Executive 8th
October 2002
Update on Progress
of Current Year Best Value Reviews
The Appraisal Group and project team have agreed the scope and project plans.
The review has been an in depth look at the service and how it rates compared to two of the best in the country (Cornwall and West Sussex), plus Ofsted and National Youth Agency Standards and Quality. The strategy and planning elements of the service, plus its structure and partnership operations have been examined.
The project has largely run to timescale so far, with key milestones for challenge and compare having been met.
The target dates for the production of the draft report, and a short paper on the costed improvement plans, are very tight, given the existing pressures on staff time. However, work is currently on schedule to meet those targets, which will ensure that new resource requirements are considered during the budget setting process.
The review has been split into 3 phases:
1. How we handle the public when they contact us.
2. How we give out information to the public.
3. How we consult with the public.
There are overlaps within the three areas, but so far the work has concentrated on phase 1.
Considerable consultation and evidence collection has been carried out, resulting in the identification of a wide range of issues. These are now being analysed, prior to the development of options to address the problem areas. We are also in the process of involving an external challenger in the review to consider both the processes we have gone through and the options we will develop.
Phase 1 is taking longer than expected because of the scale of the work, but it is still anticipated that the main options will have been identified by the end of October, with a draft report by the end of November.
Community Development
The Appraisal Group and project team have agreed the scope and project plans.
The review covers the following service areas: Libraries, Museums, Records Office, Sports Unit, Arts Unit, Parks & Gardens, Ventnor Botanic Garden, Schools Music Service.
The work has effectively split into reviews of each service that will contribute to the overall review of the Community Development Service
The project has largely run to timescale so far, key milestones for consult, and challenge, having been met.
The review is currently on schedule to meet tight deadlines, with an interim report by the beginning of November, in order to take proposals for improvements forward into the budget process.