Issue - meetings

This report and the performance scorecard set out the position on the Council’s performance in the fourth quarter of 2022/23. The content and format of the report and scorecard have been constructed to focus primarily on the Council’s Borough Plan: Building a Better Brent, and its priorities.

Cabinet RESOLVED to:

(1)    Note the performance information contained in the updated report format.

(2)    Note the current and future strategic risks associated with the information provided and agree the remedial actions on strategic risks identified as appropriate alongside the challenge on progress being provided with responsible officers as necessary.

Councillor Mili Patel (Deputy Leader & Cabinet Member for Finance, Resources & Reform) introduced the report, which provided Cabinet with an overview of corporate performance information linked to the Borough Plan priorities for the fourth quarter 2022/23 (January – March 2023).

In presenting the report, Councillor Mili Patel highlighted the changes being made as part of the new performance management framework with a focus around the newly refreshed Borough Plan (Moving Brent Forward Together) and other key corporate strategies including the Black Community Action Plan, Equality Strategy, Poverty Commission, Climate Emergency Strategy and Joint Health & Wellbeing Strategy. Cabinet was advised the format of the current corporate performance update report would therefore be the final one under the framework of the previous Borough Plan (Building a Better Brent).  In relation to the Borough Plan indicators, members were advised that of the current 50 key indicators for Quarter 4 within the performance scorecard 23 had been rated Green (on or above target), 3 as just off target (Amber), 12 as off target (Red) with 12 included to provide contextual information.

In highlighting the performance improvements compared to the third quarter for 2022/23, Councillor Mili Patel commended Children and Young People for the efforts made to reduce the number of indicators where performance had been categorised as ‘red’.  Whilst the percentage of Looked After Children (LAC) in education, employment or training remained below target Cabinet noted and commended the strong partnership work and delivery programmes which had been implemented to support Post 16 Looked After Children not in education, employment or training designed to drive improvements in performance. Similarly, Cabinet noted the positive direction of travel identified in relation to performance against the target for percentage of new birth visits occurring within 14 days which whilst still rated as “red” had continued to improve over the current monitoring period.

Cabinet was also informed of the actions being undertaken to address current performance in relation to the average re-let time for major and minor voids, which continued to be rated as “red”. This included the establishment of a new task force to address and improve voids and letting performance the outcome of which would continue to be kept under review as part of ongoing performance updates.

Members were keen to recognise the efforts being made to ensure the continued delivery of services and work being undertaken jointly by Cabinet Members with their relevant Strategic Directors, in seeking to manage and mitigate against the strategic risks identified as part of the overall wider approach towards supporting local residents and in support of the priorities within the updated Borough Plan.

In welcoming the focus on development of a new suite of performance indicators under the newly refreshed Borough Plan Cabinet RESOLVED to:

(1)            Note the performance information contained in the current report format.

(2)            Note the current and future strategic risks associated with the information provided and agree the remedial actions on strategic risks identified as appropriate alongside the challenge on progress being provided with responsible officers  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8