MAIDSTONE BOROUGH COUNCIL

 

CORPORATE SERVICES OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEE

 

10 AUGUST 2011

 

REPORT OF HEAD OF CHANGE & SCRUTINY

 

Report prepared by Clare Wood 

 

 

1.           QUARTER 1 KPI REPORT 2011/12

 

1.1        Issue for Decision

 

1.1.1   Cabinet are asked to consider progress made in the first quarter of 2010/11 for the authority’s key performance indicators (KPIs) at Appendix A.

 

1.2        Recommendation of Head of Change & Scrutiny

 

1.2.1  It is recommended that the Committee considers the report and the recommendations for Cabinet.

 

1.2.2   It is recommended that Cabinet

 

a)   Note the progress and out-turns of the Key Performance Indicators (Appendix A), definitions are included for reference at Appendix B;

 

b)   Note the pressures on the housing department;

 

c)   Note the change in frequency for LVE 001 Number of business enquires to locate in Kent and decide whether or not to adopt the alternative measure suggested; and

                                              

d)   Agree action to be taken where appropriate.

 

1.3        Reasons for Recommendation

 

1.3.2   The Council has set 59 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), as part of the Strategic Plan 2011-15; there are 25 indicators that can be monitored on a quarterly basis to ensure the Council is on track to meet its annual performance targets.

 

1.3.3   The Council’s quarterly performance reporting cycle is aligned with financial reporting to enable it to effectively oversee financial performance against corporate priorities and assess whether value for money is being achieved in the delivery of services.

 

1.4        Context

 

1.4.2   The Key Performance Indicators which are set in the Strategic Plan were reviewed and reduced last year by the Cabinet and we will continue to review these annually to ensure that they are aligned with the Council’s priorities.

 

1.5        Performance Summary

 

1.5.2   The appendix shows out-turn data for all indicators that can be collected quarterly.  Some indicators are collected bi-annually or annually, these indicators have not been included in this report.

 

1.5.3   Where an indicator is new and there is no quarterly 2010/11 data, no direction of travel can be given. The direction of travel for pre-existing indicators direction of travel compares the current out-turn for quarter 1 with the 2010/11 quarter 1 out-turn. 

 

1.5.4   The following tables show the status of performance indicators in relation to target and direction of travel.

 

	Green	Yellow	Red	N/A[1]	Data[2]	Total
KPIs	14 (74%)	3 (16%)	2 (10%)	2	4	25

 

	Improved	Declined	N/A¹	Data²	Total
KPIs	5 (36%)	9 (64%)	7	4	25

 

1.5.5   The following graph shows the expected outcome of the performance indicators based on the information available to date. Managers are asked to update this each quarter so that early intervention can be taken where necessary. 

1.5.6   Overall, 75% of performance indicators have been rated green (currently on target) compared to 71% of all performance indicators at quarter 1 in 2010/11. Currently 90% of KPIs are currently projected to meet or exceed the year end target compared to 87% of indicators at same point in 2010/11.

 

1.5.7   Comparing this quarter’s out-turns to the same period in 2010/11, 64% of all indicators that can be given a direction of travel, have declined. When setting targets for 2011/12 onwards managers were asked to consider any impacts on performance such as available resources rather than focusing on continuous improvement as they have done in previous years. The picture of performance compared to last year is reflective of the economic climate with indicators around housing and homelessness over performing and lower number of planning applications received. In addition we have also reduced the number of indicators we have which means that each indicator is equivalent to approximately 5%.

 

Outcome: A transport network that supports the local economy

 

1.5.8   Under this outcome the Number of onboard Park & Ride bus transactions (SPT 002) is currently expected to slightly miss the annual target. Performance for quarter 1 is almost 2% down on 2010/11. It is thought that the additional Bank Holiday in April for the Royal Wedding and the general slowing down for many around this period impacted on the number of people using the Park & Ride service. The majority of business for the service occurs during quarter 3 in the lead up to Christmas however last year this was affected by the snow.

 

Outcome: A growing economy with rising employment, catering for a range of the skill sets to meet the demands of the local economy

 

1.5.9   100% of commercial planning applications were processed within the appropriate statutory timescales (DCV 001). There is a data quality  issue with the data collection for the number of business enquires to locate in Kent (LVE 001), the Economic Development manager is in the process of querying these with locate in Kent and an update will be provide when the figures have been confirmed.

 

1.5.10                The number of people claiming job seekers allowance (LVE 002) has increased slightly from March. The Economic Development Manager has noted an increase in the number of females JSA claimants compared to this time last year, which may be the result of weakening retail and public sector employment which traditionally has higher proportion of female workers. It is expected at present that this indicator will slightly miss the annual target. This could impact on other areas including benefits and housing.

 

1.5.11                The data for the unemployment rate (model based) (LVE 004) is not available quarterly, an annual update will be provided at quarter 4. The Economic and Development Manager has suggested that an alternative measure could be the number of unfilled job seeker vacancies. 

 

Outcome: Decent, affordable housing in the right place across a range of tenures

 

1.5.12                Although all the indicators, for which a direction of travel can be given,

in the outcome ‘Decent, affordable housing the right place across a range of tenures’ have declined slightly compared to 2010/11, five out of the six that can be rated have met the quarterly target.

