From slated to feted in less than three years

Posted by Chris

REDCAR and Cleveland Council is now rated as one of the country’s excellent councils – completing a three-year transformation from slated to feted!

Every single service we provide has been rated as good or better!

The excellent four star rating has been delivered by the Audit Commission’s Comprehensive Performance Assessment, billed by the Commission’s inspectors as The Harder Test. The inspection looked at eight main areas and rated the Council’s forward planning as “improving well.”

Its report said: “Services in the Council’s priority areas are improving. The Council has robust plans in place and progress is being made against key objectives. The Council is strengthening its corporate ability and its approach to performance management. The Council’s approach to longer term financial planning is also improving.”

Highspots in the improvements have been are:

*Crime is significantly down, well below the Tees Valley average.

*Recycling has increased and our recent MORI survey indicates that residents are more than satisfied with street cleaning, refuse collection, parks and open spaces and libraries.

*Joblessness is at its lowest level in 5 years and claimant rates are down by as much as 60% in some areas.

*Much improved GCSE performance with the latest results showing the highest overall level of achievement exceeding the national rate of improvement.

*Adult Social care has greatly improved help for older people by enabling more than 90% of older residents to live at home; this is up from 63% last year. Furthermore, mortality rates within Redcar and Cleveland are significantly better than the rest of the Tees Valley.

*Away from the front line, our support services have gained a 3 star rating for Use of Resources, despite Government predictions that most authorities would be unable to maintain such a high level of achievement under a much more robust inspection regime.

Rated on a scale of 1-4, the Council's scores for the eight areas were benefits 3, children and young people 3, culture 4, environment 3, housing 4, social care adults 3, use of resources 3, Council ability 3.