LGA Corporate Peer Challenge - Wychavon District Council

Corporate Peer Challenge (CPC) is a highly valued improvement and assurance tool that is delivered by the sector for the sector. It involves a team of senior local government councillors and officers undertaking a comprehensive review of key finance, performance and governance information and then spending three days at a council to provide robust, strategic, and credible challenge and support.

CPC forms a key part of the improvement and assurance framework for local government. It is underpinned by the principles of Sector-led Improvement (SLI) put in place by councils and the Local Government Association (LGA) to support continuous improvement and assurance across the sector. These state that local authorities are: Responsible for their own performance, accountable locally not nationally and have a collective responsibility for the performance of the sector. 

CPC assists councils in meeting part of their Best Value duty, with the UK Government expecting all local authorities to have a CPC at least every five years. 

Peers remain at the heart of the peer challenge process and provide a ‘practitioner perspective’ and ‘critical friend’ challenge. 

This report outlines the key findings of the peer team and the recommendations that the council are required to action.

Wychavon District Council (WDC) is an ambitious council which is well-run, is performing well for its communities and delivering impressive results. The council is financially well resourced and this position has been carefully grown over time through sound past decision-making. Alongside having committed and knowledgeable members and officers, who are keen to do their best for the district, this puts WDC in a good position to continue to deliver for Wychavon. The peer team consider that WDC can move from ‘good to great’ as part of its improvement journey by building on these solid foundations.

The council demonstrates a high level of self-awareness and many of the improvement recommendations the peer team are citing were already identified by WDC. WDC should be assured that it has identified the right improvement priorities.

The peer team saw the confidence in the senior member and officer leadership and how the top team are working effectively together. There is a shared approach with the political and managerial sides of the council working positively and complementarily.

Wychavon is an open and friendly place - both within the council and across the district – and it has a strong community focus. Relationships are strong and staff and members work well together and there is respect and an appreciation of the collective aims of the council. Partners also referenced good collaborative working with many examples of where consistent and good relationships, which have grown over time, are working well to deliver for the district. WDC is proactive in working outside of its immediate remit and it is playing a positive role alongside others for the greater benefit of Wychavon.

WDC’s corporate plan, the We Are Wychavon plan, is well recognised with clearly articulated ambitions. The council has been clearly positioned by this plan through a set of priorities and this has been well communicated within the council and externally. There is now an opportunity to further ‘flush this through’ WDC to ensure it is fully embedded within all plans and strategies for future improvement that will then support the delivery of outcomes to the quality which the council expects. WDC has high expectations of itself, for its communities and a whole organisational approach to delivery will support its ambitions.

There is an opportunity to further develop consistency in the corporate approach across WDC. The peer team saw evidence of effective teams which are working well individually and there is an opportunity to build on this and have more consistent horizontal conversations and joint working.

WDC recognises that the customer journey requires improvement and an additional focus. Through a customer service charter and action plan and recent good work in particular services including housing and planning there have been some positive improvements. The peer team agree that this would now benefit from a deeper and more consistent focus across the whole council as this is central to delivery of the aims and aspirations of the council.

The peer team were aware of the issues within the planning service and how steps have been taken to improve performance. Key individuals have made an important difference and real impact has been seen. This is a good recent example of how the council is driving improvement within the business, which can then be built upon.

To meet WDC’s future challenges and ambitions, transformation of the organisation is now necessary. There is an opportunity to transform the way in which WDC does business internally and with its customers through working with staff to design and deliver this. This will lead to the delivery of improved outcomes and produce efficiencies.

The next step in moving from good to great will require building on what is already in place and capitalising on its solid position. This will support WDC in meeting its high ambitions to deliver for Wychavon and its communities.

There are a number of observations and suggestions within the main section of the report. The following are the peer team’s key recommendations to the council:

Recommendation 1: Develop and resource a holistic Transformation Plan. This is a key priority and the Plan should support the council to meet its future challenges as well as deliver on its ambitions. This plan should include consideration for the customer journey and service delivery; Workforce; IT; and Finance. WDC should consider the skills required and the advantage of dedicated external resources to deliver the impact.

Recommendation 2: Building on the ‘We Are Wychavon’ Plan, transform and refresh WDC’s delivery mechanisms through culture, financial and people strategies with appropriate measures and a dashboard in place to monitor and ensure delivery.

