To agree proposals for the Council’s Corporate Plan 2020-24 for recommendation to Council. The council’s constitution requires cabinet to make recommendations to council in respect of budget and policy framework; the Corporate Plan forms part of this framework.

The leader of the council introduced the report and invited the assistant director people and performance to set out the approach that had been taken to producing the new corporate plan. Cabinet members noted that:

·         Workshops had been held to understand the ambitions for the new plan and to pull together the various strands;

·         Three key areas had been identified – environment, community and economy – along with common themes across these areas of sustainability, connectivity and wellbeing;

·         A one page plan had been development and then tested through public and stakeholder events including parish councils, the business sector and specific public groups;

·         The plan had been amended to reflect the feedback received and then a second phase of consultation was undertaken which included budget proposals;

·         The same five priority areas had been highlighted in the face to face and online consultation, although in a slightly different order;

·         All three scrutiny committees had considered the draft plan and all the recommendations had been included in the latest version.

The leader thanked the assistant director and all officers who had worked on the draft plan. He noted that the design work had been done in house and included photographs taken by students from the Herefordshire College of Arts. He also thanked the scrutiny committees for their input which he felt had resulted in an improved plan.

In commending the draft plan to cabinet, the leader stated that this was a county plan designed to deliver for the people of the county not for the council itself. He believed in community and that the council must work with communities to understand their needs and involve them in its work. He believed in the prosperity of socially responsible businesses and improved connectivity between the council and business. It was for the cabinet to behave in the ways set out in the plan by working in partnership, using resources wisely, respecting each other and listening to each other.

While it was recognised that many strands of the plan were interwoven, cabinet members were invited to highlight key activities and projects within their portfolio areas. These included:

Finance and Corporate Services

·         Improving connectivity, sustainability and wellbeing of the county;

·         Responding to climate change;

·         Delivering more affordable housing;

·         More balanced investment in sustainable development

Housing, regulatory services and community safety

·         Delivering housing for Herefordshire that recognised the challenges for residents in finding a suitable and genuinely affordable home;

·         Roll out of the talk community programme;

Commissioning, Procurement and Assets

·         Developing the way in which the council deals with waste collection and disposal taking account of changing legislation, the needs of residents and the environment;

·         Supporting cultural services in adding social value, for example through contact with vulnerable members of society and developing tourism opportunities;

·         Developing community wealth building, keeping money in the local economy as far as possible and making it easy for local businesses to enter supply chains;

·         Working with communities to see where they can take on council assets if they can run them  ...  view the full minutes text for item 124