Community Planning & Development Service
2015-16 Service Plan
[Services to add suitable picture]
“Enabling our communities to develop their potential”
Contents
Introduction 3
Vision Statement 3
Drivers for Change 4
About Us 4
Who We Are 4
Organisational Chart 5
Locations 5
Governance 6
Regulation and Compliance 6
What We Do 6
Our Customers 6
Our Costs and Income 7
Funding and resources 7
Aims and Objectives 8
Detailed Actions/Plan for Change 9
Previous Actions Completed in 2014/15 9
Ongoing Actions/Projects Started prior to 2015/16 9
New Planned Actions Due to Start in 2015/16 10
Risks to Delivery 11
Performance Indicators 11
Performance Indicators from Council Wide Performance Measures 11
Key Directorate Indicators 12
Directorate Performance Indicators from the Local Government Benchmarking Framework 12
Directorate Performance Measures from the Shetland Single Outcome Agreement 13
Other Performance indicators 14
Contact Details 14
Introduction
Every year, each Service within the Council is required to produce a Service Plan for the following year. This Service Plan provides an overview of the Community Planning & Development Service for 2015/16; the Community Planning & Development Service is in the Development Directorate. This plan contains information on major activities, aims, objectives, actions, targets, performance indicators and risks.
Service plans are approved and “signed off” at Director Level as part of the Executive Manager’s Employee Review and Development process.
Vision Statement
The Community Planning & Development Service is committed to supporting the Development Directorate’s Vision of “Enabling our communities to develop their potential”.
Drivers for Change
In September 2014, the Commission on Strengthening Local Democracy published a report title ‘Effective Democracy: Reconnecting with Communities. This report makes a number of recommendations, which relate to and will shape the direction of the Shetland Partnership Board’s Strengthening Community Involvement Project. In addition this project, which considers the role of Community Council’s in relation to community planning and community engagement in Shetland; also links to ongoing Improvement Service work which aims to strengthen and enhance the role of Community Councils throughout Scotland.
The Community Empowerment (Scotland) Bill is timetabled to receive royal assent in April – May 2015.
The Scottish Government’s Community Learning & Development (CLD) Strategic Guidance makes it a statutory requirement to carry out an audit of CLD need, and publish an action plan by September 2015.
The Council agreed as part of the review of CP&D in October 2013, that we should carry out an Evening Class Review, with the aim of redesigning the programme to achieve cost neutrality. Public feedback as part of the Building Budgets exercise in August 2014, recommended a 9% savings target in relation to Evening Classes, and this feedback will be taken account of during the review.
In addition, the service is responsible for co-ordinating the support required, within Shetland, for Welfare Reform, with the implementation of Universal Credit, at a local level, expected shortly.
As part of our continual improvement, and to assist with preparation for any Education Scotland Community Learning inspections, we will carry out a self assessment on an area basis at least once per year, within Community Development.
Draft guidance and legislation relating to the Scottish Government’s Community Justice Redesign is expected to be published in November 2014. This will be a significant change for community planning partnerships, with an implementation date of 1 April 2016.
The Shetland Partnership’s current Single Outcome Agreement (SOA) is in place for three years from 2013-2016. Development of the next SOA for the period 2016-19, will be a significant piece of work across the partnership, which will start during 2014.
Audit Scotland will publish their second national Community Planning audit report, titled ‘State of the Nation’ in November 2014. Recommendations from this report must be considered by the Shetland Partnership, and be used to update the Partnership’s Improvement Plan. In addition, we will work with the Improvement Service to carry out a self assessment of the Shetland Partnership. This work will build our capacity to roll out self assessment to thematic groups and other community groups as appropriate.
About Us
The Community Planning & Development Service was created as part of the Council organisation and management re-structure in 2011. The Service comprises the functions of Community Development (Adult Learning, Community Work), Community Planning and Community Support (Community Grants, Community Councils).
Who We Are
This Service sits within the Development Department and is lead by the Director of Development (Neil Grant). The following Services are also in the Development Department: Shetland College, Economic Development, Housing, Planning and Transport Planning.
Organisational Chart
Locations
The Community Planning & Development Service is located at Solarhus, 3 North Ness (CP&D, 12 Staff); The Huts, Lovers Loan (Adult Learning, 3 Staff and sessional tutors) and the Baltasound Junior High School (Community Work, 1 Staff).
Governance
The Community Planning & Development Service is part of the Development Directorate and reports to Policy and Resources, Social Services and Education and Families Committees.
The Service’s performance is reported to the Directorate Management Team monthly and XXX PIs from this plan is reported to the XXX Committees 4 times per year as part of the Department’s quarterly performance report.
