RESOURCES SELECT COMMITTEE – 23 JANUARY 2003
CONNECTING WITH THE PUBLIC BEST VALUE REVIEW
REPORT OF MR ANDY SUTTON - LEAD MEMBER FOR THE REVIEW
REASON FOR SELECT
COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION
This report has been submitted at the request of the Appraisal Group for the Review, prior to the paper “Great Access to Great Services” being presented to the Executive.
ACTION REQUIRED BY THE SELECT COMMITTEE
1. That the Select Committee support the work
being undertaken towards a future vision for public access.
2. That the Select Committee recommend to
the Executive the delay of phases 2 and 3 of the review
BACKGROUND
1.
The work on the first phase of the review, how we deal with the public when
they come to us, has now largely been completed. The attached paper
“Organisational Development - Great Access to Great Services” contains a
high-level summary of the work, with a vision of how the Council could handle
public access in the future. This paper is to be presented to the Executive at
the end of January and the to full Council in February.
The
work involved in delivering that vision is closely linked with other on-going
projects such as Customer Relationship Management, Implementing Electronic
Government, and the accommodation review.
It
is proposed to bring these pieces of work together under a single Programme
Board of Senior Officers and Members, to drive the agenda forward.
2.
Phase 2 of the review is to cover Information and Communication. It is proposed
to delay that part of the review until 6 months after the forthcoming
appointment of a Communications and PR manager. This will give the appointee
time to implement some of the findings of the review so far, such as the need for
an audit of the current provision of communications and the development of a
communications strategy.
3.
Phase 3 of the review is to cover Consultation. Similar to point 2 above, an
audit of current consultation, to include how much use we make of it, how much
it costs, and how we can share it across the authority, will help to develop a
consultation strategy (which would also have strong links with the
communications strategy). It is proposed to also delay this phase of the review
to allow that work to be completed.
If
the above proposals are adopted it would mean re-launching phases 2 and 3 in
the early Autumn.
Any
issues which have arisen from the review, which can be implemented immediately and
do not require further development as under points 1 to 3 above, will be
presented to the Committee at a later date in the form of a proposed action
plan.
FINANCIAL, LEGAL,
CRIME AND DISORDER IMPLICATIONS
There are no such
implications in the above proposals.
APPENDICES
ATTACHED
Organisational
Development - Great Access to Great Services
BACKGROUND PAPERS
USED IN THE PREPARATION OF THIS REPORT
Notes
from the Best Value Appraisal Group for Connecting with the Public 19th
December 2003