COLLABORATION
£ COMMITMENT
INTEGRITY
5
1
BASILDON BILLERICAY LAINDON PITSEA WICKFORD
FIVE TOWNS ONE BOROUGH
TRANSFORMING
BASILDON CORPORATE PLAN
WELCOME We are opening a new chapter for the borough of Basildon and we want everyone to be part of it. The towns of Basildon, Billericay, Laindon, Pitsea and Wickford are all brilliant places to live, work and raise a family. We know that in this borough there is more that unites us than divides us. We see the council’s job is to ensure the continuous improvement and progression of each and every one of our towns, realised in such a way that benefits the whole borough and all of our communities. To do that we must live up to the ideal that our borough’s five towns, as diverse and special as each undoubtedly is, are united by a common purpose and shared values, with no one left behind and everyone having a stake in our future. Technology, the environment around us, the economy and our population is changing and we need to change with it so that opportunities are captured every step of the way. Doing things the way we have always done is not an option. The time has come for the council to modernise and prepare itself for its role in 21st century Basildon. The way the council gets its money to pay for local services has changed fundamentally since 2010 and we need to survive in the future on income from council tax and business rates, income we can raise ourselves and on money we may be able to bid for to fund specific projects. The harsh reality is that we will have less money to work with as we have had to save more than £60m since 2010 and need to save more than £6m more by 2020. However we are clear that we need to listen and respond to you and your family more carefully than we have done during this period of financial challenge and transformation. That will enable the council to better understand and meet your needs in the best way possible. And we’ll need to work together effectively,
all of us together, as one borough, with residents, businesses, community organisations and other public services. That’s why we are changing the way the council operates, creating a modern, forward-looking, leaner organisation that is up to the job ahead. The work has already started and we have already changed the way we make decisions, giving all councillors a say through our new committee system, which emphasises working together. We are also changing the way the council is managed and how we listen and respond to the community. This is a vital new component in the changing culture of this council. We recognise that in recent years we have fallen short of gaining public trust and confidence because of the council’s failure to properly prioritise resident consultation and engagement. This corporate plan should be seen as more than just an idle document. It is a line in the sand moment for Basildon Council. This plan tells you more about the way we are changing and the difference we want to make for the community. It’s also our promise to you and we want you to hold us to it. So please, join us and help us secure for all those who live, work and learn in the borough a brighter future in a better Basildon borough. Cllr Gavin Callaghan Chairman, Policy and Resources Committee Cllr Kerry Smith Chairman, Housing and Community Committee Cllr Alan Ball Chairman, Regeneration and Environment Committee Cllr Linda Allport-Hodge Chairman, Infrastructure, Growth and Development Committee
OUR VISION
‘Basildon Borough Council is committed to improving the lives of all residents across our five towns and creating opportunity and prosperity for local people and businesses.’ The purpose of the corporate plan is to show how we will deliver this vision through the individual promises in this document.
OUR PROMISES We have three promises to the people who live, work and learn in the borough. We will concentrate our resources to work together to shape a borough that has:
1. Strong, safe and healthy communities with access to quality homes
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We know that we need to do more than deliver efficient and effective services. We need to work hand in hand with our communities to strengthen them. We want to support individuals, families and communities to take responsibility for their neighbourhoods. We want to encourage good all round physical health and wellbeing and these things start with the basics of adequate housing, outdoor space and strong communities. Residents have told us that they don’t feel they currently have enough opportunity to get involved in decisions or to take ownership of local issues. We also know that some of the most important things to you are safe communities and low crime rates so we want to provide more opportunities to participate in these things. The outcomes we plan to deliver: • Every child attends a good school and is successful in learning • Improved access to early help and support for families • Children and adults are safe from harm • People are healthier, happier, independent and active • Decent housing and supporting infrastructure • Raised standards in privately rented accommodation • Support for key workers. Basildon Health & Wellbeing Priorities • Reducing the prevalence of child and adult obesity • Improving mental health and wellbeing • Reducing health inequalities by tackling poverty. These priorities have been agreed by the Basildon Health Partnership as a result of the latest local health profile findings and Basildon JSNA.
