Agenda item

Councillor H.I. Jones declared a personal interest in that his daughter-in-law works for Social Care Services. 

Councillor K. Madge declared a personal interest in that his daughter works in Social Care Services.

The Director of Community Services introduced a new Performance Framework developed by the Communities Department and sought the Committee’s comments on how it might be used to inform members of the relevant services’ performance. The new framework had been developed in-house to focus on the most important areas within the department as a way of monitoring the success or otherwise in meeting objectives.

A live presentation of the new system was given which enabled the Committee to view the live data now been captured and the type of information that could be presented in future performance monitoring reports. The Director reminded the Committee that the framework is still in its infancy and was being further refined during regular meetings to monitor performance.

The following issues were discussed during consideration of the new framework:

Reference was made to preventative work and it was asked whether the new system could provide officers with an early warning of where there might be difficulties for certain services. The Director of Community Services stated that the data would be very useful in addressing problems or blockages in the system and was a key aspect of the monthly departmental performance management meetings. The electronic reports available allowed performance to be questioned and challenged and as it was live data, services could be managed more effectively rather than through retrospective reports which in the past, had been 2/3 months out of date. The Assistant Locality Manager added that the system allowed the locality managers to use resources more efficiently on a day to day basis, enabling a swifter response to difficulties across the different locality areas.

It was asked whether such a detailed system might cause some staff to withhold or manipulate information so that their team or service area did not appear to be failing or overspending. The Director of Community Services acknowledged that there was always a risk of ‘target cultures’ giving rise to poor outcomes but that officers were seeking to generate a culture of understanding amongst staff in relation to the new measures and how they were designed to assist in understanding the business and ensure that resources were allocated appropriately. It was hoped that this would prevent teams from manipulating figures to make their work appear better. It was about balancing responsibility of care with fiscal prudence.    

It was asked as to whether the system was able to provide detailed information according to ward area, such as the number of individuals suffering or at risk from certain conditions. The Director of Community Services stated that postcode searches were possible to investigate demand according to area but the challenge of using this method was that many individuals received treatment outside their home area (e.g. in a major town). He noted that further work was being undertaken to map the types of services and support that was available in each area (e.g. from voluntary groups) and the Assistant Locality Manager also informed the Committee that an in-depth population assessment of health conditions was already underway based on each locality area.

The Committee welcomed the new framework and UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED to accept the report.