Recommendation 3: Changes to the ‘We Are Wychavon’ Plan to be appropriately agreed and resourced. WDC acknowledges that as an ambitious organisation it has a tendency to add to the agreed list of priorities and a keenness to move on to ‘the next big thing’. The council should ensure that once the plan is agreed with a direct alignment of financial and people resources, that it is maintained and additional priorities/projects are only agreed following consideration of the implications and impacts on other work.

Recommendation 4: Understand, develop and implement a corporate approach to customer journey and service delivery. There are multiple customer journeys in place currently and this leads to inconsistencies. By mapping and designing an approach which is customer orientated the council will be able to improve the experience as well as deliver efficiencies. Aligned to this there was a desire for more opportunities for horizontal communications and contact points across the organisation to build the ‘one team’ approach and this will support improvements to service delivery.

Recommendation 5: Develop the council’s financial strategy so it makes the most of the favourable financial position to make positive interventions that future proof the organisation. The council is in a good financial position but it is currently projecting a significant change in 2026/27 with the impact of the changes to business rates. WDC will want to be clear how it will address the significant impact of this.

Recommendation 6: Provide training and awareness to officers and members to ensure governance works as an enabler. There is an opportunity to do some further internal training around governance to ensure that members and officers are fully aware of the governance mechanisms and are able to play their active part and collaborate together.

Recommendation 7: Draw on external support and learning for Members and officers. There are opportunities to build on what is already provided and build in support from other providers including the LGA and learning from other areas.

Recommendation 8: Develop a corporate approach to deliver consistency in people management across services and teams. The peer team heard there were perceptions of different approaches being taken across the organisation and a lack of consistency with the application of HR policies.

The peer team

Peer challenges are delivered by experienced elected member and officer peers.  The make-up of the peer team reflected the focus of the peer challenge and peers were selected by the LGA on the basis of their relevant expertise.  The peers were:

• Trevor Holden – managing director of Broadland and South Norfolk Councils
• Cllr Louise McKinlay – Conservative member peer - deputy leader Essex County Council, and cabinet member for communities, economic growth and prosperity, Essex County Council
• Cllr Mike Evemy – Liberal Democrat member peer - deputy leader and cabinet member for finance, Cotswold District Council
• Kathy Nixon - deputy chief executive, Babergh and Mid Suffolk Councils
• Tracy Bingham - executive director - resources and transformation (S151 officer) at South Derbyshire District Council
• James Millington - peer challenge manager, LGA

Scope and focus

The peer team considered the following five themes which form the core components of all Corporate Peer Challenges. These areas are critical to councils’ performance and improvement.

1. Local priorities and outcomes - Are the council’s priorities clear and informed by the local context? Is the council delivering effectively on its priorities? Is there an organisational-wide approach to continuous improvement, with frequent monitoring, reporting on and updating of performance and improvement plans?
2. Organisational and place leadership - Does the council provide effective local leadership? Are there good relationships with partner organisations and local communities?
3. Governance and culture - Are there clear and robust governance arrangements? Is there a culture of challenge and scrutiny?
4. Financial planning and management - Does the council have a grip on its current financial position? Does the council have a strategy and a plan to address its financial challenges? What is the relative financial resilience of the council like?
5. Capacity for improvement - Is the organisation able to bring about the improvements it needs, including delivering on locally identified priorities? Does the council have the capacity to improve?

As part of the five core elements outlined above, every Corporate Peer Challenge includes a strong focus on financial sustainability, performance, governance, and assurance.

In addition to these themes, the council also asked the peer team to provide reflections on the council’s approach to customer services. WDC has developed a new customer service charter and has completed delivery of the associated Action Plan. WDC has requested that the peer team provide some external views on the effectiveness of these and its overall customer experience.

The peer challenge process

Peer challenges are improvement focused; it is important to stress that this was not an inspection. The process is not designed to provide an in-depth or technical assessment of plans and proposals. The peer team used their experience and knowledge of local government to reflect on the information presented to them by people they met, things they saw and material that they read.

The peer team prepared by reviewing a range of documents and information in order to ensure they were familiar with the council and the challenges it is facing. This included a position statement prepared by the council in advance of the peer team’s time on site. This provided a clear steer to the peer team on the local context at WDC and what the peer team should focus on. It also included a comprehensive LGA Finance briefing (prepared using public reports from the council’s website) and a LGA performance report outlining benchmarking data for the council across a range of metrics. The latter was produced using the LGA’s local area benchmarking tool called LG Inform. 

