To review performance for Quarter 4 (Q4) 2024/25 and to report the performance position across all Directorates for this period.

The member for finance and corporate services introduced the report.  It was highlighted that 78% or 146 out of 187 milestones had been completed this year, 9% or 17 were red and would be carried over into the 2025/26 Delivery Plan. It was confirmed that the details for each of these red milestones were set out in Appendix A.  It was noted that 12% or 23 milestones were categorised as purple, these would also be carried over to the 2025/26 Delivery Plan, this was due to the time skills changing due to inter dependent activity.  There was one milestone which was awaiting an out turn of CO2 emissions to be available for 2024/25 to assess whether the target had been met.

 Whilst it was noted to be disappointing that not all 187 milestones were met the council had been transparent with the reasons why they had not been completed.

It was highlighted that beyond the Delivery Plan the council had achieved many other successes in quarter 4 of 2024/25.  Notably, it had continued to deliver on its capital investment programme which comprised of over 100 projects.  These included Peterchurch Primary School £10.8m new build, planned to commence in September 2025. The expansion of Aylestone School funded by £13.1m of Department for Education money, due to commence construction in September 2025.  Two projects under the school’s capital maintenance programme and five projects under the estate's capital investment programme were completed in quarter four.  Six projects as part of the S106 delivery programme, were completed which included a bus shelter at St Martins Way, Ledbury and the extension to the offices and reception area at Ashfield Park Primary School in Ross. Two projects were completed as part of the school accessibility improved programme which include internal adaptation and remodelling at Sutton St. Nicholas Primary School to improve accessibility for disabled pupils.  

It was highlighted that £15m of roads resurfacing was completed across the county.  The legal agreements with Network Rail and Transport for Wales were completed and the Hereford Transport Hub contract was selected, with construction work beginning in quarter 1 of 2025/26.  Construction was also due to start soon for the Holme Lacy active travel improvements following the design and road safety audits being completed.  The detailed design was completed for the Tarrington wetland ahead of its planned construction in quarter 1 of 2025/26. The listed building consent was secured and a two-stage procurement process for construction delivery commenced regarding the Shirehall restoration and Library Learning Centre.  In addition, the stage one contractor procurement was concluded for the Hereford Museum and Art Gallery.  The Home Upgrade Grant concluded in quarter 4 and delivered thermal and energy upgrades to 220 off means Herefordshire households against a target of 200.  Lastly, design consultants were appointed as part of the Western Bypass Phase 1.

The Council Plan theme of People, 55 out of 60 milestones were completed with 3 red which would be rolled forward to next year’s Delivery Plan and 2 purple. It was highlighted that within Children and Young People,  300 young people aged 16 to 24 were referred to the youth employment hub exceeding the target of 200 referrals for the year. The capacity of Special Education Needs (SEN) increased with an additional 56 specialist places.   A participation strategy was agreed by the Herefordshire Safeguarding Partnership and a participation toolkit was now available online. 

It was highlighted in the Community Wellbeing directorate that the Community Safety Partnership Strategy had been implemented focusing on domestic abuse, violence against women and girls’ sexual violence, misuse of drugs and neighbourhood crime. 

It was noted that 3 milestones were being carried over into 2025/26.  Firstly, evaluation of technology pilots within the larger technology enabled living programme.  Secondly, work was underway to identify 3 new work opportunity providers to extend the services for people with learning disabilities and mental health issues. Thirdly, a full business case on the options for investing in and building the council’s own care facility was being worked up, it will be considered by cabinet in Autumn 2025.

Within the Economy and Environment directorate,  the Hereford enterprise zone had supported 7 businesses with employer travel plans to encourage more walking and cycling, exceeding the target. Also, the waiting list for Traffic Regulation Orders had been significantly reduced from 130 to 61 schemes. 

