To approve the council’s Delivery Plan 2026/27. Cabinet is required to produce a delivery plan which sets out how the strategic priorities within the Herefordshire Council Plan 2024-28 will be delivered and monitored.

Councillor Stoddart cabinet member for finance and corporate services introduced the report

The Cabinet considered the Delivery Plan 2026/27 (appendix A), the third of four annual plans aligned to the Herefordshire Council Plan 2024–28 and the Medium-Term Financial Strategy. The Delivery Plan sets out how the council’s priorities and objectives will be delivered over the next 12 months and meets the council’s constitutional requirement for annual delivery planning. Members were reminded of the Council Plan vision: “delivering the best for Herefordshire in everything we do.”

The Delivery Plan was developed following consultation with political groups and individual councillors. It included both outstanding milestones from 2025/26 and new actions for 2026/27, structured around four pillars: People, Place, Growth and Transformation.

Under the People priority, 45 milestones support six objectives; under Place, 6 deliverables and 27 milestones support nine objectives; under Growth, 10 milestones support five objectives; and under Transformation, 19 milestones support five objectives.

Progress against the Delivery Plan will be monitored through quarterly performance reports to Cabinet, quarterly budget monitoring reports, monthly reporting to the Corporate Leadership Team, annual service plans and individual performance and development plans. Financial monitoring will continue alongside delivery monitoring. Cabinet were also reminded that projects within the Delivery Plan would seek to minimise environmental impact and identify opportunities for environmental improvement.

The Delivery Plan was described as ambitious but deliverable, and Cabinet was invited to endorse the report and its recommendations.

Comments from cabinet members:

It was noted that in the comments submitted by the Independents for Herefordshire a portfolio lead or a strategic officer should be identified as part of the Delivery Plan and this was considered a sensible approach.  Noting that roles and responsibilities can sometimes be confusing, and that clearer identification of responsibilities would be helpful for all councillors. The group also welcomed the inclusion of continuity plans, stating that these addressed previous concerns raised about infrastructure resilience and provided reassurance about ongoing arrangements.

Group Leaders were invited to offer their views:

Independents for Herefordshire outlined their views and noted that:

All councillors shared a common objective of improving outcomes for residents and that the Delivery Plan should be judged on its real?world impact. Concern was expressed that the draft Delivery Plan had been made available with limited time for consideration and without the level of consultation suggested.

While the document was described as well?structured and similar to the previous year’s plan, it was considered unclear in terms of the tangible changes it would deliver for residents.

It was noted that, as the third year of a four?year Council Plan, the Delivery Plan did not sufficiently demonstrate the cumulative impact of delivery to date. The absence of clear, measurable outcomes, timelines and accountability was highlighted and stated that residents were more concerned with practical issues such as service responsiveness, local SEND provision and environmental improvements than with additional strategy documents.

Greater transparency, use of plain language, the inclusion of clear performance measures and dashboards, and stronger links between delivery  ...  view the full minutes text for item 80