The peer team then spent three days onsite at the council, during which they:

• Gathered evidence, information, and views from more than 45 meetings, in addition to further research and reading. The peer team also had a tour of some key sites within the district
• Spoke to more than 120 people including a range of council staff together with members and external stakeholders.

This report provides a summary of the peer team’s findings.  In presenting feedback, they have done so as fellow local government officers and members.

WDC knows its place and its communities well and it has orientated itself around a very clear plan and set of priorities. The We Are Wychavon Plan covers 2024-2028 and outlines how the council will make the district an ‘even better place to live work and visit’ and it has clear priorities of People, Place and Environment. These are supported by a mini-vision statement and strategic goals that articulate outcomes the council wants to achieve and 29 ‘promises’ which the council is committed to delivering. The plan was developed using a thorough evidence base which included analysis of the district’s needs and wide engagement with staff, members, residents (including contributions from more than 2,000 residents, including young people) and partners. It is well communicated across the organisation and there is a strong brand in place which ensures that this is seen as being the key driver for council activity.

The delivery of this plan could be further enhanced by considering how this can be a whole council effort. Whilst the council rightly recognises that this sits alongside the five year money plan, South Worcestershire development plan and WDC’s intelligently green plan there is value in ensuring it is delivered through other enabling work for instance such as the plans around workforce, culture and the customer journey. This link is currently less obvious and by making this clearer the peer team think it will better support delivery of the plan and produce improved outcomes for the council.

Each of the 29 promises has a promise delivery plan and these have been well developed with clear milestones so accountability for delivery is well understood and can be monitored. These plans are currently held internally so the progress which is being made in how some of the more longer term promises are being delivered is less obvious to those without access. For instance, when currently reviewing the quarterly reports, which do not include the detail of the plans, it is not possible to understand all the great work being delivered. The linkage between the plans and indicators for externally reported quarterly reporting could be strengthened and would allow WDC to communicate its delivery more widely.

WDC is good at reflecting on the delivery of past priorities. At the end of 2023/24 the end of year performance report outlined the key achievements for the council including:

• Supported voluntary and community organisations, including three health and wellbeing hubs
• Delivered 1,189 affordable homes, exceeding the target of 1,000 between April 2020 and March 2024
• Supported a wide range of events and allocated £150K to promote the visitor economy.

This reflective piece is important to take stock of the achievements of the council and celebrate member, officer and partner working. The council also reflects on promises made which were not delivered within the timescales and have been carried forward, or will not now be delivered due to external impacts and changes. In doing this WDC is self-aware and recognises both strengths and limitations. Keeping staff aware of future delivery will continue to remain important.

WDC has a strong history of bold decision-making and delivery supported by its partners. Good examples of this are the leading roles the council has played in the development of a new hospital and also of WDC’s commitment in attracting Waitrose to the District. The council is seen as an innovator for the District and this approach is appreciated by partners who provided positive feedback and hold the council in high esteem. This does also mean there are high expectations on the council too, and WDC will want to consider how it manages this.

Performance

WDC demonstrates strong performance across a number of areas when comparing published data with other councils. For example, when reviewing LG Inform data and comparing the council to its CIPFA near neighbours (accessed October 2024) this shows impressive performance by the council in areas such as: the numbers of households in temporary accommodation where WDC is lowest; and the number of affordable homes delivered where the council is second highest within the group.

However, when compared to other areas the council has historically been under-performing in many aspects of its planning service including the processing of major, minor and other planning applications, where it is consistently among the lowest within the comparator group. WDC has embarked on a programme which has positively improved the speed of decision-making within required timeframes for planning applications from April - August 2024 to 76 per cent for major applications, 84 per cent for minor applications and 88 per cent for other applications. This focus demonstrates strong improvement and there are plans in place to continue to improve the planning service.

WDC undertakes an annual Wychavon Residents’ Survey, and the 2023 survey attracted 1,744 responses (the population of Wychavon is 136,200). The survey evidenced good satisfaction with council services including: parks and open spaces; waste and recycling services; sports and leisure facilities; street cleaning; community safety; and housing benefits. The Survey also showed:

• 64 per cent of residents were satisfied with the way the council runs things
• 51 per cent agreed it provided value for money
• 55 per cent rated WDC as good or very good, 33 per cent as fair and 12 per cent as poor or very poor.

