Agenda item

CORPORATE PERFORMANCE REPORT - PERFORMANCE INDICATOR UPDATE

Following referral by the Co-operative Scrutiny Board, the Panel will receive progress updates in respect of Performance Indicators K01, K02, K29 and K30.

Minutes:

At its meeting on 19 August 2015, the Co-operative Scrutiny Board had referred a number of performance indicators to panels in order that progress could be monitored and, if necessary, challenged.  A total of ten indicators had been referred to Your Plymouth, four of which were on the agenda for consideration today, with the remaining six being split between the panel’s next two meetings.

 

Pete Aley, Head of Neighbourhood and Community Services, was in attendance to report on K29. 

 

Outcome

Action – K29

PI

People are treated with dignity and respect

Become a welcoming city that is diverse, inclusive and that combats hate crime and discrimination

Percentage of residents who believe Plymouth is a place where people from different backgrounds get on well together

 

The panel was advised that –

 

(a)

 

a great deal of work had been undertaken (and was ongoing) with partners across the city to improve on the 69.9% figure recorded in 2008 which was well below the national average of 75.8%;

 

(b)

 

by 2014 the city’s rating had improved to 76% - above the national average;

 

(c)

 

in liaison with the police, any information received was recorded, analysed and, where appropriate, acted upon.  This included provision of extra police patrols in any areas identified as having a ‘spike’ in incidents;

 

(d)

 

examples of partnership working and activities aimed at improving communities perceptions of ‘getting on well’ included –

 

·         development of ‘safe reporting’ centres;

·         development of bespoke interventions in response to incidents or crimes related to racism, homophobia, transphobia, disability or belief;

·         co-ordination of a range of initiatives during Hate Crime Week (12/10/15);

·         provision of small grants to diverse communities in order to promote and celebrate our welcoming and inclusive city;

·         Devonport Multiagency Inclusion Day;

 

 

In response to questions raised, Members heard further that –

 

(e)

 

the information provided in the report had come from the last corporate survey on wellbeing.  The results were statistically validated to determine whether or not the returns received were enough to be representative of the city;

 

(f)

 

intervention was tailored to address the particular issues within a community – extra Policing along Ebrington Street being one example in response to a spike in incidents.  In addition, supporting community events and challenging discriminatory attitudes were other positive measures used in targeting neighbourhoods where there were problems or community cohesion was low;

 

(g)

 

information was available by neighbourhood, however, as the number of BME people likely to be included in the sample would be low, and not everyone would state their ethnicity as part of the survey, analysis by ethnicity would not be robust;

 

(h)

 

the question ‘do you believe Plymouth is a place where people from different backgrounds get on well together’ was one of a package of questions contained within the wellbeing survey which was undertaken in 2014;

 

(i)

 

the small grants scheme comprises grants of up to £1,000 of which approximately 10 had been issued to date;

 

(j)

 

incidents of race crime accounted for 60% of all hate incidents;

 

(k)

 

along with other voluntary and community agencies, those working with refugees and asylum-seekers would be likely to be experiencing financial pressures, creating challenges in meeting demands;

 

(l)

 

feedback from victims who had received support following an incident of hate was positive, with high satisfaction rates of over 90%.

 

Members welcomed the update however voiced concerns over the validity of the data provided, given it was based on a survey of 1,000 people in a city with a population of 250,000 – the margin of error therefore being quite substantial.  It was suggested that, in future, a specific questionnaire on hate crime was undertaken in order to more accurately take account of margins for error, demographics, and capture people’s differences of opinion and where their prejudices actually lay.

 

Outcome

Action – K30

PI

People are treated with dignity and respect People are treated with dignity and respect

Implement the findings of the Fairness Commission

Percentage of residents who believe Plymouth is a place where people from different backgrounds get on well together

 

Unfortunately, there was no officer present to provide an update in respect of this performance indicator.  The panel voiced its disappointment and asked that the item be added to the agenda for the next meeting.

 

With regard to Performance Indicators K01 and K02, Pete Honeywell, Transformation Programme Manager, and Faye Batchelor-Hambleton, Assistant Director for Customer Services, were in attendance to update Members.

