COMPREHENSIVE PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT

Hampshire County Council is required by the Local Government White Paper "Strong Local Leadership -Quality Public Services" to complete a self assessment questionnaire by 1 May 2002.

There are detailed questions to answer concerning the County Council's priorities and what we are trying to achieve and we are actively working on this at the moment.

Commenting, Leader of Hampshire County Council, Councillor Ken Thornber said: "Following on from our successful Ofsted inspection, positive letter from the District Auditor, the MORI survey that showed that 73% of residents were satisfied overall with our services and the Public Service Agreement that could secure us an extra £20 million for services, Hampshire County Council has been chosen in the first tranche of these reviews which will eventually cover all local authorities in England and Wales.

"We have got about a month to thoroughly assess every one of our many services. We will not only be providing evidence of our performance, we will have to say how services meet our planned corporate objectives.

"We will have to assess our own strengths and weaknesses and will have to provide evidence of improvements in services. What this self assessment is doing is asking us to critically examine all of our services and their performances.

"We are being asked to do this because Government wants to categorise every council as being high performing, or striving, or coasting or failing. Stephen Byers has said that high-performing councils will be rewarded with greater freedom to operate and greater freedom from national government inspections.

"There have recently been two white papers of more than 120 pages each offering local government many freedoms and flexibilities but not yet specifying what they might be.

"We have a month of self assessment that is a month of officers effort which we can ill-afford but we have no alternative if we are to free ourselves to provide services in the way local people want. I only hope at the end of all this activity the County Council will finally be recognised as providing Hampshire residents with first class services.

"There will be a further two months of inspection after our self assessment, and the Government's verdict will be delivered in the autumn."

Ends

Vanessa Buckle (01962) 847367
3 April 2002
C719 L