 

1.5.13                There is only one indicator under this outcome that did not achieve the quarterly target; this was the percentage of residential planning applications processed within statutory timescales (DCV 003). There were 41 of these applications processed in quarter 1 of these 11 went over the statutory timescales, eight of these went to Planning Committee which extended the determination process.   

 

Outcome: Continue to be a clean and attractive environment for people who live in and visit the Borough

 

1.5.14                During the fourth quarter of 2010/11 the food waste recycling collection was rolled out. This has improved our recycling performance (WCN 001) and puts us on the right track to achieve 45% recycling by 2015, if not sooner.  This year we also introduced a new indicator on responding to fly-tipping (DEP 007) which is performing well with 99.10% of all fly-tipping reports responded to within one working day.  Both of these indicators show positive progress for the outcome: Continue to be a clean and attractive environment for people who live in and visit the Borough.

 

1.5.15                The indicator that measures visits and uses of the museum (MUS/LVE 001) did not meet the quarterly target; this was to be expected with the refurbishment work and while many galleries remain closed. It is thought that the annual target is still achievable at present as once the new wing opens the launch and surrounding publicity will attract visitors.

 

Outcome: Residents in Maidstone are not disadvantaged because of where they live or who they are, vulnerable people are assisted and the level of deprivation is reduced

 

1.5.16                All of the indicators that relate to this outcome have met the quarterly target. Although benefits processing times (R&B 004) have increased since the end of 2010/11 due to the partnership they are currently below the target level.

 

1.5.17                The housing service remains under pressure as there continues to be a significant number of people presenting as homeless. It should be noted there has been an 84% increase in the numbers of people prevented from becoming homeless (HSG 005) driven by demand for housing advice. The increase is thought to be the aftermath of the recession, where people have exhausted all other options such as friends and family before approaching the council for advice and assistance.    

 

Outcome: The Council will continue to have and demonstrate value for money services that residents are satisfied with

 

1.5.18                The value of fraud identified by the fraud partnership is over halfway to achieving the annual target already. The target was revised to take into account the reduced resources but is likely to be exceeded.

 

1.5.19                The percentage of council tax collected (R&B 006) has marginally missed the quarterly target. Action is being taken when non-payment occurs and the quarterly position is similar to that of other authorities in Kent. It is expected that the target will be met. To date no savings have been delivered through reviews for 2011/12. It is expected that there will be some saving from shared services to report later in the year however, there are no best value reviews planned for this year and it is too early to tell if the current overview and scrutiny reviews will result in any savings.

 

1.6        Alternative Action and why not Recommended

 

1.6.2   KPIs reflect local priorities and measure progress towards the Council’s key objectives.  They are the Council’s top level indicators and are linked to the Council’s strategic plan.

 

1.6.2           Not monitoring progress against the KPIs could mean that the Council fails to deliver its priorities and would also mean that action could not be taken effectively to address performance during the year.

 

1.7        Impact on Corporate Objectives

 

1.7.2   The Key Performance Indicators are part of the Council’s overarching Strategic Plan 2011-15 and play an important role in the achievement of our corporate objectives as well as covering a wide range of service and priority areas; for example, waste and recycling.

 

1.8        Risk Management

 

1.8.2  The production of robust performance reports contributes to ensuring that the view of the authority’s approach to the management of risk and use of resources is not undermined and allows early action to be taken in order to mitigate the risk of not achieving targets and outcomes.

 

1.9        Other Implications

 

1.9.2    

1.      Financial	X
2.           Staffing	X
3.           Legal
4.           Equality Impact Needs Assessment
5.           Environmental/Sustainable Development	X
6.           Community Safety	X
7.           Human Rights Act
8.           Procurement
9.           Asset Management

 

 

Financial

 

1.9.3   Performance targets are closely linked to the allocation of resources and are taken into account in the budget setting process, ensuring that resources are allocated in the most efficient and economic way.

 

1.9.4   The progress of performance indicators could have an effect on the authority’s savings and efficiency targets.

 

1.9.5   Considering progress against targets at this stage, and throughout the financial year, will identify potential areas of concern where intervention may be required.

 

Staffing

 

1.9.6   Having a clear set of targets enables staff objectives to be set and effective action plans to be put in place.

 

Legal

 

1.9.7   Failure to monitor performance indicators and set targets could impact on the authority’s governance arrangements.

 

Environmental/Sustainable Development and Community Safety

 

1.9.8   The performance indicators cover and are used to monitor progress in these areas.

 

1.9.9   Appendices

 

• Appendix A – Quarter 1 Key Performance Indicator Out-turns
• Appendix B – Key Performance Indicator definitions

 

 

1.9.10                Background Documents

 

• Key performance Indicator definitions (attached at Appendix B)
• Strategic Plan 2011-15
• Report of the Head of Change & Scrutiny – Performance Indicator targets 2011-15

 

 

IS THIS A KEY DECISION REPORT? X     Yes                                               No     If yes, when did it first appear in the Forward Plan?   …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..     This is a Key Decision because: ………………………………………………………………………..   …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….       Wards/Parishes affected: …………………………………………………………………………………..   ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..