Contact: Jenny Heath, Corporate Performance Manager, ext 7402

1 Purpose of this report

1.1 This annual report provides the proposed schedule of Best Value reviews for the forthcoming financial year, indicating any areas of work which carry forward from the current year into the next.

1.2 The report also identifies the extent to which Members have been involved in the process of review.

1.3 The Best Value review programme is a key element in supporting Corporate Strategy aim 5: Improving Services, with particular relevance to the theme of `improving our performance.'

2 The current Best Value Review Programme for this Committee

2.1 At its meeting on 15 December 2003, the Cabinet approved the revised Best Value review programme, which aims for a greater integration of review activity with corporate priorities, currently expressed in the Corporate Strategy and highlighted through the Cabinet Priorities.

2.2 The Best Value review programme began in April 2000 and a summary of the activity led by this committee is appended.

2.3 Current work for this committee includes:

· the review of community engagement scheduled for 2003/04 and continuing into 2004/05

· review of equality and diversity scheduled for 2004/05.

3 Community engagement review

3.1 Once the community engagement review was announced there was considerable interest from all council departments in its potential scope - with the result that it was starting to mean all things to all people and developing a scope that covered all council activity. Over the summer and early autumn of 2003, advice was taken from District Audit, helping the officer Corporate Performance Steering Group to consider how best to refine the boundaries of the review. Therefore, to ensure the scope of the review is manageable, it will focus its activity on responding to the recommendations from the Corporate Assessment Team, arising as part of the Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA). These were:

· In order to make best use of consultation with users and stakeholders, and to ensure that consultees' views are both respected and seen to be respected, the Council should:

ensure that it consults all relevant stakeholders over strategies, policies, and priorities early enough to enable the results of consultation to influence outcomes, and make better use of established consultation mechanisms.

Keith Kerslake, Head of Communications, has agreed to lead this more tightly defined review. Part of the outcome of the review will be to flag up what other areas of community engagement would benefit from further review in later years.

Although refining the scope has meant a delay to the review starting, other significant research exercises have maintained community engagement, for example through consultation on the budget strategy and a repeat of the Resident's Survey, which tracks opinions over time and informs decisions about the Council's priorities.

4 Equality and diversity review

4.1 Following discussion with Jane Goodwin, the Equality and Diversity Adviser, the scope of this review is clarified as carrying out an authority-wide assessment against the national standard that will enable the Council to move towards level three of that standard. The anticipated outputs from the review are:

· new aims in relation to equality and diversity, which will be incorporated in the Corporate Strategy

· a plan for delivery of these aims

· validation of the Council's policies and guidance that relate to equality and diversity.

5 Progress with earlier reviews

5.1 Reports on progress with implementing the outcomes of earlier reviews have been presented to the committee both on an ad hoc basis and last year as a combined report (27.03.03), which prepared information for the Performance Plan. The appendix highlights their current status and whether further monitoring of progress is still necessary. The reports and summaries are recorded on Hantsweb and can be accessed via the performance plan, at: http://www.hants.gov.uk/bestvalueinhampshire/.

5.2 A further report will be presented to this committee in March, outlining further progress during 2003/04 and summarising the information for inclusion in the 2004 Performance Plan.

6 Member involvement in reviews

6.1 The importance of member involvement in Best Value reviews was endorsed by the Corporate Assessment Team, who evaluated the Council's `corporate capacity' as a key element of the CPA process. They recommended that

`In order to improve evidence-based policy development and prioritisation, the Council should:

· Make more use of formal political scrutiny to explore alternatives to existing policies and strategies.'

6.2 As agreed by this Committee at its meeting on 26 February 2002, four Members are nominated to participate in each review, ensuring political representation at meetings, on the understanding that it would not always be possible to schedule meetings to suit all Member diaries. In addition, the committee indicated its preference for continuing Member involvement in monitoring the implementation of improvement plans for cross-cutting reviews. The following paragraphs indicate how this involvement has been or will be achieved since that decision was taken.

6.2.1 Equality and diversity review

Nominations are invited for participation in this review.

6.2.2 Community engagement review

Because of the delayed start to the review, the following Members are being asked to confirm (or otherwise) their capacity to participate:

Cllrs: Dash, Davidovitz, Ellis and Roberts

6.2.3 Democratic Services monitoring improvement plan

Cllrs Cartwright, Ludlow and Rice have been nominated.

6.2.4 International Relations monitoring improvement plan

Cllrs Cartwright, Roberts and Collett have been nominated.

6.2.5 Voluntary and community sector monitoring improvement plan

In addition to the `championship' of the voluntary and community sector Compact by Cllr Woodhall, this PRC established a group to monitor the Best Value review improvement plan:

Cllrs: Banks, Dowden and Rice.

They may be joined by those Members, who were involved in the review itself and who continue to have an interest in this area of activity:

Cllrs: Chegwyn, Ellis and Snaith.

6.2.6 Economic prosperity monitoring improvement plan

The improvement plan is monitored by the cross-cutting Economy Working Group, which is chaired by Cllr Woodhall. The Policy and Resources PRC Committee may also wish to nominate a member of this committee to monitor progress with the improvement plan.

6.2.7 Cross-cutting passenger transport monitoring improvement plan

Cllr Knight, Environment PRC, has participated in the corporate cross-cutting passenger transport group since its establishment. More recently, Cllr Filer was nominated to participate on behalf of the Policy and Resources PRC.

Recommendation

1 That four members indicate their preference for involvement in the following Best Value review for 2004/05:

· Equality and diversity

2 That a member is nominated to monitor progress with the Improvement Plan of the Economic Prosperity Best Value review.