The council recognises that it would like the results to be higher and notes that to maintain and improve resident satisfaction it will need to continue providing similar levels of service, communicate well about our services and improve the customer experience through use of technology and more efficient processing”. The peer team agree with this and encourage the council to consider how transformation and investments in particular areas, including in the customer journey, will have a positive impact on how residents experience the council.

Performance is regularly reviewed by the senior management team (SMT), the executive board and the overview and scrutiny committee. Scrutiny has recently made recommendations for changes to the reporting process and this is being updated. This is positive and the council has been very open in its ambition to ensure performance information is used effectively and drives improvement. The peers support WDC’s approach to ensure the use of data is continually reviewed to ensure opportunities to utilise intelligence further are considered. For instance, in reviewing the council’s end of year 2023/24 report the peer team consider there are opportunities to elaborate on the “so what” question to improve the articulation of the outcomes and impact of council activity. This focus on outcomes will also help the council to interrogate its performance and strive for greatness, so even if a target is being achieved WDC can challenge itself on how it can ensure it gets the very best outcomes from its effort.

The peer team heard a range of positive feedback on the Leader and CEX who are seen as being ambitious for the Wychavon and the role of the council. The peer team also found effective and positive working relationships across the Executive and the senior management team (SMT), with the top team aligned in their approach, and this sends a strong and consistent message across the organisation and beyond. The peer team heard positive messages from partners, residents and the business community about the clear political and officer leadership of the council. The consistency of approach was seen as a real strength of the organisation and partners spoke of the important connections with key officers and members across WDC which is important for delivering effective joint work.

The council is well experienced in operating in a shared service environment, including with Worcester City Council. Most significantly however WDC has operated shared arrangements with Malvern Hills District Council (MHDC) for the past ten years, which includes a shared chief executive and SMT and a significant amount of shared roles across other services. They are sovereign councils with distinct identities and WDC recognises that these shared arrangements have facilitated financial savings and opportunities to deliver improved services to communities. The council also recognises the challenges, including: staff employed on different contracts; achieving a common culture with some staff working for two, or in some cases, three organisations; and the need now to be clear on the benefits of the shared arrangements in the current context.

WDC acknowledges the importance of partnerships and the role it has in wider systems leadership. The council seeks out opportunities to work with others for the benefit of the District and deliver shared ambitions. Partners including other councils and the police viewed WDC as “punching above its weight” locally in the support including around improving health and wellbeing and supporting economic growth and would be keen on even more of this pro-active and positive approach from the council.

WDC has developed a Place Board, with a third party chair, for each of the Evesham, Droitwich Spa and Pershore town centres in order to drive investment. Investment prospectuses have been developed to secure future investment over the next two decades from the private and public sector. The peer team heard that these boards – which include WDC officers, members and representatives from the local community and businesses - have good engagement and the roles and responsibilities are maturing. Partners who the peer team spoke to recognise the value in this collaborative approach and the important leadership role WDC is playing. The peer team agree this is a good inclusive model and WDC should continue to nurture and to further empower this approach. However, with the growing maturity of the Place Boards it may now be timely to review that the terms of reference, including roles and responsibilities of the constituent organisations are still fit for purpose.

The range of support for the development of WDC staff is appreciated. This includes internal training, development opportunities, coaching, mentoring, job shadowing and the Aspiring Talent programme, as well as external qualifications and WDC’s maximising performance sessions. During 2024 WDC has undertaken training and development sessions with SMT, heads of service and line managers, to develop the Council’s officer leadership, with an intention to do more. The council recognises challenges in recruitment and retention and the peer team found that in supporting and developing its workforce it is proactively addressing these challenges to make it an employer of choice. Staff appreciate this approach and feel well supported providing positive feedback on the investment in their future and nurturing of talent.

The staff survey reported very high confidence in line managers (93 per cent). However, in conversation with the peer team staff spoke about the importance of management applying council policies consistently, as there was a concern from some that this is not always the case. This may be a perception but will need to be reviewed. Managers should be reminded of their responsibilities and the importance of this and can be built into future training and development sessions for managers.

Staff the peer team met with were positive of the approach to vertical communications within the council and this was shown in the results of the staff survey - where 80per cent felt the communication between management and staff is effective. This communication, including emails and staff briefings, as well as team meetings, regular 1-2-1s and annual reviews is at the right level and frequency and means staff feel informed and supported. There was a desire for more opportunities for horizontal communications and contact points across the organisation to build the ‘one team’ approach. For instance, the peer team spoke to heads of service who were keen to have more space and time together to capitalise on the interconnectivity within the business and identify opportunities to deliver shared outcomes or improve processes. The peer team heard examples where there are areas of duplication e.g. in asking contractors for the same information by different parts of the business - and opportunities for improvement like this can improve processes and deliver efficiencies.