COMMITMENT
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2. Vibrant town centres and a thriving economy for everyone The regeneration of our borough will make it a more vibrant place to live, work, learn and relax in and will grow our economy. It is essential that we create a place in which businesses want to be based and that we support them to grow – to provide jobs and leisure activities for our residents and to attract people to the borough. We need to balance that growth with making sure that we have outdoor space where residents can stay healthy and enjoy their free time. We need to make sure that we influence our partners so that the infrastructure is in place to support this growth and that, as Basildon prospers, so do all of our residents. We will improve opportunities for education, skills and training as well as access to local jobs so that local people can succeed. The outcomes we plan to deliver: • Access to more and better jobs and good business growth • Increased skills to get more people working • Vibrant town centres • A strong local economy and infrastructure • A skilled workforce retained within the borough
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3. Enhanced local environment and increased pride in our borough Things like street cleaning, parks and open spaces and the local environment all contribute to how pleasant the borough looks and feels to spend time in. In preparing the blueprint for future development and growth of the borough we will seek to ensure a balance between the Government’s growth agenda and the quality of life of those that live and work in the borough. We believe that residents have a key role to play in helping to enhance the local environment through their own pride in their local area. This may be by challenging behaviour that negatively impacts the local area or by starting to do things for themselves to enhance and build pride in their communities. The outcomes we plan to deliver: • The borough has attractive open spaces and public realm that are clean and tidy • Residents are satisfied with services and communities actively contribute to enhancing their local neighbourhoods • Strong action on unauthorised development • A borough that will plan properly to improve air quality • A borough that will plan properly to protect against the negative impact of urban sprawl, protect community spaces, and habitat destruction and fragmentation
COLLABORATION
Everything we do is aimed at creating opportunity and improving lives for the residents of the borough of Basildon
AREAS FOR ACTION
There are a number of areas where we need to transform our approach if we are to succeed in the future:
EARLY HELP • • • •
VALUE FOR MONEY
Taking action quickly to resolve issues before they grow too big and too expensive Empowering our community Using community assets first Joining up approaches
• • • •
Focus on income collection and income generation Making every penny count Having a strong commercial focus Buying assets to provide income to fund local services
TECHNOLOGY
• Improving digital skills across the community • Making our services and information easily available online • Developing modern, efficient services
STRONG, RESILIENT INVOLVED COMMUNITIES • • • • • •
Getting more people involved locally to unlock ability, capacity, drive and inspire change Communities and elected members working together Listening and responding to people in the community A diverse borough Enabling individuals and groups to create their own opportunities and improve the lives of themselves and their neighbours. Investing in projects that will deliver real benefits
CLEAR DECISION MAKING
TRANSFORMING
OUR BOROUGH
• On what we will do more of, less of and what we will stop doing • Open, transparent and honest • Consultation with a purpose
ENCOURAGING GROWTH AND A THRIVING ECONOMY