Regulation and Compliance
The Service must take account of the following legislation:
· The Local Government in Scotland Act 2003, Part 2, Section 15
· Community Empowerment (Scotland) Bill – proposed enactment date spring 2015
· The Equality Act 2010, and the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) (Scotland) Regulations 2012
· Welfare Reform Act, 2012
Guidance and relevant policies include:
· National Review of Community Planning and SOAs
· Strategic Guidance for Community Planning Partnerships: Community Learning and Development
· Adult Learning Statement of Ambition
· Scottish government's Literacy Action Plan and strategic guidance - Adult Literacies in Scotland 2020
· The Adult ESOL Strategy for Scotland
· Skills for Scotland - a lifelong learning skills strategy
· Achieving Our Potential: A Framework to Tackle Poverty and Income Inequality in Scotland
· Equally Well: Report of the ministerial task force on health inequalities
· The Early Years framework
Community Planning is subject to audits carried out by Audit Scotland
Adult Learning and Community Work form part of Learning Community Inspections carried out by Education Scotland
What We Do
Community Development Team, responsible for:
Adult Learning – short description
Community Work – short description
Evening Classes / Adult Learning Programme
Community Planning Team, responsible for:
Shetland Partnership – provision of support and policy advice to the Shetland Partnership, it’s associated groups e.g. the Performance Group and the Resources Group; and associated thematic partnership e.g. the Community Safety Board; Environment Partnership etc
Equalities -
Poverty and Inclusion: co-ordination and support for project work, service delivery and awareness raising which reduces poverty and isolation.
Community Support Team, responsible for:
External Funding -
Community Grants -
Community Council Grants -
Our Customers
Our customers are:
· Adults, young people and families who:
§ Are returning to learning or preparing for work
§ Are unemployed
§ May not normally take part in learning
§ May have low initial qualifications
§ Speak English as an additional language
§ Want to improve their knowledge and skills in communities throughout Shetland
· Community Groups with an identified need for support, advice or assistance
· Geographic communities
· Communities of interest
· Identified fragile communities
· Shetland Partnership Partners, including NHS Shetland, Police Scotland, Fire Scotland, Shetland Charitable Trust, Highlands & Islands Enterprise, Voluntary Action Shetland, ASCC, ZetTrans, Shetland Youth Voice and other Third Sector Organisations.
Staff have developed productive partnerships with agencies to engage priority ‘hard to reach’ individuals, for example adults and young people who may have had a poor previous experience of learning, gaps in their education, are returning to learning or are affected by ill health or disability.
Our Proposed Costs and Income (to be updated after SIC meeting in December)
The Service has [around] 16 full time equivalent staff and annual revenue expenditure of £1,246,747. As detailed below:
Service / Number of Staff (FTE) / Gross Expenditure / Income / Net Budget / Capital BudgetManagement / 3.54 / Nil
Community Development / 8.29 / Nil
Community Planning / 2.17 / Nil
Community Support / 2 / Nil
CP&D Service Total / 1,246,747
Funding and resources
Evening Class Re-design
[Paragraph to include any savings targets (compared to previous years if appropriate), including those listed in the “Drivers for Change” section above, and any future workforce implications.
Aims and Objectives
Directorate Plan Aims / Action /Service Aims/Priorities / Objectives/Actions (Details below) /
Strengthen local democracy and community involvement, creating stronger, more resilient supportive, influential and inclusive communities / Develop an action plan focussed on increasing involvement in local democracy, in partnership with youth services. Consider use of new technology to support this action.
Consider role of community planning in relation to the report from the Commission on Strengthening Local Democracy and draft a discussion paper with recommendations for the Board
Develop the Building Budget exercise in line with Council views and progress work on a similar exercise in 2015 in partnership with the Finance Service, and other SPB partners as appropriate
Work with the Scottish Government and What Works Scotland re developing Participatory Budgeting in Shetland
Review and develop a strategic community safety plan with the Community Safety & Resilience Board
Improve life chances for people of all ages, through learning, personal development and active citizenship
Tackle poverty, disadvantage and exclusion / Implement the Requirement for Community Learning & Development (Scotland) Regulations 2013, including the publication of the CLD audit and action plan
Implement the findings of the Evening Class Re-design work, and develop an Adult Learning Programme, ensuring resources are targeted to meet national policy and local need
Progress work on the employability pipeline and childcare, taking into account the role of CLD
Review and update the Fairer Shetland Partnership and Framework to ensure activity and support is focused on improved outcomes for individuals and families and to mitigate the negative impacts of Welfare Reform
Progress work on LIFE project to develop and implement a whole-family approach within Shetland
Develop a more effective Shetland Partnership which demonstrates leadership, scrutiny and challenge in line with the challenges set through the National Review of Community Planning and in the Statement of Ambition / Work with the Improvement Service to carry out a self assessment of the Performance Group and to build capacity to roll out the self assessment toolkit across the Shetland Partnership
Develop an Improvement Plan, and progress / co-ordinate / monitor progress on actions
Develop and implement a Shetland Partnership Communications Plan, including the use of social media and improving the information available about the Shetland Partnership on the Council’s website
Develop the SOA 2016-19 as a true ‘plan for place’ with a focus on reducing inequalities to improve outcomes for communities / Update the Shetland Partnership data book and disaggregate to ward level to assist communities to develop their own community profiles
Develop a template, taking into account the themes of prevention, joint resourcing and community engagement & co-production
Carry out equalities outcomes consultation, update report and ensure equality outcomes are mainstreamed within SOA 2016-19
Enhance and support the role of community councils / Plan and arrange a Community Council / Shetland Partnership seminar on the Strengthening Local Democracy report, the Community Empowerment Bill and Participatory Budgeting.