WDC already recognises the need to develop more effective cross-team working and has taken steps to help facilitate this. This includes WDC implementing reductions to the amount of work from home time for most staff. Further engagement with staff about the rationale and positive impacts of this is important, in particular to understand the impacts on different parts of the organisation if they are working in different ways. Consideration of how collaboration tools, both virtually and face-to-face, can be utilised to benefit the council and cross-team working is part of this.

The peer team overall heard about the good relationships with local town and parish councils and WDC. Local councils are keen to continue to work with WDC at Member and officer level and were complimentary about the role of the district councillors. The interaction at a council officer level was also appreciated and they would be keen to draw further on officer expertise for instance in planning, to understand the impact of the changes to the National Planning Policy Framework.

This core area is a strength for WDC and there are plenty of positive examples of an effective organisational culture and how the council’s governance arrangements are working effectively. The council has the key foundations of good governance in place and this includes: having a robust annual governance statement with key areas of improvement outlined; regular statutory officer meetings; a risk management framework which provides officer and Member oversight; internal audit where WDC has been given ‘reasonable assurance’ that there is an adequate and effective governance, risk and control framework in place; and a capable audit committee. This is integral to council performance and important in terms of exercising legal responsibilities, being publicly accountable and managing risks and should not be underestimated.

The peer team heard that in some areas staff and members were unclear about the governance arrangements which are in place. The peer team consider that the council does already have robust processes and arrangements in place but raising awareness and delivering training around these, to ensure it is seen as an enabler and supports good decision making, would be helpful.

The peer team heard how SMT and members are well respected, visible and accessible. There was good positive feedback on their leadership of the organisation and how staff feel they are positively connected with and able to access advice and feel supported and engaged. This is critical to the positive environment in which the council operates.

Relationships between members and officers are good. Cross-party relationships are productive and members also feel supported in their roles by willing and capable officers. The peer team do think there is benefit in re-clarifying the roles and responsibilities between members and officers as some of the newer members in particular felt they could be clearer on their role and responsibilities in order to make the most impact. Some staff did also question why members were asking for some of the detailed operational information. WDC may want to consider undertaking some activity to better articulate the member and officer roles and the ways in which they can work even more effectively together. This would help to develop collaboration and constructive challenge between officers and members and can be addressed easily through some joint workshops or ensuring the expectations are re-communicated and understood.

Councillors provided mixed feedback on the development and support provided to them in their role. Members appreciated the support which was provided but felt the offer could be strengthened. There are some very experienced members as well as some newer councillors and WDC will want to ensure that the induction and ongoing member development programme is robust and supports all members at the various stages of their councillor career. WDC should consider how to best support existing members as well as those joining in any future by-elections and plan for the induction of councillors following the council’s all-out elections in 2027.

The council has an overview and scrutiny committee with the ability to appoint scrutiny teams to review particular topics and issues. WDC also publishes an end of year review to publicise the achievements of the committee. WDC may want to consider how to continue to build upon the important role it has to ensure the profile and impact of scrutiny is improved – for instance in making the most of the collective knowledge and skills of all Members in pre-decision scrutiny. The peer team heard that scrutineers are keen to add value to the council and this is an ideal mechanism for members to support WDC improvement.

WDC may want to consider the parameters around decisions and governance e.g. community projects and funding decisions as the peer team found that there is some nervousness within WDC about the perception of saying ‘no’. This was a reaction to the perceived potential negative communications that could stem from this and any impacts on the relationship with partners. This can be a challenge but WDC needs to consider this within the context of its agreed and resourced priorities and promises. For most councils a ‘no’ is determined by financial constraints, whereas for WDC it has good financial resources but may need to say ‘no’ because it is not a priority. The council may want to consider the idea of a ‘virtual shelf’ so that WDC can focus on what it has already set out for delivery and it can park and return to any further ideas in due course in future plans.

WDC’s financial position is a strength and a huge opportunity. The council is in a good position now due to the astute decisions made previously. This provides WDC with the opportunity to make the most of this position for the present and to consider how the decisions it makes now will support it in the future. This strategic view of finance will ensure the financial legacy of the council will be just as good as the current one.

