Maidstone Borough Council

Strategic Leadership and Corporate Services

Overview & Scrutiny Committee

Monday 12 January 2015

Report of the Joint Mid-Kent Improvement Partnership (MKIP) Task and Finish Group

Report of: Poppy Brewer, Democratic Services Officer

1.          Introduction

1.1     A special meeting of the three Overview & Scrutiny Committees of Maidstone, Swale and Tunbridge Wells was held on 7 July 2014 to review MKIP. At this meeting, it was recommended that a Joint Task & Finish group be established to consider how the Mid Kent Improvement Partnership’s (MKIP) governance arrangements should be taken forward and how an MKIP communications plan should be developed. 

1.2      A review was conducted by the Joint Task & Finish Group through a number of question and answer sessions which involved speaking to members of the MKIP Board, Shared Service Managers, client Heads of Service from each of the authorities, Heads of Communication, S151 officers, Monitoring officers and external partners.

1.3    The Joint Task & Finish Group carried out detailed analysis of the governance arrangements for MKIP and questioned witnesses on the methods of communication currently used internally and externally. The key findings of this review are presented in the attached report and highlight where enhancements could be made to improve current procedures and strengthen the practices of the Mid Kent Improvement Partnership.  

2.          Recommendation

2.1    That the Committee considers and notes the findings and recommendations of the joint task and finish group.

3.          Background

3.1    The scoping report at Appendix i provides an overview of the JTFG programme, along with the witness sessions and papers reviewed at Appendix ii. The Governance Arrangements for Mid-Kent Improvement Partnership (MKIP) and MKIP Shared Services are included at Appendix iii, with a diagram depicting the governance for the Environmental Health and Planning Support Shared Services included at Appendix iv. A survey for non-executive Members was produced to ascertain the level of awareness Members had around MKIP, it’s decision making processes, and its contactable officers for public enquiries, the summary findings of which are provided at Appendix v. A draft Communications Plan was produced by Roger Adley (Maidstone BC) and Adam Chalmers (Tunbridge Wells BC) which is included at Appendix vi, and a Glossary of Terms is presented as Appendix vii for reference.

4.      Impact on Corporate Objectives

4.1     The Strategic Leadership and Corporate Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee will primarily consider reports that deliver against the Council priority: ‘Corporate and Customer Excellence’.  

          4.2    Seven shared services are delivered under the Mid Kent Improvement Partnership, with five of these services sitting under the directorate of Mid Kent Services. The work of MKIP is therefore vital to ensure delivery of a number of key services and the corporate priorities of each individual authority.

5.           Financial Implications

5.1     None

6.      Relevant Documents

9.1     Appendix i   – Scoping Report

          Appendix ii   – Witness Sessions and Papers Reviewed

          Appendix iii – MKIP Governance Arrangements

Appendix iv  -  Diagram of governance arrangements for MKIP and MKS

Appendix v – Summary of survey findings

Appendix vi – Draft Communications Plan

Appendix vii - Glossary

7.      Background Documents

10.1     None

8. Other Implications

8.1

IS THIS A KEY DECISION REPORT?                  THIS BOX MUST BE COMPLETED   x     Yes                                               No     If yes, this is a Key Decision because: ……………………………………………………………..   …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….     Wards/Parishes affected: …………………………………………………………………………………..   ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..