CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY
Chair.
It is a pleasure to be presenting the budget.
Despite predictions from Tories at last year’s budget meeting that I wouldn’t be re-elected.
Apparently, Labour would be allowed to keep some Chairs of Scrutiny.
You might expect that having won another election, we might be able to relax.
An increased number of Councillors.
Against the national tide.
Perhaps we’d be entitled to be complacent.
Yet, that’s not what I see.
I see anything but.
Labour Councillors still anxious to achieve more for the people and the city.
Reducing crime further.
The cleanest core city.
The best attainment by our schools – ever.
Wanting to expand the tram.
Driving on to be the second city in the country - after London – driven on by Ken - to adopt a major congestion charging scheme. [beat]
With increased satisfaction from the public for the council, perhaps we would be entitled to sit back on our laurels.
But we are decidedly not.
We have a new manifesto and a renewed determination.
And today I present the most radical budget the Labour group has ever done.
The budget proposals are dramatic.
Meeting new costs within the existing resources.
Using gov’t grant for shared priorities and transforming neighbourhoods.
Using the extra Council tax to be spent on new services.
The most radical budget we’ve done.
So what drives us on?
Our Values.
Knowing we can achieve more for Nottingham together, than we will separately.
Believing in a more equal society.
Knowing we must act on the environment.
Pride in our city.
And ambition for it too.
Values that determine that we shall not sit back on our laurels.
Yes, we have a mandate.
Yes, we have more Councillors.
Yes, we know how to campaign and to win elections.
Yes, more people are satisfied with us than ever.
But we know external inspectors are still finding reasons to be critical of our progress.
Now I have to say, I am frustrated with some of these findings and have asked the Audit Commission for better balance.
How is it reasonable that - during the last 3 years - when the swing on our net satisfaction ratings is plus six per cent, and the swing in other councils’ net satisfaction ratings is minus 3.5%, we have not been awarded “improving well” in any of the last 3 annual letters?
Children’s services improved in 15 out of the 16 indicators and show good potential to improve.
The council is 5th in the table of performance indicators for providing adult social care.
The “Direction of Travel” assessment is positive in 15 out of 20 paragraphs, and reports positive things to celebrate in 4 more.
So, we might hope for better balance from the Audit Commission.
Instead, we lose 2 individual points in the ratings because of 2 trip indicators, neither of which are retained as indicators in the new national sets and one of which is a perverse consequence of the tremendous success we have in our work for the homeless.
We’d also hope for a better understanding of the social challenges we face from the Audit Commission.
I chair Elliott Durham school.
We serve the most challenged cohort in the city, and when I last looked, the 3rd most challenged cohort in the region.
No doubt we are still in the bottom 200 schools in the national league tables.
But the contextual value-added ratings regard the school more highly and we are in the top 11% for progress from key stage 2 to key stage 4.
Generally, there is insufficient regard for the social challenges we face in the way we are assessed by the Audit Commission.
For all that, we are proposing change to way we work.
We are promoting change in the culture of the organisation.
And at some financial cost.
“Foundation Stone” is a dramatic attempt to raise what some might say are the cultural issues in the organisation.
But which I found often exposed failings in the quality of management that can occur too often at all levels of the organisation.
We know staff have appreciated the exercise.
It rings out clearly that it is time to change.
Such plays have been part of processes that elsewhere, have led to change.
So, we will not be not complacent.
We know there is still more to do.
We must build on that foundation.
And we are driving on with the changes required.
As part of meeting the manifesto commitment, we will soon propose a new corporate plan, updating the ambition, acknowledging the new priorities.
There will be new ways of working.
To improve the Planning Framework - we are introducing cross-cutting strategic service plans for all of the council; agreeing targets and finances at the same time.
Such plans provide an easier way in for those – including scrutiny – who want to be part of driving on performance.
We will improve our people management.
We will improve training and seek corporate achievement of “Investment in People”.
We have started a significant training exercise on diversity & equality, as part of our aim to reach Equality Standard 4.
We are negotiating single status at the moment, including for schools.
There will be in April, a new medium term financial strategy, demonstrating an improved discipline on financial management.
Prudence writ large.
In May, we will propose a new regulatory audit committee, to oversee our financial and risk management frameworks and assess compliance. [beat]
The performance of the council, as measured by our indicators, has improved again.
But we acknowledge that there are things to learn from other councils.
We will improve Performance Management.
We will focus on a reduced set of indicators, developing a clearer focus and priority;
There will be a better use of Performance Plus. [beat]
Service redesign offers the best prospects of step change.