WDC has an engaged and financially aware political leadership. The peer team found that messages around finance have traction with members. For example, for the first time in six years WDC has increased its share of the council tax, and this only happens when there is good political understanding of the budget position and the financial needs of the organisation.

WDC has the highest level of reserves in its nearest neighbour group and has increased its reserves over the previous years. General balances at the end of 2023/24 increased from £14.6m to £15.1m and since the start of 2021/22, have increased by £4.2m (a 38.5 per cent increase). WDC may want to consider its reserves strategy to determine how the organisation will use reserves to finance additional projects or initiatives to generate additional income or reduce expenditure that it may progress as part of transformation, and, where required, balance any budget gaps (which are currently predicted in the Revenue Money Plan from 2026/27). As part of this, consideration around how wider Member scrutiny and challenge and visibility over the use of reserves to provide a higher profile and visibility of the reserves position can be achieved.

WDC has a clear understanding of its current financial position. The strategic financial planning is robust and mature and has a detailed Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) which is referred to as the Revenue Money Plan.  Budget setting starts in Autumn, with officers updating the assumptions underlying the MTFS and scrutiny is fully involved with a formal report to the executive board on its findings and recommendations.

There are no budget gaps projected until 2026/27, but WDC estimates that a reset of the current business rates retention system will have an adverse impact of £5.2m. As well as producing a deficit model for three years, it forecasts that general balances will drop to just under £1m. The council’s current revenue money plan references this future financial challenge but there is currently no published plan in place to address this. The peer team recommend this is addressed so that a plan is in place to manage and close budget gaps presented in the revenue money plan through transformation plans and what they will deliver.

WDC acknowledges that to make efficiencies in the future or alter the way it operates it may need to invest to capitalise on its financial position. There is not a coordinated savings or transformation programme in place to deal with this currently so WDC will need to develop this and a ‘transformation culture’ within the organisation. Efficiency is about value for money and opportunities and the council has good experience of delivering these previously for instance when delivering the grow, save, charge business plans so there is a foundation on which to build.

The peer team found that there was a strong and resilient finance team. This is also a good example of where WDC has prioritised succession planning and is growing talent with staff undergoing or completing professional accountancy qualification training with CIPFA. Support has included secondments with all staff offered training and development opportunities. Recent budget management enhancements are working well and the finance team are viewed positively and supportively in driving improvements in WDC’s approach.

The council has a five-year capital programme of around £30m. In 2022/23 a Capital Projects Board was established to monitor this and to address any concerns around delivery deadlines or project cost variances. A project appraisal document is used to capture evidence, objectives, risks, outcomes and to demonstrate need and link to council priorities. This is a credible approach and the peer team think this approach can be further enhanced by the development of a framework for decision making and outcomes which considers revenue implications from the outset and is clear on why particular capital projects are being taken forward as this was not always evident to people we spoke to.

WDC may benefit from added clarity on the decision making framework for investment  – not to constrain this but to be clear where this fits in with the council’s priorities. A framework would test proposals against measures around environmental, social and economic criteria for example and communicate the rationale for how WDC assesses the benefits of projects. This is not only about affordability but also about demonstrating how a project or initiative is the ‘right’ thing for WDC, represents value for money and within the agreed priority areas.

Staff the peer team met with are a great asset to WDC and are dedicated to the council and the district. The peer team think there is further potential for improvement and enhanced horizontal communication and further cross-council will help unlock this. Officers are excited to play their part in the delivery of the We Are Wychavon plan priorities and council improvement.

There is a good and effective cohort of senior managers who are keen to work collaboratively and drive forward improvement in the organisation. A recent heads of service/SMT workshop was consistently cited as being a valuable opportunity to come together and share successes and ideas for improvement. The peer team heard fantastic feedback on this and encourage WDC to do more similar regular activity to further develop joint working.

The current financial position provides opportunities for future investment and improvement. There is a future financial challenge set out in the MTFS and WDC needs to articulate what it will do to address this as currently this is not clear. This may include external activity and also internal changes in how the council operates to meet this future financial challenge.

Changes at WDC will require commitment and capacity, an appetite for change and new skills in order to make this a success. Transformation to meet WDC’s ambitions around an improved customer journey; workforce; IT; and finance is an important driver for change. Development of this plan is a priority and for maximum benefit needs to be delivered across the organisation with clarity about ownership and accountability at the corporate level. The council has the time and the financial resources to plan and deliver this in a measured way. This will inevitably lead to financial efficiencies but will also improve the services provided by WDC and delivery of outcomes. There will be a cost to the council investing in short term capacity to drive this or through utilisation of reserves to drive transformation but this should be considered as an investment in the council’s future and as part of a reserve strategy in its overall financial strategy and plan.

