 Principal European Officer 4 Head of Economic Development	1 Contributes to all objectives – in particular 1,3,5,6. 2 3 Contributes to all objectives – in particular 1,3,5,6. 4 Contributes to all objectives – in particular 1,3,5,6.

ANNEX 2 : PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

There have been no Performance Indicators previously set for Economic Development.