Consider whether a review of the Community Council scheme, code of conduct etc is now due, and begin work on the review if required / appropriate
Following on from the work with the Shetland Partnership, seek volunteer community councils and support self assessment work as appropriate
Develop guidance re Participatory Budgeting, provide training and support to build capacity and encourage its use in relation to the Community Development Fund
Carry out an audit of training needs, develop a training plan and deliver or source training for Community Councils / Clerks as requesting and / or needed
Review Community Council conference action plan, update and progress actions as required. Provide feedback and consider holding a second event.
Build capacity of community groups to access external funding and be self sustaining, with reduced reliance on revenue grant aid / Share information re external funding and hold external funding information sessions once or twice a year
Assess need, and provide support, guidance and advice to community groups as appropriate
Process core grant and Community Development Fund applications, ensuring best value in relation to grants awarded
Detailed Actions/Plan for Change
[Similar to the “what we did last year” section in last year’s Service Plans]
Previous Actions Completed in 2014/15
/Description / Delivered Early/on-time/late / Achieved original intention? /
Carry out a review of community grants, including impact analysis, prioritisation, consultation and support to community groups during the transitional year / Delivered on time / Met original expectation to achieve a reduced budget in line with Council decision, while also taking account of community feedback in relation to the pace of change /
Evening Class Redesign / TBC / TBC /
Participate in the Improvement Service work around enhancing and support the role of Community Councils / Improvement Service project / Actions ongoing by Improvement Service /
Ongoing Actions/Projects started prior April 2015
/Title/Heading / Team / Start / End / Output / Expected Outcome/Supported Aims/Objectives /
Develop and implement the Strengthen Community Involvement Project to build strong participation in local democracy, and support Elected Members in their community leadership roles / CP&D / March 2016 / 6 local / ward forums
Community profiles and local community plans / This will support the Council’s Aim of “Encourage strong communities”. It should also result in an improvement in the Performance Indicator below “% of people who agree with the statement they can influence decisions affecting their local area”
Work with partners to deliver the Fairer Shetland framework to tackle poverty, disadvantage and exclusion and mitigate the impacts of welfare reform / CP&D / Rolling start / Ongoing / Framework updated annually / This will support the Council’s Aim of being “Mindful of how change could affect vulnerable and disadvantaged people” and “Encourage strong communities”.
Support an effective Shetland Partnership / Community Planning / Rolling start / Ongoing / Community Plan & SOA / This will support the Council’s Aim of “Working with all our partners to achieve the best results possible”. It is also a statutory requirement for the Council to initiate and lead on community planning.
Develop and support delivery of the SOA and Community Plan / Community Planning / Rolling start / Ongoing / SOA 2013-16 – updated annually
New SOA 2016-19 to be developed / This will support the Council’s Aim of “Working with all our partners to achieve the best results possible”. It is also a statutory requirement for the Council to initiate and lead on community planning.
Support the Shetland Partnership Resources Group (SPRG) to implement the Agreement on Joint Working and Resourcing / Community Planning / April 2014 / Ongoing / SPRG Action Plan / This will support the Council’s Aim of “Working with all our partners to achieve the best results possible”. It is also a statutory requirement for the Council to initiate and lead on community planning.
Work with the Improvement Service to carry out a self assessment of the Shetland Partnership Performance Group / Community Planning / Feb / March 2015 / May 2015 / Shetland Partnership Improvement Plan / This will support the Council’s Aim of “Working with all our partners to achieve the best results possible”. It is also a statutory requirement for the Council to initiate and lead on community planning.
Implement the Requirements for Community Learning & Development (Scotland) Regulations 2013 / Community Development / April 2014 / Sept 2015 / CLD Audit and approved Action Plan / This will support the Council’s Aim of being “Mindful of how change could affect vulnerable and disadvantaged people” and “Encourage strong communities”.
Embed the changes resulting from the CP&D Service review and report progress to Council as part of the Community Planning Annual Report / CP&D / April 2014 / June 2015 / Report / This will support the Council’s Aim of “Being a properly led and well managed Council”.
New Planned Actions Due to Start in 2015/16 – is this not just a repeat of the aims / objectives section?