The Council Plan theme of Place, 45 out of 59 milestones were completed, 4 were red and will be carried forward into the Delivery Plan for 2025/26, 9 were purple and 1 was white as that milestone was awaiting the outturn on the CO2 emissions to be available to assess whether the target has been met. It was confirmed that a parking strategy was being developed as part of the Transport Infrastructure Improvement Plan.  The Library Strategy was progressing, and the contractor was due to be appointed to redevelop the Library and Learning Centre in the Shirehall by the end of quarter 2 of 2025/26.  The construction work to redevelop the Hereford Museum and Art Gallery was slightly delayed and due to take place during quarter 1 of 2025/26.

It was confirmed that the delay in completing the public consultation on the draft Local Transport Plan was due to Government changes to the National Planning Policy Framework.  This consultation would now take place during quarter 1 of 2025/26.

It was noted that Phase 2 of the Strategic Mitigation for Phosphate credits was almost complete and it was hoped to be completed by quarter 1 of 2025/26.  The timelines for the publication of the Nature Recovery Strategy have been adjusted in line with the revised timelines provided by the Department for Environment and Rural Affairs.

The Council Plan theme of Growth, 24 of the 42 milestones were completed, 6 were red and 12 were purple. It was noted that an inward investment manager had been successfully recruited to support attracting businesses to the county.  March 2025 also marked the successful completion of delivering the £7m UK Shared Prosperity and Rural Prosperity Fund. It was noted that challenges regarding section 278 planning matters caused a delay to the finalisation of the design and the procurement of the Ross Enterprise Park.  However, this had been resolved, and tenders would go out in quarter 1 of 2025/26.  It was confirmed that the development and implementation of an Inward Investment and Place Marketing Plan for Herefordshire was on track to be delivered during 2025/26.  It was noted that the allocation of funding for additional employment land, the careers and enterprise programme in local schools and colleges to attract students to study in the county were also in progress.  It was also noted that strategies to support improved network coverage would be delivered during 2025/26 following the publication of the results of the 4G5G mobile coverage by the River Severn Partnership. 

The Council Plan theme of transformation, 22 out of 26 milestones were completed and 4 were red.    It was highlighted that a new set of customer standards had been developed and were set out in the Transformation Strategy.   It was also confirmed that the council co-produced Hereford’s Council Charter in quarter 4 and this was due to be published shortly. 

It was clarified that some of the data from the Office for Local Government should be interpreted with caution and 10 indicators were selected by the council to demonstrate a more meaningful indication of its latest performance. There were, Performance of service users aged 65 plus, discharge from hospital into home first who were still at home 91 days after discharge. The projection was 80% and at quarter 4 the figure was 79.83%.  Percentage of Children and Young People social work assessments completed within the time scale of 45 days. The quarter 4 projection was 85% and the actual result was 67.7%. The percentage of children in care who had an up-to-date review, the target was 95%, however 98.25% was achieved. The percentage of major planning applications dealt with within 13 weeks or 60 weeks, if subject to an Environmental Impact Assessment or with an agreed extension of time, the target was 70% and 94.59% was achieved. The percentage of non-major minor and other planning applications dealt with within 8 weeks or with an agreed extension of time. The target was 80% and 77.71% was achieved.  The number of kilogrammes of waste that were not sent to reuse, recycling or composting per household, the target was 360 kilogrammes and 366.4 kilogrammes was achieved.  The number of affordable homes delivered, the target was 260, and 276 were delivered. The local count of Herefordshire official homelessness was at 5 and 1 was achieved. The value of grants awarded to businesses to support viability and enable growth through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and Rural Prosperity Fund, the target was £2.6m and £2.9m was achieved. 

It was highlighted that Appendix A set out the detailed status of all 187 milestones.

Comments from cabinet members.  Regarding Peterchurch Primary School it was raised who was funding the new zebra school crossing, whether it was from the school budget or by Highways on the basis the school had 210 pupils.  It was also noted that when the school was flooded recently, the drainage consultants were looking to ensure the new school was protected.  Lastly, that the swimming pool would hopefully continue to be maintained as it was a good asset for the school. 

