TDC performance update - Council has made significant progress

A report published today (Monday 24 March) has revealed that the council has made significant progress over the course of the year.

Council performance for 2013-14 is measured against 32 key projects, which all link to the council’s corporate plan priorities and 27 targeted key performance indicators, which monitor how the council performs in the delivery of its key services.

Progress against these targets is then reported every three months.

The latest Corporate Performance Report covers the period between April to February 2014 and is the last performance update before an End of Year Report which will go to Cabinet in June.

Of the council’s key projects, nine are now complete and the majority of the projects underway (20) are on track. Of the 27 key performance indicators, 20 are also on target.

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There are a number of highlights within the report:

 Housing

•  54 affordable homes have been delivered so far this financial year – which is right on target.
• 117 selective licences have been issued – ahead of the target of 100
• 63 private sector housing notices have been issued on landlords - ahead of the target of 50
• 97 empty properties have been brought back into use – 17 more than target.

Visitor Information Centre Service

The council has handled 68,478 enquiries – almost 7,000 more than target (61,499).

Street scene enforcement

The council has undertaken 366 street scene enforcement actions so far this year, above the target of 323.

Disabled Facilities Grants (DFG)

There has been an 80% increase in the number of homes improved through DFG works in the first three quarters of this year, compared to last year.

Yacht Valley Project at Ramsgate Harbour and Port

There has been an extensive programme of works to commercial units in the Harbour arches. All but one of the refurbished arches have either been let or are under offer.

New Recycling and Waste Services
The new service has significantly increased resident recycling. Analysis of the recycling rate between November and January, indicates a recycling rate of 48% over this period.

Margate Housing Intervention Programme

Following on from the success of the Embassy building, the council has purchased a further seven key empty buildings and plans have been produced for submission for planning approval. The intervention area is on track to deliver 183 empty units into occupied units by March 2014, achieving a key programme objective.

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An explanation and remedial action for those projects and performance indicators where progress has slipped behind target can be found in the report.

Key areas the council will be working to improve next quarter include public satisfaction with street cleanliness and household waste and recycling collections, where levels have reduced.

Cabinet Member for Corporate Services, Cllr Michelle Fenner, said: “We’re committed to being open and transparent about how the council is performing. Progress over the last three months has been positive and shows we are moving in the right direction.

“We’ve been clear that despite a severe cut in government funding, we want to impact upon the frontline services we deliver for local people as little as possible.

“There are still areas to improve, most notably around public satisfaction with cleanliness and waste. This will be an absolute priority for the council. We are hopeful that with the introduction of a new mobile app to report issues, more mobile cleansing techniques and continuing to see low levels of missed collections since the initial roll out of the new service, this will improve.”