Focus on the serving customer [etc.] rather than on feeding our own internal processes, using new techniques such as the “Lean” analysis.
We will change the culture of the organisation - through a wide range of measures expressed as “Serving Nottingham Better”.
We will agree a plan to achieve a better rating at the next Comprehensive Area Assessment after we receive the new methodology (which is published in July).
Hopefully, such an assessment will take due regard of the efficiency savings we have been making.
For the next year, we're proposing savings and alternative income measures of £8 million.
A radical change.
£3.3 million of this comes being able to manage corporate finances more effectively - rescheduling debt, cheaper insurance etc.
Made possible only because of the stable, growing economy.
So, thank you, Gordon Brown.
The rest comes from our departmental spending.
£2 million comes from doing the same for less resource, sometimes as a result of extra investment.
Nearly £1.5m from finding alternatives funds to support the services we need to provide.
This year only 7% or so of the savings is on front line services.
The new Medium Term Financial Strategy will increase managerial accountability for making the changes proposed.
Overall, we are meeting £11m of costs, using savings, efficiencies, charges and the increased council tax base.
It means we have not been sidetracked by events.
Such as inspectors’ changes in social care policy for children most at risk.
Or the Govt’s settlement for the extended bus pass.
As a result, we are able to use government grant for those significant and costly changes, and for other, shared priorities and to prepare for the transformation of our neighbourhoods.
The Council tax increase by the City Council is 3%.
The £2.7 million raised is to be used for new and more local services. Broadly speaking -
£900,000 to extend doorstep recycling.
Over £400,000 to support more older people at home.
£600,000 to increase street cleaning.
Over £500,000 to improve the maintenance of play areas and parks, and allotments.
£200,000 to improve contact with customers.
We are announcing over £14m worth of new and more spend on shared priorities with Gov’t, and local priorities.
Local priorities identified in consultation with the local Labour Party and drawn from our values of greater equality & working together.
Local priorities identified from consultation with the public from the MORI poll and from consultation exercises on the budget.
Local priorities drawn from extensive canvassing conducted by the local Labour Party in the election campaigns.
And I’m pleased to say a consultation exercise with focus groups has found residents are broadly supportive of the aims & priorities of the budget.
Because £14 million of services is a lot to explain, I am today looking for extensive support from my colleagues throughout the Labour Group.
But I do want to spend some time highlighting the most significant.
To help our children & young people
there is a 4.1% increase in spending per pupil on education;
Because we want to help the children who need most help,
we will do so to the new national standards, in a more consistent manner; and
we will help foster carers more, with bigger allowances;
Because people live longer, better quality lives at home, we will -
increase the number of carers receiving breaks; provide a better night time home carer - sitting service, to provide more respite to carers; provide more equipment to help people to live independently at home; help 750 people a year determine their own support arrangements.
Because we want to help the people who need most help - we will help 350 people with mental health problems each year, as advocates, in line with new Gov't expectations;
Because litter and tipping is such a factor in making people feel unsafe in our streets, we will become an even cleaner city, with expanded programmes by action teams.
Because more concern is being raised by the public, we will improve the maintenance of our play parks & open spaces; and introduce a special programme for trees.
Because we and the public want to do more for the environment, we will expand recycling to 23,000 more homes; and we will introduce more environmental management of services within the Council.
Because customer focus is a key drive for change we will improve further the good service provided by the new Customer Contact Centre, which has the public have valued;
To improve the capacity of Councillors to make a direct difference for their ward, the Executive Board, at their next meeting, will be asked to approve allocations of funding to Area Committees, using a formula of £10,000 per Councillor, for spending on the recommendation of individual ward Councillors; we also provide more support to manage issues & concerns as well as new analysis at a ward level.
Our capital programme is £112 million for the coming year, including over £16 million on education and over £1.3 million on Sure Start.
In stark contrast to the days when annual allocations for capital spending in our schools was the equivalent of only 2/3rd of a million each year.
Shame on the Conservative party for their lack of ambition for the people when they were in charge of the country.
So, in summary, in this year’s budget we propose:
Meeting £11m of extra costs such as wage, pensions and price increases, and serving 2,259 extra households through efficiencies, savings, charges and the council tax base;
Using Government grant to meet the new demands placed upon us, including the provision of free bus journeys for older and less mobile people on all local bus networks.
Raising the Council tax by 3% to pay for more new services - more recycling, more support for older people at home, better play areas & parks, more street cleaning, better customer focus.
A Radical budget.
Not complacent.
Making big changes.
Introducing better ways of working.
Providing better value for money.
Helping the people who need help most.
Chair, I’m proud to present this ambitious budget for Nottingham.
I move.
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