Agenda item

To consider the attached report of the Head of Policy, Performance and Improvement providing the Board with an update on the revised approach to performance reporting and accountability arrangements for the Leeds Strategic and Council Business Plans and a performance report on the progress against improvement priorities relevant to the Board at Quarter 2 2008/09.

The Head of Policy, Performance and Improvement submitted a report providing Members with an update on the revised approach to performance reporting and accountability arrangements for the Leeds Strategic and Council Business Plans and providing a performance report by exception (ie red and amber) on the progress against improvement priorities relevant to the Board at Quarter 2, 2008/09.

The Chair welcomed to the meeting Jean Dent, Director of City Development, Paul Maney, Head of Policy, Performance and Improvement, City Development and Heather Pinches, Performance Manager, Planning, Policy and Improvement, Executive Support.  Gary Bartlett, Chief Highways Officer, City Development, joined the meeting to respond to specific queries from the Board.

The Director presented the report and summarised progress against the improvement priorities relevant to this Board.  In particular it was emphasised that out of the Director’s 13 improvement priorities, 8 were green, 5 were amber and none were red.

Attention was drawn to the one Culture Improvement Priority rated amber: CU-1a ‘Enable more people to become involved in sport and culture by providing better quality and wider ranging activities and facilities’.  The Board was advised that since the data had been collated, the ‘Active People’ survey had indicated an impressive 7% increase in participation in sport and recreation (the target being 1%).  As a result, Leeds had risen nationally from 208^th to 16^th place and the status of this Improvement Priority would now change to green.

It was also reported that progress had been made against the only amber status improvement priority within the Environment theme (ENV-1b ‘Reduce emissions from public sector buildings, operations and service delivery and encourage others to do so’).  However, as this data was being collected for the first time, the Department was being cautious in its assessment as at present it was still seeking to establish the base line.

With regard to Enterprise and Economy, Members were advised that a close watch on the current green status of the data would be required, as these figures would be affected by the slow down in the economy. 

With regard to Transport, the Director referred to the three improvement priorities which were amber.  Of specific concern were firstly the effects of rising energy costs, specifically for street lighting, on the Council’s budget and the initiatives being taken to lessen the impact.  And secondly the fact that the Council continued to work with Metro to help them improve the figures on public transport services in Leeds, for which they have the lead responsibility.

Members then sought information from Officers on the following issues relating to the performance figures in Appendix 2 to the report:

·  Culture –

·  Level of use of leisure centres.

• The reason for the increase in people participating in sport and active recreation.

·  Environment –

·  Progress on the climate change strategy.

• Campaigns to encourage staff to reduce emissions in Council buildings.

·  Learning –

• Whether the Government takes into account external influences which affected skill levels.
• Data availability and monitoring relating to young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) who spend six months on benefits and two weeks on a course and then go back to receiving benefits again.
• Working within the Local Area Agreement and Multiple Area Agreement.
• The enhancement of higher level skill levels and raising the expectations of young people.

·  Transport –

• The reason for the regional target for congestion being lower than the base line.
• Enhancing cycling and walking as alternatives to car use and encouraging increased use of public transport.
• Verge hardening and the flagging of gardens and their link to flooding.
• Accessing Transport Innovation Fund (TIF) funding and road charging.
• Whether there were any plans to restrict car parking in the city centre.
• Whether the Council’s vision for transport needed to be more creative and aspirational.
• The response rate of the transport survey.
• The appropriateness of providing more multi-storey car parks in the city centre.
• The expansion of Park and Ride facilities on rail and bus routes.
• The recent increases in bus and rail fares and the current inability of the Council to influence these.
• The effect of increased oil prices on the Council’s maintenance and highways improvement programme.

Members then requested information from Officers on some general issues and specific issues relating to performance indicators listed in Appendix 3 to the report.  These were in summary:

·  Street cleansing and who was responsible for this in the city centre and the major arterial routes.

·  Whether there was any follow up on Local Indicators LEGI1, 2, 3, 4i and 4ii (Local Enterprise Growth Initiatives).

·  Local Indicator LEGI4i and the definition of deprived communities.

·  Progress on meeting targets for Local Indicators LKI 215A and B relating to street lighting repairs.  The Director referred briefly to the replacement street lighting programme and the industrial action which had taken place by Yorkshire Electricity Distribution Ltd (YEDL) which connects the new street lighting installed by Southern Electric Contracting (SEC) (Private Finance Initiative) to the mains supply.

·  Whether the targets were demanding enough.

The Chair thanked Officers for attending and requested that they convey the Board’s thanks to all the staff in the Department for this work.

RESOLVED –

(a)  That the report and appendices be noted.

(b)   That the department respond directly to:

·  Councillor Harington on whether motorcycles were allowed to be parked in cycle racks.

·  Councillor Barker’s request for a meeting on LEGI.

·  Councillor Lobley in order to provide additional information on NI167 congestion and average journey times.

·  Councillor Pryke regarding Wards covered by LEGI schemes.

(Note: Councillor Taggart joined the meeting at 10.25 during the consideration of this item.)