It was positively noted how well the report was presented.  The improvement of the roads were commended.  Regarding the environment energy efficiency and retrofit, it was positive to see so many had been completed across the two schemes but there was still more to do.  Regarding the CO2 reduction, it was noted that whilst the council didn’t have the data for this year, it was anticipated that the number would reduce when factoring in the changes to the waste fleet and EV vehicles.  It was also noted that the decarbonisation plan would hopefully be through by the end of the month.

It was noted that the evaluation of the tech pilot had been completed and that had informed the tech products being rolled out and were supporting plans for people with care packages.  It was noted that whilst the council had hoped to sign up 3 new providers to provide work opportunities for people with Learning Difficulties, no new providers came forward.  However, those already on the framework were looking to provide work opportunities as part of the learning disabilities transformation work. 

Regarding the Ross Enterprise Park Phase 1, £7.25m had been drawn down to begin the construction phase. 

Regarding Children and Young People it was clarified that the indicator which remained red was due to social work staffing vacancies.  It was confirmed that the council’s recruitment and retention offer had been revised and increased numbers of permanent staff being recruited had been noted.  For additional reassurance, the improvement plan, which was monitored every 6 weeks by the improvement board, included 2 measures which focused on the sufficiency and stability of the workforce. Meaning there was a high degree of scrutiny on this indicator within the improvement board. 

Regarding the improvement to the roads, positive acknowledgement was given to the team and confirmation that the hard work would continue to next year. 

Group leaders gave the views of their groups. Catching up on backlogs regarding the s.106 and Traffic Regulation Orders were welcomed.  It was queried when the Parking Strategy was completed. Regarding the Local Nature Recovery Strategy it was queried what the role of the council was in progressing this and to avoid duplication what more can be done to ensure it was being run efficiently.  Concern was raised regarding public land being sold off at the Herefordshire Enterprise Zone.  It was also queried where the full business case was for the Southern Link Road.  

The report was also positively welcomed and further improvement was anticipated with the permanent director in place for strategy.  The progress on Growth was seen to be disappointing but noted it was dependant on inward investment.  It was raised if the deliverables could be tested for alignment and acknowledgement of savings as well as the tangible service delivery items.  It was also queried if the scale of some items that were strategic programmes could be highlighted for the future. 

It was also raised that the report focused more on the activity but not the outcomes and impact of that activity. 

In response to queries, regarding the Parking Strategy it was confirmed that Part 1 had been released and will check it was on the website.  It was confirmed that Part 2 was commercially confidential and wouldn’t be available in the meantime. 

In respect of the Local Nature Recovery Strategy, it was confirmed that the Government had asked the council to bring this forward and the council did this with a steering group of stakeholders which included Natural England, Environment Agency, Forestry Commission, Wildlife Trust, representatives from National Landscapes and landowners.  It was confirmed this would be out for consultation in the next couple of months.  The council was currently writing the strategy, and it was an evolving picture. 

Regarding selling land at the Enterprise Zone it was clarified that the council primed the site, which required significant investment by the council and when businesses want to buy the land to develop, that payment is what replenishes the initial investment.  It should also be remembered that the goal was not to become landowners or landlord, it was to increase economic growth and business development.  It was highlighted that the council retains the Shell store, and the council will continue to invest in the economy.

It was clarified that the Performance report was tied to the Delivery Plan and it is action focused by nature, focusing on what the council has done.  It was acknowledged that in the next Delivery Plan the could include a column which looked at the impacts of the Performance report. 

Regarding the implication that the business case for the Golden Valley Parkway would be the same as Phase 1 of the Western Bypass, it was clarified that the business cases do mature as they are finalised.  It was confirmed that the Golden Valley Parkway had not reached an outline business case due to delays with Network Rail.  Regarding Phase 1 of the Western Bypass, it had been ongoing for a long time and the business case was being finalised for delivery.  It cannot be compared or seen in the same light as the Golden Valley Parkway. 

Councillor Stoddart, proposed the recommendations, and it was unanimously resolved that:

That Cabinet:

a)    review performance for Q4 2024/25; and

b)    agree any outstanding key milestones from the Delivery Plan 2024/25 (see Appendix A) are carried forward to the Delivery Plan 2025/26