WDC has very capable and effective members and officers.  To improve their impact, further opportunities and capacity to horizon scan would benefit the organisation. Pausing and stepping back to consider future challenges and changes and taking time to learn from best practice is important.  WDC will also want to consider how to showcase more of the good work it is delivering for wider sector learning and to champion the positive delivery by its members and officers.

The We Are Wychavon plan would now benefit from being further ‘flushed through’ the organisation and incorporated into the finance, people strategy and culture of the organisation to support delivery. The peer team also support the council’s plans to use this as an opportunity to refresh WDCs values and ways of working.

WDC has good performance reporting arrangements in place which it continues to keep under review and there may be other considerations for reviewing the framework for monitoring to ensure performance is understood and communicated across WDC. For instance, in the publication of data WDC may want to consider how KPI detail is increasingly made available for all members. This will help to ensure this is kept at the forefront and that all Members and officers are able to articulate the relative strengths and areas for closer consideration.

WDC asked the peer team to have an additional focus and reflect on the council’s approach to customer service improvement and the overall customer experience. The council acknowledges this as a key area for improvement and that this will only be delivered if the culture of the organisation is aligned with this - so providing high quality customer service is one of its core values and an expectation of all staff. This ambition was supported with a focus on developing a refreshed Customer Service Charter in 2022 along with an action plan which included a range of improvements, including through the website and telephony.  The council has also been recognised in its commitment to customer service through being awarded Customer Service Excellence status for each of the last 13 years.

The peer team found that a ‘customer first’ focus is recognised as being important and WDC has an ambition to put the customer at the centre. A continued focus on this will drive the ways in which the organisation operates and delivery of the outcomes but the peer team agree that there is more work to do. The approach to the customer journey needs to be cross-council and a ‘one team’ approach. The peer team think there is an important piece of work now to refocus the organisation on the customer and ensure alignment with the outcomes which the council wants to achieve.

There have been recent significant improvements in the customer journey and the council has demonstrated how focused intervention in particular service areas including planning and housing can have significant impacts for the service in a short amount of time.  For instance, the focused support of ICT colleagues to the housing team in reviewing approaches and delivering training has led to tangible improvements with the proportion of calls answered increasing from around 40 per cent before improvements were made to over 80 per cent. Through use of the contact centre technology the Team can now monitor calls and respond in real time to increase and decrease staff resources. WDC will want to consider how to replicate this success and how this internal support model could be rolled out as a corporate approach to reviewing and improving other areas of the business.

WDC recognises how technology can bring further improvements and is currently reviewing telephony across the council. There is currently no central call centre making it difficult to understand call volumes across WDC, the pressures being faced, and how this can be improved. The peer team think that the council needs to review this position as being able to understand the issues will inform the future approach and the council’s ambitions around first time resolution.

Corporate process mapping would support improvement as the peer team recognise that there is no single customer journey but a collection of different customer journeys. This leads to questions about consistency and the differing customer experience. There will be opportunities for efficiencies and an improved customer experience if WDC looks at this holistically.

The continued use of data will be important and WDC will want to consider how it can capture and use data effectively to inform its decision-making. This may include looking at data on call volumes and time spent on decision making to consider the impact on WDC’s resources and the experience of the customer. The development of a framework for monitoring delivery and developing a dashboard with relevant KPIs will support this.

It is recognised that senior political and managerial leadership will want to consider, discuss and reflect on these findings. The LGA will continue to provide on-going support to the council.  Following publication of CPC report you need to produce and publish an action plan within five months of the time on site.  As part of the CPC, the council are also required to have a progress review and publish the findings from this within twelve months of the CPC. The LGA will also publish the progress review report on their website. 

The progress review will provide space for the council’s senior leadership to report to peers on the progress made against each of the CPC’s recommendations, discuss early impact or learning and receive feedback on the implementation of the CPC action plan. The progress review will usually be delivered on-site over one day. 

The date for the progress review will be agreed with WDC in due course.

In the meantime, Helen Murray, principal adviser for the West Midlands, is the main contact between your authority and the Local Government Association. As outlined above, Helen is available to discuss any further support the council requires. [email protected].