• Encouraging and stimulating the investment, growth and development we want • Creating opportunities for businesses and maximising opportunities globally • Improving skills to boost prosperity • Creating job and training opportunities for local people with local businesses • Raising ambitions among young people
FIVE TOWNS ONE BOROUGH STRONG, SAFE, HEALTHY COMMUNITIES WITH ACCESS TO QUALITY HOMES BASILDON
BILLERICAY
LAINDON
PITSEA
WICKFORD
POPULATION
POPULATION
POPULATION
POPULATION
POPULATION
36,127
34,850
35,556
35,573
30,562
YOUTH 21% ELDERLY 15%
YOUTH 20% ELDERLY 19%
YOUTH 23% ELDERLY 13%
YOUTH 23% ELDERLY 12%
YOUTH 20% ELDERLY 16%
OFSTED RATING OF PRIMARY SCHOOLS 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0
CRIME OUTSTANDING
217 55 110 168 75
GOOD REQUIRES IMPROVEMENT
BASILDON
ADULT
OBESITY
2017
BILLERICAY
PITSEA
LAINDON
BASILDON BILLERICAY LAINDON PITSEA WICKFORD
POPULATION - PER 1000
WICKFORD
26.2%
23.3%
26%
29.4%
27.3%
BASILDON
BILLERICAY
LAINDON
PITSEA
WICKFORD
HOUSING(AND AVERAGE HOUSE PRICES) £212,857
£205,499
£189,988
RENTED 40% OWNED 57%
£253,750 RENTED 20% OWNED 78%
RENTED 41% OWNED 57%
RENTED 47% OWNED 49%
BASILDON
BILLERICAY
LAINDON
PITSEA
£221,248 RENTED 18% OWNED 80% WICKFORD
VIBRANT TOWN CENTRES AND THRIVING ECONOMY FOR EVERYONE
23%
14%
21%
25%
19%
NO QUALIFICATIONS
NO QUALIFICATIONS
NO QUALIFICATIONS
NO QUALIFICATIONS
NO QUALIFICATIONS
11%
24%
13%
6%
14%
HIGHER EDUCATION
HIGHER EDUCATION
HIGHER EDUCATION
HIGHER EDUCATION
HIGHER EDUCATION
2011
2011
2011
2011
2011
EMPLOYED 76.6% SELF EMPLOYED 11.7% UNEMPLOYED 7.7%
EMPLOYED 77.7% SELF EMPLOYED 15.2% UNEMPLOYED 3.9%
EMPLOYED 76.2% SELF EMPLOYED 12.7% UNEMPLOYED 7.8%
EMPLOYED 74.5% SELF EMPLOYED 12.4% UNEMPLOYED 9.4%
EMPLOYED 78.3% SELF EMPLOYED 14.2% UNEMPLOYED 4.2%
BASILDON
BILLERICAY
LAINDON
PITSEA
WICKFORD
BUSINESSES IN THE BOROUGH
20% 1455
6% 395 8%
42%
KEY BASILDON BILLERICAY LAINDON PITSEA WICKFORD
2947
593
24% 1712
INTEGRITY
FIVE TOWNS ONE BOROUGH PRIDE IN THE LOCAL AREA
BASILDON
BILLERICAY
LAINDON
PITSEA
WICKFORD
PLAY SPACES
PLAY SPACES
PLAY SPACES
PLAY SPACES
PLAY SPACES
OPEN SPACES
OPEN SPACES
OPEN SPACES
OPEN SPACES
OPEN SPACES
SATISFIED WITH LOCAL AREA
SATISFIED WITH LOCAL ARVEA
SATISFIED WITH LOCAL AREA
SATISFIED WITH LOCAL AREA
SATISFIED WITH LOCAL AREA
73%
94%
67%
66%
87%
ARE YOU SATISFIED/DISSATISFIED WITH YOUR NEIGHBOURHOOD 73%
20%
BASILDON
94%
4%
BILLERICAY
73%
20%
LAINDON
73%
20%
PITSEA
73%
20%
WICKFORD
HOW MUCH PEOPLE FEEL THEY BELONG IN THEIR NEIGHBOURHOOD 26%
74%
BASILDON
DON’T BELONG
14%
86%
BILLERICAY
25%
75%
LAINDON
30%
70%
PITSEA
12%
88%
WICKFORD
WORKING AS ONE COUNCIL – OUR CORE PRINCIPLES We are making sure the council focuses on making a positive difference to people’s lives and modernises the way it works so that we give maximum value to all our taxpayers. We will focus on: 1. Working towards a clear vision for our borough and embedding organisational values to help us get there 2. Working with partners, communities and residents by joining up our work 3. Focusing on our customers and getting the basics right 4. Doing things in the right way (good governance) in line with our values a. Effective delivery of projects and programmes b. Removing barriers to change, supporting innovation and managed risk taking 5. Learning organisation / helping people continually learn and improve 6. Developing leaders at every level, with a flexible workforce 7. Earning your trust and respect
FOUR TO SCORE - OUR PERFORMANCE We judge ourselves, and invite others to judge us, across four areas:
1. FINANCIAL
Are we providing good stewardship of public funds, ensuring value for money, good governance and transformation?
3. CUSTOMER
Are we delivering effective services that are customer focused, putting the customer at the heart of what we do?
2. COMMUNITY
Are we improving the borough for our residents, business and community?
4. LEARNING AND GROWTH
Do we have a capable, motivated, effective, learning organisation?
COLLABORATION
£ COMMITMENT
INTEGRITY
TRANSFORMING
BASILDON CORPORATE PLAN
5
BASILDON BILLERICAY LAINDON PITSEA WICKFORD
FIVE TOWNS ONE BOROUGH