 

Outcome

Action – K01

PI

The Council provides and enables brilliant services that strive to exceed customer expectations

Speed up the delivery of Customer and Service Transformation Programme service reviews through developing a Council wide Customer and Service delivery blueprint and Customer Access Strategy

80% of customer contacts with the Council will be managed through the single point of contact, with 80% of enquiries dealt with at first point of contact

Provide fully transactional services on the web – through a “Citizen Portal” with a target of the national average and 2% (from 3% to 25%) by volume

 

The panel received a presentation which informed Members of –

 

·         what was being done to improve services delivered by the City Council;

·         how the Customer Strategy improved service to customers;

·         the action plan, resources and milestones in place to drive and deliver the Customer and Service Transformation Programme.

 

In response to questions raised, Members heard further that –

 

(m)

 

the driver for change had been the inconsistent provision of customer service across the authority, with many departments operating like independent franchises within department stores;

 

(n)

 

most modern authorities were adopting this style of customer-related approach, which was well-used in the private sector and was far more cost-effective;

 

(o)

 

an integral link to these changes was the overhaul of the Council’s website which was too complicated and not designed for use on smaller devices.  For those customers not able or willing to use digital services they will still be able to call into the First Stop Shop or visit their local library where support will be available;

 

(p)

 

there were two payment machines located at the First Stop Shop; one outside for use 24/7 whether the shop was open or closed, and one inside available when the shop was open.  It was acknowledged that a sign outside the shop indicating that there was an additional machine inside would be useful;

 

(q)

 

the restructure of Customer Services had improved services, reduced a backlog of revenues and benefits claims, and was expected to deliver £1m of savings this year;

 

(r)

 

staff had been engaged and supported throughout the process with many of the ideas for change having come from them.  Library staff in particular had been keen to take on additional responsibilities within their role and were key players in taking the digital inclusion service forward.

 

Outcome

Action – K02

PI

The Council provides and enables brilliant services that strive to exceed customer expectations

Intensify performance improvement on top priorities identified by Plymouth residents

(New) Proposed that a measure is included which tracks customer satisfaction (still to be described) will be included in Quarter 3)

 

The panel was advised that –

 

(s)

 

the Plymouth Plan was the culmination of one of the Council’s largest and most inclusive consultation exercises ever undertaken, involving 3,000 comments from over 60 public events and 30 different key strategic partners;

 

(t)

 

now that there was an understanding of resident’s priorities, work would continue to ensure that the understanding was maintained via an ongoing cycle of review and consultation;

 

(u)

 

all of the milestones relating to the Plan had been achieved and the Plan was shortly to be submitted to Government for statutory approval.

 

In response to questions raised, Members heard further that –

 

(u)

 

consideration could be given to incorporating an element to capture people’s perceptions on diversity and cohesion within the Plymouth Plan as part of its ongoing review;

 

(v)

 

the information captured in the performance data only related to calls coming into the Council through the contact centre and not those calls made direct to individual members of staff.  The total number of incoming calls had only been captured in the last quarter and, once a clearer picture had been established, it was possible that the targets quoted could be revised.

 

Concern was expressed that the consultation undertaken on the Plymouth Plan may not have been as far reaching as it could have been in terms of diversity and cohesion and therefore the priorities may not be reflective or in the bests interests of all citizens.  Discussion also took place on whether ‘customer’ was the right terminology to be using, and whether ‘citizen’ may be more appropriate, however, as no agreement could be reached on which term to use or a suitable alternative identified, the status quo remained with agreement that the matter be kept under review,

 

With regard to consultation, with the second phase of the Plymouth Plan shortly to be launched, it was suggested that more should be done to promote the consultation and to make it more inclusive.  One idea put forward was use of the back of the big screen in the City Centre piazza to advertise it.

 

The panel recommends that –

 

(1)

 

a specific questionnaire on hate crime is undertaken in order to more accurately take account of margins for error, demographics, capture people’s differences of opinion and identify where any prejudices lie;

 

(2)

 

consideration is given to incorporating an element to capture people’s perceptions on diversity and cohesion within the Plymouth Plan as part of its ongoing review;

 

(3)

 

consideration is given to improving advertising/promotion of the consultation on Part 2 of the Plymouth Plan to ensure that the public are aware and can engage if they wish;

 

(4)

 

a sign is placed outside the First Stop Shop at New George Street to advise customers that there is an additional payment machine inside;

(5)

 

with regard to performance indicator K30, the item is deferred for consideration at the panel’s next meeting on 14 December, 2015.

 

Supporting documents: