Council should be 'proud of its performance' despite report card 'red marks'
Denbighshire’s cabinet member for finance said the council should be proud of its achievements, despite multiple ‘red marks’ in a performance objective report. The corporate plan performance report details the council’s successes, areas for improvement, and failures against its corporate plan.
At a cabinet meeting this week, members were presented with a quarterly report documenting Denbighshire ’s objectives between April and September for strategic equality and its seven governance areas. The governance areas include corporate planning, financial planning, performance management, risk management, workforce planning, assets, and procurement.
The council’s progress in the report was marked green, amber, and red, according to how successful it had been. Numerous areas were highlighted in red, including housing list waiting times, the number of homes for the disabled awaiting improvements, and several markers for homelessness. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox.
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Other areas marked in red included those involving repair work to damaged roads, children in poverty, and net carbon zero targets. The report also acknowledged Denbighshire’s failings around the launch of its new recycling and bin collection scheme.
But speaking at a cabinet meeting this week, cabinet member for finance Cllr Gwyneth Ellis preferred to focus on the areas the council had had success. Positives in the report included the council reducing its reliance on bed and breakfasts for those waiting for housing.
Other areas of success included the council being the highest performing housing stock-holding council in Wales, according to the Welsh Government’s Social Landlords’ Tenant Satisfaction Survey. The report also highlighted ‘excellent community benefits’ from two large procurements as well as other areas of success.
Cllr Ellis commented: “It is very easy to feel sad in the current (financial) climate with the council having to find massive savings and having to accept that services will inevitably suffer as a result. So it is easy to look at this report and see the reds and the amber, but in my opinion, it is much more important to look at the green.”
She added: "I think it is incredible that we as a council are still able to do so much well even when facing exceptional challenges, and that is an indication of the hard work and perseverance of our staff in my opinion. I think it is important to acknowledge that when we see a report like this."
Denbighshire increased council tax by 9.34% last year whilst cutting services, despite receiving the highest local government settlement in North Wales.
Last time around, council leaders pointed to an increase in costs and pressures due to inflation. The authority’s medium-term financial plan forecasts cost pressures ranging from £12m to £26m in the red in 2025/26 with a mid-range of £18m.
Consequently the council has modelled for a council tax rise ranging between a 6% and 12% increase. Cabinet unanimously confirmed the report for approval.
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