Agenda item

Agenda item

Proposed Corporate Plan (2019-2024)

Report of the Chief Executive / Head of Paid Service

Minutes:

It was moved by the Chair, seconded by the Vice-Chair and

 

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED THAT:

 

Under Rule 22.1 of the Constitution, the Council’s Rules of Procedure, specifically Rule 4.4, be suspended for the duration of the ensuing item of business only to allow Members who do not ordinarily sit on the Committee to otherwise be entitled to vote and take part in the discussion thereon.

 

The Committee received the report as set out on pages 9-46 of the agenda, which asked it to consider and approve the proposed Corporate Plan 2019-2024, to be implemented from 1 April 2019.

 

The Chief Executive provided the Committee with a brief overview of the Plan, which had been modified to take account of feedback received by Change Management Committee at its meeting on 5 March 2019.

 

The Committee welcomed the Plan and stated that it was appropriate that the Council should set out a comprehensive vision for the next 5 years accompanied by realistic targets. In particular, Members felt that the Plan outlined a range of positive aspirations, in contrast to the somewhat negative political mood nationally.

 

A Member of the Committee suggested that with the Council being a major purchaser of goods and services in the Borough, the Plan should demonstrate a clearer commitment under the Localism Act to procure local services as far as possible to ensure investment stays within the community. It was confirmed by Officers that whilst the Council’s has a Procurement Strategy that deals with this area, a line could be inserted into the Plan reaffirming the position.

 

A Member of the Committee noted the commitments made in the Plan to deliver redevelopment projects at Paddock Street and Sandhurst Street, and suggested that in order to ensure that parking capacity is maintained there should be a Car Park Strategy agreed before any development is permitted to commence. Other Committee Members disagreed with the view that such a strategy should be in place at the beginning of the process, as the Council had already committed to retaining existing levels of parking provision and did not wish to see this reduced. Instead, it was suggested that the strategy for parking provision in these developments would arise and evolve out of discussions with the developer(s) at the design stage.

 

A Member of the Committee welcomed the commitment in Corporate Objective Three to ‘Providing Excellent Services’ but noted that there was no target in place whereby the commitment to investing in the Council’s workforce was to be measured. It was also suggested that a commitment should be made to ensuring appropriate Member development through a coordinated training programme.

 

A motion to amend the Corporate Plan was put to the vote and it was

 

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED THAT:

 

A target be introduced to the Corporate Plan to measure the Council’s commitment to investing in its workforce, and a further commitment be made to ensuring appropriate Member training and development.

 

It was moved by J W Boyce, seconded by the Chair and

 

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED THAT:

 

(i)       The new proposed Corporate Plan for the period 2019 to 2024 be approved and implemented as from 1 April 2019; and

(ii)     The Corporate Plan be a working document with at least an annual review by the Policy, Finance and Development Committee on the progress of the Plan’s key objectives and whether there needs to be any amendments to the Plan as it evolves.

Supporting documents: