The past 12 months have been a period South Ayrshire … · The past 12 months have been a period of immense growth and development for South Ayrshire Council. Building on our own

The past 12 months have been a period of immense growth and development for South Ayrshire Council.

ForewordThe past 12 months have been a period of immense growth and development for South Ayrshire Council. Building on our own self-assessment, we have embraced the recommendations from our best value audit and used these pro-actively to further refine our improvement and to shape an ambitious, forward looking improvement agenda to guide the transformation of the organisation.

Our focus has been on laying strong foundations for sustained improvements. We have put in place clear processes for monitoring and reviewing our progress. Scrutiny is a core element of this. We have also strengthened our capacity to take forward our improvement efforts. We now need to build on the foundations we have put in place in a paced and systematic way and embed improvement into every corner of the organisation.

We have come a long way since our best value audit report was published in April 2009. However, we do not underestimate the challenges which lie ahead. Public sector finances are facing a sustained period of significant decline. Our population is ageing, service demands are increasing and our infrastructure requires investment.

South Ayrshire Council has considerably improved its financial health in the past year, but we do not underestimate the scale of downward financial adjustment we will need to achieve in coming years nor how difficult this will be to enact at the required pace. We know that efficiency measures and savings in back office functions will be insufficient to carry us through budget reductions and demand pressures. Service redesign, joint working and radical thinking will all be required underpinned by clear priorities. Our improvement journey of the past 12 months will help us face the challenges which lie ahead.

We remain ambitious and forward looking and committed to delivering high quality services to the people of South Ayrshire. We must maintain pace and momentum in our improvement effort if we are to achieve our objectives against a backdrop of intensifying challenges.

Councillor Bill McIntosh, Leader of the Council

Councillor Nan McFarlane, SNP Group Leader

Councillor John McDowall, Labour Group Leader

Councillor Brian Connolly, Independent Member

David Anderson, Chief Executive

ContentsForeword

Introduction 1

South Ayrshire Council’s Approach to Improvement 3

Where Are We on Our Improvement Agenda? 9

Looking Forward to Best Value 2 14

Annex 1: Status of the Improvement Strands as at March 2010 15

South Ayrshire Council Audit of Best Value and Community Planning:A submission to support a reassessment by Audit Scotland

The purpose of this submission is to set out how South Ayrshire Council has approached its improvement journey, to assess where we are on that journey, and to look forward to best value 2.

Audit of Best VAlue & Community PlAnning 1

Introduction1.1 In preparing for the Audit of Best Value and Community Planning and building on improvement activity already underway, South Ayrshire Council undertook a comprehensive self-evaluation and carefully reflected on the organisational improvements it needed to make in moving forward. The substance of that work was reflected in the submission made to Audit Scotland in June 2008. That preparatory work marked the start of the Council’s improvement journey.

1.2 Audit Scotland’s review of South Ayrshire Council’s progress with best value and community planning was undertaken in late 2008. It was thorough and provided a welcome reinforcement of the Council’s own self-evaluation exercise. It also provided further refinement on the core improvements required if the Council is to become a modern, progressive local authority delivering best value and at the heart of strong community planning and fit to face the challenges which lie ahead for all corners of the public sector.

1.3 The Audit of Best Value and Community Planning Report was published on 22 April 2009. It identified twelve substantive areas for improvement and set a challenging forward agenda for the Council:

The Council has recently made some important changes to support improvement, including new political and managerial structures, but it continues to face a very challenging improvement agenda, covering fundamental best value requirements including financial management, performance management, community planning, people management and customer service.

Its capacity for improvement will be tested by the severe financial pressures it faces, the lack of improvement processes in place and the overall scale of the improvement required.

Therefore, within the resources it has available, the Council needs to ensure its future improvement programme is realistic, clearly prioritised and has shared ownership among members and officers to ensure that it has the desired impact.

1.4 In considering the report from the Controller of Audit, the Accounts Commission was concerned at the limited progress made by the Council and a further report was requested on the position of the Council as at March 2010.

1.5 South Ayrshire Council has sought to derive the maximum benefit from having a comprehensive review undertaken by Audit Scotland. It has fully embraced the findings and recommendations made in April 2009 and used these as a clear reference point for its improvement journey.

1.6 The purpose of this submission is to set out how South Ayrshire Council has approached its improvement journey, to assess where we are on that journey, and to look forward to best value 2. This report is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all things improving in the Council but is a reflection of the progress made and an articulation of the framework supporting that progress. It is intended to be a helpful contribution to Audit Scotland’s forthcoming further assessment of the Council.

Improvement is not happening in a vacuum. It has to be set in the wider context of public sector changes.


South Ayrshire Council’s Approach to Improvement2.1 The self-evaluation process which underpinned South Ayrshire’s original submission to Audit Scotland highlighted a range of areas where action was needed to improve the organisation. The publication of the Audit of Best Value and Community Planning report accentuated the focus on key areas and added depth and insight into other challenges faced by the Council.

2.2 The Council spent time reflecting on the most appropriate framework to put in place to support its response to the Audit of Best Value and Community Planning. Key factors considered:

• Thebestvalueauditrecommendationsaremulti-faceted and cover a broad and deep range of issues. They are also inter-connected.

• Cautionisrequiredtoensurethatourresponsetotherecommendations is not reduced to short–term actions and a tick box approach which seemingly suggest progress but in fact represents a veneering of the deep-seated issues to be addressed.

• Thefocusshouldbeonlayingstrongfoundationsforsustainedimprovements and then building up from those foundations in a paced, systematic way.

• Thescaleoftheagendanecessarilymeansthatsomeimprovement areas will be focused on earlier than others. For example, the prevailing financial climate and the fact that financial pressures may be a limiting factor on the rate of other improvement areas means that finance is a top priority.

• Discreteactivitiesareapre-requisitetoprogressbuttherelevantpoint is not the activity itself but the impact which it has. For example, chief officers participating in a programme designed to grow leadership capacity in the organisation will be an important element in supporting improvement within South Ayrshire Council but the relevant point is the subsequent effect which participation in the programme has on their leadership of the organisation.

• Improvementisnothappeninginavacuum.Ithastobesetin the wider context of public sector changes characterised by changing relationships between national and local government, and by the challenging financial climate facing all quarters of the public sector.

• TheAccountsCommissionisdevelopingitsapproachtothenext round of best value audits (BV2). It is appropriate to take account of the future direction of best value in considering how to respond to the audit report so that we set ourselves on a journey plan that will sustain through into the BV2 approach.

• Carefulconsiderationisrequiredoforganisationalcapacityforimprovement since there is a need to avoid false starts, artificially short deadlines and a pace of change which leaves elected members and staff in its wake.

2.3 Having reflected on the foregoing issues, an Improvement Agenda was developed. It was an explicit decision to call it an ‘Agenda’ since this conveyed a sense of the multiple dimensions which will characterise South Ayrshire Council’s transformation.

2.4 The audit report identified 12 substantive areas for improvement. A strand of improvement activity was developed around each of these areas:

Improvement Strand 1 Sustained Financial Health

Improvement Strand 2 Strategic Planning and the Golden Thread

Improvement Strand 3 Leadership Capacity

Improvement Strand 4 The Roles of Members and Senior Officers

Improvement Strand 5 Performance Management

Improvement Strand 6 Service Modernisation and Review

Improvement Strand 7 Activities Related to Efficiency and Effectiveness

Improvement Strand 8 Core ICT Systems

Improvement Strand 9 Customer Care

Improvement Strand 10 Joint Working and Shared Services

Improvement Strand 11 Communication and Engagement

Improvement Strand 12 Information and Training for Elected Members

We have taken the opportunity of the forthcoming further assessment of South Ayrshire Council’s progress with respect to best value and community planning, to assess our progress in relation to the improvement strands.


2.5 For each strand, the Improvement Agenda sets out:

• adescriptionofsuccessdrawingonBV2characteristics;

• areminderofwhattheauditreportsaid;

• theactivitieswhicharesupportingimprovement;

• deliverytimescalesfortheactivities;and

• thechiefofficeraccountablefordeliveryofthat improvement strand.

2.6 An interactive session on the draft document was held with elected members on 01 July 2009 and the Improvement Agenda was agreed at Council on 09 July 2009. Since then, it has been used as the framework within which improvement is managed in the organisation.

2.7 With the benefit of eight months’ experience of developing and beginning to implement the Improvement Agenda, it is worth noting the following:

• Thereareanumberofstrandswithsignificantoverlaps,particularly leadership capacity, the role of members and senior officers, and, information and training for elected members (strands 3, 4 and 12 respectively). The extent of overlap and the convergence of activity to support these strands suggest that they could have been grouped into one strand focused on the leadership of the organisation.

• Therewouldhavebeenbenefitinincludingadistinctstrandto capture co-ordination of the improvement work and the change management elements of this transformational agenda. A monitoring and reporting regime has been put in place and covering reports are giving visibility to the key elements of improvement effort but a separate strand would have provided a reference point against which progress could have been assessed.

2.8 It is not considered desirable to introduce significant change to the Improvement Agenda at the current time. The further assessment of the Council by Audit Scotland will provide an opportunity to address refinements in approach which have become apparent with the benefit of hindsight. It is intended that both points above are addressed at that juncture. However, in the interim, the Council will continue to adopt an intelligent, joined-up approach to strands 3, 4 and 12.

2.9 Monitoring and reporting of progress on the Improvement Agenda comprises four core elements reflecting its centrality to transforming the organisation:

• TheCorporateManagementTeam(CMT)operatesasanImprovement Programme Board and considers updates on an 8-weekly basis with a focus on progress against each strand including the identifiable impact of improvement activity, any areas of concern where remedial action is required to bring targets back on track and to assess overall progress in the improvement activity. CMT meets to consider strategic matters every 8 weeks and that is when the detailed programme considerations take place leading into the progress reports to elected members. Additionally, best value has remained a standing item on the CMT agenda providing a fortnightly opportunity for any relevant issues to be highlighted.

• Overallprogressandprogressagainsteachindividualstrandisreported to the Leadership Panel on an 8-weekly cycle using an agreed template and a traffic light system to guide assessment of progress.

• TheLeadershipPanelautomaticallyremitsthese8-weeklyprogress reports to the Corporate and Community Planning Standing Scrutiny Panel for further consideration.

• TheScrutinyPanelhasadditionallyinitiatedaprogrammeofdetailed consideration of individual improvement strands so that it can consider the more detailed work that sits behind the activities set out in the Improvement Agenda and the evidence of progress.

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2.10 In addition, two independent ‘critical friends’ have been engaged to provide an external sounding board and independent challenge of the CMT’s assessment of progress. Peter Wilson (former ChiefConstableofFifeConstabulary)andMichaelBurke(aDirectorwith Learning Unlimited) are providing the critical friend function. Their input thus far has focused on supportive challenge of the improvement process and progress reports. However, recognising that the Improvement Agenda requires to push into every corner of the organisation, plans are underway for them to undertake some direct engagement work in March and April with staff groups. Their intention is to secure insight into the direction and pace of change from an operational perspective and the sense of ownership and engagement which staff have with the Council’s transformation and whether any specific measures are needed to ensure that improvement is not considered an addition to the day job but rather is seen as part and parcel of core activity for everyone in the organisation.

2.11 In terms of progress reports on the Improvement Agenda, the following traffic light system/RAG status has been applied:

• Red:DeliveryagainstatimescaleintheImprovementAgendais unlikely to be met and/or a significant new issue or risk has emerged which requires to be addressed.

• Amber: Some elements of delivery as set out in the Improvement Agenda proving difficult or a new issue or risk has emerged which may impede delivery or which otherwise should be highlighted.

• Green: Good progress being made and in line with delivery timescale set out in the Improvement Agenda and no significant issues or risks emerging.

2.12 The core elements of progress reports are a summary sheet setting out a brief synopsis of progress against each strand and the current RAG status, and a detailed template for each strand showing activity in the preceding 8 weeks and any issues or risks which should be highlighted or remedial or mitigating action required.

2.13 Three progress reports have been made to date to the Leadership Panel: September 2009 , November 2009 and February 2010. These have all been subsequently considered by the Scrutiny Panel supplemented by their detailed consideration of individual strands. Thus far, the Corporate and Community Planning Standing Scrutiny Panel has given detailed consideration to three improvement strands: communications and engagement , leadership capacity and performance management. The format of each session has varied. The Scrutiny Panel has been invited on each occasion to consider not only the progress of the strand being assessed, but the format for presenting information and whether improvements can be made to support effective scrutiny.

2.14 The development of this submission has been informed by a briefing with elected members held on 24 February 2010. That identified a need to increase the visibility of the impact of improvement activity with an increasing emphasis on how outcomes are being enhanced as a consequence.

2.15 From the work undertaken in developing this submission and on the basis of the feedback from elected members, the overall assessment of South Ayrshire Council’s Improvement journey at the current time is that:

• theImprovementAgendaprovidesaclear,structuredframeworkguiding the transformation of the organisation which is underpinned by realistic timescales and which we have the capacitytodeliver;

• clearprocesseshavebeenestablishedforreviewingandmonitoringprogressonimprovementactivity;

• moredetailedscrutinyofindividualimprovementstrandsisaddingvalueandchallengetoorganisationalimprovement;and

• theCounciliscommittedtocriticalself-reflectiononourapproach to improvement.

Two independent critical friends have been engaged to provide an external sounding board and independent challenge of the CMT’s assessment of progress.

When progress across the improvement strands is considered collectively, we assess that progress has been good.


Where Are We on Our Improvement Journey?3.1 The past year has been one of immense growth and development for South Ayrshire Council. This did not start abruptly with the adoption of the Improvement Agenda. Previous self-evaluation work highlighted a range of areas which recognised that action was needed to improve the organisation. This work was not stalled pending the outcome of the Audit Scotland report. Of particular note prior to the Improvement Agenda being agreed at Council:

• neworganisationalandchiefofficerstructureswereagreedandimplementedwithallchiefofficerstakinguppostbyJune2009;

• ajointportfolioholders/CMT2-daysessiontookplaceinApril 2009 to consider the Improvement Agenda and the characteristics of a top performing council and to lay the foundations for the distinctive roles played by senior members andofficers;

• singlestatuspayandgradingstructuresandrevisedconditionsofserviceagreedandimplementationcommenced;

• aSingleOutcomeAgreement(SOA)for2009-2012wasagreedwith the Community Planning Partnership (CPP) providing a clear framework for partners to work together to deliver local outcomesagreedtobeofimportanceacrossSouthAyrshire;

• afinancialstrategywasdevelopedtopavethewaytoensuringfuture affordability of priorities and objectives, to drive continuous improvement and best value, and to support the implementationofefficiencysavings;

• aninterimpropertyassetmanagementstrategywasdevelopedto facilitate a well-grounded basis for making future asset decisions particularly where these relate to other improvement andmodernisationwork;and

• afundamentalreviewoftheschoolestatewasprogressedtoprovide a strong foundation for future decision making with respect to all aspects of the school estate.

3.2 Since July 2009, the Improvement Agenda has provided the framework within which we have considered our improvement efforts. In the three progress reports made thus far, most improvement work has been advancing in line with expectations and have been graded as ‘green’. The prevalence of ‘green’ gradings is considered to reflect the realism of the timescales set from the outset within the Improvement Agenda. As we move

further out from the point at which the timescales were determined, more variance can be expected because there is more scope for complicating or unanticipated factors to arise which influence delivery of the component parts of the Improvement Agenda and/or for more issues/risks to emerge.

3.3 Five improvement strands have received an ‘amber’ grading over the course of the last 7 months:

• SustainedFinancialHealth(strand1)wasgradedas‘amber’inthe September and November progress reports because of the uncertainty of public sector finances and forthcoming settlement figures. Whilst overall uncertainty will persist for some considerable time in relation to public sector finances including the possibility of in-year revisions, a long-term ‘amber’ grading emanating from an external factor does not assist the Council in considering internal progress against expectation. In February it was decided to regrade this strand ‘green’ reflecting the good progress being made on all aspects of financial health within the Council’s control.

• LeadershipCapacity(strand3)wasgradedas‘amber’inthe February 2010 report reflecting the fact that the report was written just after the retirement of the Council Leader but immediately prior to the Special Council to appoint the next Council Leader and fill any consequential vacancies. It also acknowledged the possible need for a settling in period following political leadership changes.

• ServiceModernisationandReview(strand6)wasgradedas‘amber’ in the September report. One of the first activities related to this strand was to assess the current status of service reviews. That process revealed that some reviews were not appropriately categorised (e.g. budget savings) but at the point of writing that progress report, the reassignment process had not been undertaken.

• CoreICTsystems(strand8)hasbeengradedas‘amber’throughout. When the Improvement Agenda was developed, a system healthcheck was on-going and until that was completed and further consideration of implementation options progressed, a timeline could not be set. It was expected that a timeline would be included within the first progress report. Implementation consideration has revealed that there are several options for implementing the core ICT systems work and that different timelines attach to these options. Current work is on-going to determine which option will offer the best solution for South Ayrshire Council and that in turn will determine the timeline against which future progress will be monitored.

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• IntheSeptemberreport,theCommunicationsand Engagement strand (strand 11) was graded as ‘amber’ reflecting an unforeseen delay in the arrival of a new communications manager. However, it was down graded upon her arrival in October.

3.4 We have sought to apply the traffic light system rigorously. There has been one occasion where an alternative grading should have been used. The Improvement Agenda included provisionfortheopeningofacustomercontactcentreinDecember2009 (strand 9). A decision was taken that it was not appropriate to open the contact centre immediately before the Christmas break and that furthermore, January and February is a period where there are large volumes of calls and council tax enquiries. This was not felt to be the right context for migrating services across to the Customer Contact Centre and thus the ‘go-live’ point was postponed until mid-February with council tax services coming on-stream in early March. The strand was kept at ‘green’ throughout when in fact it should have been graded differently in November until a new timescale was agreed with elected members.

3.5 The Council has taken the opportunity of the forthcoming further assessment of South Ayrshire Council’s progress with respect to best value and community planning, to assess our progress in relation to the improvement strands. In annex 1, each improvement strand is set out alongside its current status and related comments. All improvement strands are currently graded as ‘green’ except Core ICT systems which is ‘amber’ for the reasons set out above. South Ayrshire Council is starting its preparations for BV2 and we await the outcome of the pathfinder authorities work with keen interest. We have started to look at the connections between

our improvement work and our preparations for BV2. Alongside the progress for each improvement strand, we have noted how the improvement strand will contribute to our preparations for BV2.

3.6 When progress across the improvement strands as set out in annex 1 is considered collectively, we assess that progress has been good. We have identified several areas where we require to accelerate our efforts. We know, for example, that fiscal squeeze in the coming years means we need to move from 14 aims, 43 objectives and 48 outcome indicators to a set of clear priorities earlier than Spring 2011 to guide strategic and service planning and to facilitate resources becoming inextricably linked to the planning framework. We also know that the programme of service review and modernisation will need to be brisk and involve significant service redesign if we are to deliver financial savings on the scale envisaged in the coming years without significantly impeding priority front line service delivery. Clear, effective communication straddles the effective delivery of most other improvement strands so the new communication strategy will need to be quickly implemented and embedded into the organisation.

3.7 At the start of the briefing session on this submission, elected members were asked what area of business they felt had most improved in the past year. The following areas were highlighted:

• improvedfinancialmanagementandbetterbudgetprocesses;

• relationshipsbetweenmembersandofficers, particularlycommunication;

• communicationsmoregenerally;

• cross-partyworking;

• aclearersenseofdirectionandfocus;

• improvedcustomerfocus;

• theexternalperceptionofSouthAyrshireCouncilparticularly bytheScottishGovernmentandotherlocalauthorities;

• therightpeopleintherightplacesfortheagendaandchallengesweface;

• bettermanagementoftheworkforce;and

• markedimprovementsinspecificserviceareassuchasplanningand fleet management.


3.8 While we would attest that good progress has been made with our Improvement Agenda albeit that the main focus has been on laying strong foundations, the real test is what difference it is making to the people and organisations of South Ayrshire. Below are some examples which we feel demonstrate progress in the right direction:

• Wehavebeenworkinghardwithourserviceuserstodeliverredesigned, responsive services. Community Safety has recently been reviewed and, in addition to achieving a financial saving target, has moved resources into the “problem-solving” part of the service. This has been in response to community-based enthusiasm and support for the problem-solving approach which seeks to engage with communities and involve them in identifying and implementing solutions to antisocial behaviour problems. This approach has seen a dramatic drop in reports of antisocial behaviour in those communities targeted for action and has been recognised as a model of good practice at a national level. Of the 15 areas monitored, 13 areas have shown reductionsinyouthincidentsrangingfrom5%to67%.

• InWallacetown,theHousingServiceledconsultationwiththe community via the Tenants and Residents Association to encourage them to take responsibility for improving their neighbourhood. The outcome saw housing officers bringing relevant groups together to replace wheelie bins with Euro bins, address the dog fouling issue in the area and link with local primary schools to adopt planters. There has since been commitment from NHS Ayrshire and Arran through the Senior Public Health Practitioner to extend this work to include public health services.

• TheCouncilhasalsoutilisedinnovativeapproachestopartnership working. Recognising the challenges faced by Ayr town centre, South Ayrshire Council created Ayr Renaissance LLP to deliver its town centre regeneration strategy. The strategy focuses on attracting and retaining visitors and expenditure to the town. Physically it focuses on two areas, the North and South Hubs and looks to integrate retail, residential and leisure uses to ensure the town operates both during and outwith the traditional retailing periods. It also looks to maximise the benefit of the new investment by the University of the West of Scotland by attracting and retaining students in the town. Although it is a wholly owned subsidiary of South Ayrshire Council, it operates with a high degree of autonomy and has its own BoardofDirectors,withaprivatesectormajorityandChairman.This brings private sector expertise to bear on the regeneration process. The company has been trading for twelve months, has its own staff and has been very successful in attracting external funding to deliver significant improvements to the

town including a facelift scheme for Sandgate and Newmarket Street, the refurbishment of long term vacant retail premises, the acquisition of derelict properties and an upgrade to the Gaiety Theatre. Additionally, it is looking to undertake a flood lighting strategy for the town, to enhance the heritage of the town through the comprehensive refurbishment of properties in the conservation area and, utilising the Future Jobs Fund, to create a team responsible for improving the management of the town centre environment.

• Enhancedcollaborativeworkinginsidetheorganisationandacross chief officers is also reaping dividends. The Corporate Management Team agreed a role and remit for a Capital Asset Management Group drawing Heads of Service from across the three directorates. The effective output of this group is evidenced by early assessment and agreement of the group to adjustments to both the General Services Capital Programme for 2010-11, required as a result of the unexpected adjustments in capital allocations for the coming financial year, and revisions to the 5 year Capital Plan, affecting and adjusting investment in services right across the Council. The Capital Plan is now delivering 95% spend.

• Wehavesoughttocelebrateserviceexcellenceandinnovationamongst our staff. The Recognition and Reward ceremony held in October 2009 saw a diverse range of nominations from across the Council on both an individual and team basis. HUG (Help Unite Generations) is a strong, people-centred, inter-generational programme. Working in conjunction with local primary schools, the Sheltered Housing Service has developed an innovative approach to the active ageing programme, promoting independent living and an enhanced quality of life.

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This initiative links local schools with sheltered housing communities who work on joint projects and activities. One project saw the children helping the residents develop and improve their IT skills. Another saw the children being taught traditional skills such as knitting by the residents. The ethos behind these groups is sharing time, talents and knowledge and recognising that lifelong learning exists across generations.

• Wehaveworkedhardonengagingserviceusers.Forexample,a major festival aimed at celebrating successes and best practice in education was held as part of a strategic drive to promote the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE). The event saw 1400 staff and pupils involved in education across the Council participate at two of our newly built schools (Belmont Academy and Prestwick Academy). Participants had the opportunity to observe experiential learning and innovation and to witness and discuss the exciting range of approaches schools have been adopting as they further design, deliver and manage a new curriculum. This success was subsequently developed in the annual parent and parent councils’ conference. Over 100 parents, parent council members, teachers, school staff and invited guests took part in the conference. An update on the good progress made in South Ayrshire towards the values, purposes and principles of Curriculum for Excellence was provided. The involvement and support of parents is crucial and the conference gave parents and others an opportunity to understand the way in which their children are being educated to help support the students to lead fulfilling and successful lives.

• Weareseekingtobeinnovativeinourengagementwithcommunities. The Maybole Pathfinder initiative emerged from detailed discussions between the local community and the Council to develop a model of service delivery that would secure key current Council services to the community whilst developing a new type of partnership model. Its early focus has been on leisure and the arts and how the current facilities can be best used to deliver coherent and sustainable services to the people of Maybole and surrounding villages. Following a successful bidinpartnershipwithalocalenterprisecompanyforLEADERfunding, the Council has secured external input to develop the early concepts and to engage in further discussions with community groups to determine the best way forward.

3.9 This is certainly not an exhaustive list of highlights from the past year but demonstrates that the Improvement Agenda is not a set of activities which sits apart from our core activity, namely, delivering high quality services which meet the needs and aspirations of the people and organisations of South Ayrshire.

3.10 In considering our progress so far, Michael Burke, one of our critical friends, offered the following comment:

“My observation in relation to the senior team is that they have understood and embraced the agenda set out in the Accounts Commission Report.

Their mindset is not one of mere compliance. Rather, it goes to the purpose of local government, the effectiveness of its governance and service delivery, their responsibility to self evaluate, their ownership of a challenging and wide-ranging Improvement Agenda, and their drive to embed a culture of continuous improvement across the organisation.

From my engagement to date, I see a leadership approach that balances ambition for the local authority with realism about its capacity. The senior team acknowledges the importance of sound foundations. I see this in, for example, the particular success in 2010-11 budget provision and the accompanying future financial strategy, the work to bring about coherence in the Council and Partnership planning frameworks, and the development of a performance management framework.

In general terms, I admire the quality of the documentation and reporting, which demonstrates for me a strategic coherence and an easy accessibility.

The next step for me is to take a view on the extent to which there is shared understanding of the key priorities across the management teams in relation to this challenging agenda, and observe examples of activities underway to embed a culture of continuous improvement across the staff teams.”

3.11 In assessing where we are on our improvement journey in both this section and in Annex 1, we have sought to be open and frank, to identify the areas where things have gone well and areas where further work is required or where effort needs to be intensified to meet the challenges ahead. We are not complacent and know that we must maintain the pace and momentum of the past 12 months and work hard to ensure that improvement is embedded into every corner of the organisation. We believe that progress has been good and that the organisation has developed markedly since the audit report was published last April.

We have sought to be open and frank, to identify the areas where things have gone well and areas where further work is required or where effort needs to be intensified to meet the challenges ahead.

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Looking Forward to Best Value 24.1 South Ayrshire Council was one of the final local authorities to be audited within the original best value framework. The forthcoming reassessment takes place at the point where councils throughout Scotland are preparing for Best Value 2 (BV2), Audit Scotland’s approach to the second phase of audits of Best Value and Community Planning.

4.2 When the Improvement Agenda was being developed, the proposed BV2 characteristics were available along with Audit Scotland’s consultation on their proposals for progressing BV2 audits. We considered it appropriate to take these into account when developing our improvement programme to assist us in transitioning from one framework to the other with relative ease. This should allow us to accommodate further BV2 considerations as they emerge, for example from the BV2 pathfinders, and as part of the natural evolution of our Improvement Agenda.

4.3 With this in mind we have sought within annex 1 to assess how on-going work in relation to each improvement strand will support our preparations for BV2. This is a preliminary exercise. Once the output from the BV2 pathfinders is available in the summer, we will undertake a full assessment of our readiness for BV2 and identify additional improvements that we require to make to improve our BV2-readiness.

4.4 In terms of the two high level BV2 questions, we consider that our direction and pace of change has been strong and sustained over the past 12 months. Whilst much of the focus has been establishing core building blocks such as a strategic planning framework and performance management, there is evidence that the effects of our improvement activity is starting to be evidenced in changes in service experience. Improvement has been the watchword of South Ayrshire Council since our improvement work started in August 2007. We consider that the Improvement Agenda, the monitoring and reporting arrangements and scrutiny which attaches to our improvement efforts, and the increased resource we have invested in improvement, are all testament to our capacity for future improvement.

4.5 The outcome of the forthcoming reassessment by Audit Scotland and our own BV2 considerations will inform how we take forward our improvement work. Should this remain a distinct activity or should we be looking to absorb the key components into the next iterationofDirectoratePlansnextAprilorshouldwerestructureourimprovement programme around the BV2 framework? Regardless of how we proceed, continuous improvement will remain a high priority for South Ayrshire Council. It is critical to our delivery of high quality services which meet the needs of the people of South Ayrshire against the progressively challenging context which we, and all other local authorities, face in the coming years.

Annex 1: Status of the Improvement Strands as at March 2010

South Ayrshire Council Audit of Best Value and Community Planning:A submission to support a reassessment by Audit Scotland

Improvement Strand 1: Sustained Financial Health

Where do we ultimately want to get to?

What the audit report said

Activities supporting improvementDelivery timescale

Responsible officer

The focus moves from determining where savings can be made to positive choices about the deployment of financial resources. Decision-makingandservice planning is fully informed by financial considerations.

The Council is making the best use of all its resources to deliver its strategic objectives.

Put in place a financial recovery strategy to guide the Council to a more stable financial position and support this with more effective long-term financial management.

Specific concern highlighted by the Accounts Commission:

The serious financial situation of the Council resulting from inadequate financial planning over a number of years.

A financial strategy is developed which sets out the issues pertinent to the Council’s finances now and in the future and the approach to be adopted for addressing these.

A further provision to address potential equal pay claims is included in 2008/09 accounts.

The low reserves held by the Council are steadily built up reaching around £3m by March 2010 and £4.5m by March 2011.

Based on the financial strategy, forward budget setting exercises are underpinned by a robust approach allowing ample opportunity for consideration and scrutiny of inherent decisions and encompassing engagement with communities on budget options. The budget setting exercise will seek to release efficiencies through property rationalisation, streamlining of processes, service reviews, downsizing the organisation and shared services.

Efficiency savings set for each financial year are achieved.

Planning and decision making in all corners of the organisation is clearly underpinned by consideration of financial consequences.

General awareness raising of financial position and the cost of providing services.

Being considered at Council on 09 July 2009.

Achieved

March 2010 March 2011

Sustained activity but review at 6monthlyintervals.

Sustained activity. Challenges set out at June Community Conference.

Eileen Howat

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Comments on the current status of Sustained Financial Health (strand 1)

An initial view on how strand 1 will contribute to our preparations for BV2

An initial view on how strand 1 will contribute to our preparations for BV2Strong progress has been made with this improvement strand. The Council has gone from a deficit budget at the end of financial year 2007/08 to anticipating unallocatedreservesof£6.8mattheconclusionofthecurrentfinancialyear. This exceeds the £3m target set in the Improvement Agenda. A finance strategy was agreed in July 2009 which is guiding the Council’s approach to addressing pertinent finance issues. This facilitates budget-related decisions being brought forward throughout the year. In October 2009, a package of budget measures amounting to £4.25m was agreed by Council. As a consequence, no further savings needed to be identified at the February 2010 budget meeting and there was scope for elected members to agree the allocation of some funding over the baseline primarily concentrated on non-recurring expenditure. Revisions were required to the capital programme to accommodate unexpected adjustments in capital allocations but that was achieved with some capital programme redesign and movement between years. The Council enters the coming financial year with clear revenue and capital budgets in place having met efficiency savings, exceeded the reserves target and with provision made for equal pay claims.

It is also to be noted that despite operating with financial constraints and a significant increase in benefit claims, the benefits service has improved its performance year-on-year in new claims and change of circumstances speed of processing, counter fraud, appeals and housing benefit overpayment recovery.

It is well understood that the scale of financial challenge facing the public sector in the coming years is unprecedented. Whilst uncertainty persists on the precise scale of fiscal squeeze and indeed whether in-year revisions might feature, it is clear that the pace and intensity of budget reductions will increase significantly. It is also recognised that efficiency measures and savings in back office functions will be insufficient to meet the financial reductions and that service redesign and radical thinking will be required in future years. South Ayrshire Council was clear that once the 2010/11 budget was set, work would immediately start on a deeper 3 year budgeting exercise with links to other improvement strands particularly service modernisation and review, activities related to efficiency and effectiveness, and, joint working and sharedservices(strands6,7and10respectively).Havingconsiderablyimproveditsfinancial health in the past 12 months, the Council is now much better placed to meet these challenges but it does not underestimate the scale of downward financial adjustment to be achieved nor how difficult this will be to enact at the required pace.

Use of resources is a central tenet of BV2.

Good progress in the past year has been made on improving financial management particularly the overall financial health of the organisation.

Further work is required however on linking finance and service planning. It is acknowledged within our assessment of our improvement progress that we need to accelerate developing priorities as a Council and then using those to guide strategic and service plans with resource considerations fully embedded.

Further work on distributing financial skills throughout the organisation is also merited as we move towards BV2.

South Ayrshire Council has made progress in projecting financial plans into the medium term but that has proved particularly difficult of late given the uncertainty in public sector funding going forward. Whilst we can project worst and best case scenarios, this produces significant variance in answers so doesn’t provide a strong basis for planning.

Improvement Strand 2 : Strategic Planning and the Golden Thread




Responsible officer

The Council has a clear and ambitious vision for what it wants to achieve for its locality and communities focused on high-quality services and effective outcomes.

The vision is underpinned by clear, realistic plans and strategies which align resources to the Council’s priorities and which form the backdrop for team and individual plans thereby ensuring a golden thread connects all activity across the Council to the vision.

Developmore clearly prioritised strategic plans that support the delivery of the Council’s vision and improvement agenda and ensure these are integrated with the financial recovery strategy.

A South Ayrshire Council Corporate Plan is developed which sets out the aims of the Council, aligning these to the Vision and the Single Outcome Agreement and supported by DirectoratePlanswhichthenfeedteamandindividual plans.

The current Council vision and Community Plan are fused and refreshed into a South Ayrshire Vision to provide an overarching direction for South Ayrshire agreed by Community Planning Partners and grounded on continuous improvement in achievement of outcomes for South Ayrshire and informed by engagement with communities.

TheCorporatePlanandDirectoratePlansare kept under regular review and formally updated annually to sharpen focus and accommodate changes appropriately.

Developmentofstrategiesandplanning of priorities and service design is progressively underpinned by engagement with communities.

October 2009

April 2011

April 2010April 2011April 2012

Sustained activityStrong link to improvement strand 11.

Claire Monaghan

18


Comments on the current status of Strategic Planning and the Golden Thread (strand 2)


Good progress has been made in developing strategic planning within South Ayrshire. Preceded by a lunchtime seminar with elected members, the Council agreed a Corporate Plan in October 2009 which draws clear linkages between the aims and objectives set out in the plan and the Council’s Vision and Single Outcome Agreement (SOA) for the local Community Planning Partnership. Indicators of success and a reporting cycle were also agreed.

The next layer of strategic planning was put in place at the October Leadership Panel.DirectoratePlanswereagreedwhichprovidedirectorateleveldetailand linkages through the Corporate Plan to the Vision and SOA. Indicators of success were set out against each task. The Leadership Panel took the decision toremittheDirectoratePlanstotherelevantStandingScrutinyPanels. To aid scrutiny consideration, a mapping was undertaken which showed which directorate objectives were encompassed within the remit of each Scrutiny Panel. It also identified the portfolio holder responsible for each directorate objective.

The next stage in the development of the golden thread is connecting directorate tasks with team and individual work programmes. The Performance andDevelopmentReview(PDR)systemcurrentlybeingrolledoutacrosstheCouncil will ensure there is a connection between the objectives of every individual and the Council’s aims and objectives. The on-going implementation ofPDRisscheduledtobeintroducedtoeveryserviceareabyMarch2010.At that point, we will have the first complete golden thread which connects what each individual does in the organisation through directorate objectives and corporate aims through to the Council’s Vision. This will mark a major step forward in the Council’s strategic planning effort.

Notwithstanding the good progress made in the past year and the fact that progress in strategic planning is matched by progress in performance reporting arrangements for the underlying indicators, we would assess that our golden threadistwo-ply(oncePDRisimplemented)andneedstoprogressquicklyto three-ply. Two further developments are required to make that happen. The Council needs to further develop clear priorities, and the corporate and directorate plans need to have a resources dimension. Ordinarily these would be part of the further review and development of strategic plans in the coming years. However, the anticipated budget reduction facing all local authorities in the coming years has intensified the need for these to be factored in at the earliest opportunity to facilitate targeted budget reductions which least impede delivery of Council priorities. It is proposed to undertake work to develop Council priorities around summer recess. This will feed into the annual review oftheCorporateandDirectoratePlansscheduledforApril2011.Theresourcedimension will be encompassed into the plans at the same juncture.

Our work on this improvement strand, particularly when combined with work being undertaken in other strands will positively contribute to our progress on vision and strategic direction particularly the planning and resource alignment dimensions.

As is readily acknowledged in the left-hand column, the link between resources and plans still needs to be put into place.

We also need to work towards making targets SMARTer and with a better sense of what can distinctly be achieved in the short, medium and long-term.

Enhanced input on community needs will also be required going forward particularly connected to priorities.

Improvement Strand 3: Leadership Capacity




Responsible officer

The Corporate Management Team are identifiably champions of continuous improvement and collaborative working.

Chief officers provide consistent messages to staff and partners and support them effectively through the Improvement Agenda such that all staff embrace a collective responsibility for continuous improvement.

The roles of elected members and senior officials are strong and mutually reinforcing.

Developleadershipcapacity within the Council, and, through a stronger Corporate Management Team, drive a culture of continuous improvement and more effective corporate working.


The lack of a culture of continuous improvement.

New organisational and chief officers structures identified and chief officers recruited.

Remit for extended CMT developed including clear reference and priority to supporting improvement and joint working.

The remit and effectiveness of CMT and the extended CMT reviewed regularly to assess the extent to which it is supporting the transformation of South Ayrshire Council.

Chief officer appraisals to include explicit reference to the effectiveness of individual contributions on continuous improvement and collaborative working across the organisation.

Leadership programme developed and delivered drawing on the leadership competency framework, the individual profile ofeachchiefofficer,and360degreefeedback.

See also improvement strands 4 and 12

Completed in June 2009

August 2009

Reviewed every 6monthsfrom March 2010

March 2010March 2011 March 2012

On-going and reviewed every 6months.

DavidAnderson

20


Comments on the current status of Leadership Capacity (strand 3)


The leadership capacity of South Ayrshire Council has progressively been developed since the best value audit report. The new chief officer structure is fully implemented with the arrival of the last newly appointed head of service in mid-June 2009. The newly formed CMT and extended CMT have placed a strong emphasis on corporate, collaborative working and on striving for continuous improvement with specific consideration of theseaspectswithinthechiefofficerPDRprocess.

Leadership capacity has been further improved by restructuring at 3rd and 4th tier level. Revised management structures were agreed in October and the recruitment for these posts is nearing completion. The focus throughout has been on ensuring that we have the right people in the right posts to create the capacity to drive forward the transformation of the Council. Structural change has been complemented by leadership engagement. In September 2009, over 100 third and fourth tier officers from across the Council including headteachers, participated in an event focused on the Council’s improvement journey including consideration of how ownership of this can be enhanced throughout the organisation and what managers sought from the organisation to support them in front line improvements. Plans are now underway for a further event at the end of March 2010.

Leadership capacity is also being enhanced through an innovative leadership programme which draws on theleadershipcompetencyframework,theindividualprofileofeachchiefofficer,and360degreefeedback. AninitialeventforPortfolioHolders,ScrutinyChairsandCMTtookplaceonDecember2009.Afocusedleadershipeventtookplaceon14/15Decemberforallchiefofficerscentredonroleprofileandoverallteamstrengths and areas for development. Further leadership development is planned for five dates in 2010. A collaborative leadership programme is also taking place with Community Planning Partners. In addition, a mapping exercise has been undertaken with the leadership competency framework and the Standards for Headship.ThishasbeenusedasthebasisforacombinedPDRframeworkwhichallowsreflectionandobjectivesetting against both sets of standards. Headteachers have been briefed on this and a full implementation plan has been prepared to commence in March 2010.

There have been changes in the Leadership of the Council with Councillor Hugh Hunter retiring at the end of January 2010. The new Leader of the Conservative Group, Councillor Bill McIntosh, was appointed Leader of the Council on 03 February and Councillor Robin Reid was appointed as the Resource and Performance Portfolio Holder at the same time. The interface between senior members and officers has evolved over the past 12 months with a structured programme of meetings and briefings now in place. The new Leader is taking the opportunity to review current meeting and briefing arrangements and what further refinements might be beneficial.

Throughout the past year consideration has been given to distributing ownership of change and improvement throughouttheorganisation.Thatwillbeenhancedinthecoming12monthsboththroughthePDRprocessand a new team briefing model which is to be rolled out in early course. The Council’s Reward and Recognition strategy provides a further valuable mechanism for recognising excellent and innovative practice amongst teams and individuals which is also a key contributory factor to our overall improvement. In line with the thrust of our new performance management strategy, this will enable us to identify current practices that are effective and may be worthy of further and wider development. The effectiveness of the growth in leadership capacity in the organisation can be demonstrated by the scale, breadth and depth of business being progressed within the Council and the confidence with which complex issues such as asset management are now being dealt with.

Strong, open and inclusive leadership is central to delivery of many of the BV2 characteristics.

We have made good progress in developing leadership in the past 12 months. To be truly effective with respect to BV2, we need to ensure that our vision and priorities are clearly and consistently communicated inside and outside the organisation. As we develop our renewed vision and clear priorities, this will be supported by clear and simple communication.

Our work on distributing ownership of the improvement agenda throughout the organisation will position us well for delivering elements of leadership and culture which accompany a high performing BV2 authority.

Improvement Strand 4: The Roles Of Members And Senior Officers




Responsible officer

The Council has exemplary standards of governance and accountability. It has effective political and managerial structures and processes to govern decision-making and the exercise of authority within the organisation, supported by effective relationships between members and officers. The public understands the governance procedures within the Council.

Clearly define the roles of members and senior officers in leading and managing the Council.


The lack of clarity in the roles of members and officers and the need for both elected members and senior officers to establish more effective corporate working and leadership.

AdoptionoftheDeliveringGoodGovernancein Local Government Framework which places the emphasis on the culture, skills, training and support report required to deliver good governance and fostering a focus on continuous improvement.

Review the impact of the good governance framework annually with respect to the distinct roles of members and senior officials.

Joint training as part of leadership programme on respective roles and how to maximise effective corporate working and leadership.

Consider further training issues as part of the refresh on the leadership programme within improvement strand 3.

Standing Orders, Financial Regulations, and theSchemeofDelegationareconsideredforcurrency at least once a year.

Information for the public on the Council’s governance, accountability and decision-making processes is regularly reviewed for currency and accessibility.

Implemented in April 2010 and then reported annually

June 2011and each year thereafter

September 2009

Reviewed every 6months

Position reviewed in March each year

Reviewed in March each year

DavidAnderson

22


Comments on the current status of The Role of Members and Senior Officers (strand 4)


Adopting a new governance framework has been a key component of delivering this improvement strand. The Council is in the process of adopting theDeliveringGoodGovernanceinLocalGovernmentFramework.Thisshiftsthe focus away from an annual MOT check at the end of the financial year to fostering the development the culture, skills, training and support required to deliver good governance and fostering a focus on continuous improvement. Preparatory work on implementing the new framework has been undertaken with CMT and with the Scrutiny and Governance and Management (SGM) Panel and in an interactive session with all elected members on 30 November 2009. A self-evaluation of where we are in relation to the six principles has been undertaken and reported to the SGM Panel in February along with an assessment of where further improvement activity is required. A further workshop with elected members is scheduled for March 2010 focused on what the new governance framework will mean in practice for all elected members particularly in relation to scrutiny.

The joint leadership programme involving senior elected members and CMT has also assisted in bringing clarity to the respective roles of members and senior officers. The new Leader is considering the interaction between CMT and Portfolio Holders and how we can maximise the effectiveness of meeting and briefing time thereby further strengthening role definitions.

Financial regulations and the scheme of delegation were reviewed in October 2009 and revisions agreed at Council. Attention is now turning to consideration of information for the public on the Council’s governance, accountability and decision-making processes. A plain language leaflet is likely to be recommended as the way forward with the scope of this widened to include summary information from the Corporate Plan and the SOA. The approach to be adopted will link to the strategic approach to communications and engagement. The focus will be on simplifying the key messages and the ‘golden thread’, whilst taking care to retain the outcome-specific nature of our related plans.

The role of elected members and senior officers is assessed to have positively evolved in the last 12 months and the Good Governance Framework will provide a clear structure for this to be kept under further review.

South Ayrshire Council has worked hard in the past 3 years to establish clear decision-making structures with a strong scrutiny function. Both are key to delivering high standards of governance and accountability.

ImplementingtheDeliveringGoodGovernanceinLocalGovernment Framework will further strengthen our progress towards the highest standards of governance and accountability and will provide the framework within which this can regularly be reviewed and appropriate adjustments made.

As is acknowledged within improvement strand 5, we need to improve our public performance reporting and thereby enhance our public accountability.

Improvement Strand 5: Performance Management




Responsible officer

Create a flow of relevant, timely performance information which allows elected members to appropriately discharge their scrutiny function and wider political oversight of the Council.

Performance information is being used to support continuous improvement and prioritisation and resource allocation.

Effective self-evaluation.

A performance management culture is embedded throughout the organisation and integrated into service planning and delivery and which feeds effective public performance reporting.

Introduce effective performance management processes to support the delivery of high-quality services and provide the public with more meaningful and balanced reports on Council performance.

Specific concerns highlighted by the Accounts Commission:

The Council does not manage its resources, risks and performance effectively and lacks a toolkit for Best Value and an effective system of performance management.

There is little effective scrutiny of performance by members.

Reporting of performance with respect to the SOA and those aspects of Council activity where indicators and measures are already in place and where information can be readily gathered.

Corporate Plan explicitly identifies performance measurestobereportedat6monthlyintervals.

A review undertaken of the options for an approach to self-evaluation and performance management with a recommendation on the system to be adopted. Tailoring and development of the system to South Ayrshire Council.

Consultation on what information and in what form the public, communities, clients and partners find helpful with respect to the Council’s performance.

Phased roll out of the performance management system to directorates.

Public information disseminated on performance in line with the outcome of the consultation.

On-going and in line with existing commitments

6monthlyreportingfrom October 2009

April 2010

April 2011

August 2010

April 2011

Six monthly from August 2011

Claire Monaghan

24


Comments on the current status of Performance Management (strand 5)


There has been good progress with this improvement strand. A working group has been formed of the corporate team and the performance leads across the organisation. They have been reviewing what performance-review related activity is currently undertaken within the organisation and the relative merits of that activity, what other Councils are using, particularly in relation to self-evaluation, and what system South Ayrshire might need to capture and manage performance information on a corporate basis. Consideration has also been given to taking forward the new SPI arrangements and ensuring that there is alignment between the Council performance management framework and that of the Community Planning Partnership.

There is now collective agreement at officer level on the component parts of a new performance management framework, where we are in relation to each of the component parts and next steps. That work, as reported to the February meeting of the Corporate and Community Planning Standing Scrutiny Panel, is now being developed into recommendations to the next Council meeting setting out a comprehensive approach to performance management within South Ayrshire Council. This will emphasise that the cultural aspects of performance management are as important as any new system being put in place. We have worked with external facilitators (Ian McMurdo and Margery Browning) to consider how we can best ensure that the roll-out of a new system does in fact lead to positive improvements in performance. Individual and collective ownership of performance is the key to success in this regard and that is where effort will be concentrated. An appropriate balance now requires to be struck between the coordinating roles of key senior officers and the central message that ‘performance management is everybody’s job’.

In addition to considering our requirements in relation to a new performance management framework, clear performance reporting arrangements have beenestablishedfortheSOA,theCorporatePlanandDirectoratePlans.ThePDRprocess,oncefullyrolledout,willrepresentanotherelementoftheperformance management framework being put in place.

The Council has made good progress and is on track with establishing a clear approach to performance management framework. However, we do not underestimate the behavioural shift required to ensure this framework yields a strong culture of performance management which feeds into continuous improvement and our monitoring of progress will be focused as much on this dimension as well as on the effectiveness of the our systems and processes.

The performance management framework currently being developed is BV2 orientated and will significantly contribute to our progress towards the BV2 characteristics related to performance management and improvement. The proposed framework is not merely a nuts and bolts system but rather is designed to integrate into service planning and delivery and considerable significance is attached to the cultural change required to strive towards sustained performance improvement.

Going forward, we need to work at sharing learning across the authority and with partners. Our recognition and reward system provides one means of doing that but it keeps the focus inside the organisation and we could benefit from looking further afield more often for best practice and innovation.

We also need to work at involving clients and the general public in developing targets and indicators. This happens in some pockets such as the rejuvenated planning service but it is not yet standard practice across the Council.

Improvement Strand 6: Service Modernisation and Review




Responsible officer

Services are efficient, streamlined, flexible, accessible, customer-focused and positively contribute to the strategic aims and priorities of the Council.

Customer preferences underpin service design and delivery.

Customer usage and feedback are used to continually improve services.

Establish a systematic programme of service modernisation and review, prioritised around customer focus, improved service delivery, efficiency and contribution to the Council’s financial sustainability.

Existing service review and modernisation activity assessed and formulated into a coherent programme with clear delineation of the purpose the review, the desired outcomes of the review and the timescale for delivery.

Developaclearprocessforcommissioningandprogressing service reviews.

Review of the programme to identify new service reviews to be added and to reflect completion of service reviews. Particular focus to be placed in the short term on reviews likely to yield efficiency savings and ease financial pressures. Service reviews then embedded into DirectoratePlans

Strong linkage made to improvement strand 11 on community engagement as a means of accessing information on customer and community preferences.

Strong linkage made to improvement strand 9 to cross fertilise the customer care and accessibility considerations into service redesign.

October 2009

April 2010

Annually from April 2010

Sustained activity

Sustained activity

Claire Monaghan

26


Comments on the current status of Service Modernisation and Review (strand 6)


This improvement strand was predicated on the need to modernise services within the Council with a focus on making them efficient, streamlined, flexible, accessible and customer focused. Financial challenges mean that service reviews will also be a key component in yielding savings in the coming years and thus will be central to the service redesign and radical thinking required to address significant fiscal contraction.

The initial activity within the improvement strand was to assess and classify existing service reviews and establish reporting arrangements for these. That work was completed with a number of the reviews contributing to the budget measures agreed in October 2009.

A second major task has been to develop clear guidance for commissioning and progressing service reviews which can accommodate the variety in types of service review but which recognises the need for service reviews to be progressed swiftly and with an emphasis on challenging the existing way of doing business. Draftguidancehasnowbeendevelopedandisbeingreviewedbythosewho have recently completed service reviews and those who have reviews underway.

Good progress is being made towards integrated services. For example, the Council, in partnership with NHS Ayrshire and Arran and the Scottish Government through the Joint Improvement Team has been accepted as one of the test sites for the Integrated Resource Framework. This is intended to identify funding and service requirements for older people and integrate service delivery across health, social care and housing services to reduce duplication and develop more efficient, person centred outcomes.

Service modernisation has happened in a number of quarters across the Council including planning. The best value audit specifically identified the Planning Service as an area requiring review. The review has been completed and recommendationswereagreedbyCouncilinDecember2009.Arangeofprocessand business change processes have been implemented to support service delivery and planning’s contribution towards SOA outcomes. Improving customer care and performance have been central considerations. At every opportunity this has involved consultation with the community in reviewing core activities and scope for improvement. Feedback is now an integral part of our operation. Since September 2009, a Planning Forum has been established drawing in a range of community interests and members of the public with no previous involvement in planning matters. The Forum has proved to be beneficial in identifying areas for improvement and provided a useful mechanism for consulting with the community on policy development.

Progress on this strand is in line with expectations as set out in the Improvement Agenda. However, changes in the financial outlook for the public sector means that this is an area where work will need to be intensified.

Linked with our community engagement work, we are making steady progress towards communities shaping services which is a key element of community engagement within BV2.

Our programme of service reviews and modernisation will also assist in our strategic direction since they are focussed on securing high quality services allied to a strong focus on outcomes for local people.

Improvement Strand 7: Activities Related to Efficiency and EffectivenessWhere do we ultimately want to get to?



Responsible officer

Internal systems and business processes are functioning at maximum efficiency ensuring that we make the best use of resources to deliver the Council’s vision and objectives and that waste has been eliminated.

Intelligence-driven asset management.

Effective risk management is embedded throughout the Council and the culture is risk aware, not risk averse.

Support the efficiency programme and the effective delivery of services by tackling staff absences, developing more effective workforce planning, rationalising assets, using more effective procurement processes and better identifying and managing risks.


The Council does not manage its resources, risks and performance effectively and lacks a toolkit for Best Value and an effective system of performance management.

n Single status pay and grading structures implemented throughout the organisation.

n Revised absence management policy implemented to deliver year-on-year reductions in absence with a Council target of 4.5%. Monthly reports to CMT.

n Key corporate polices reviewed and clear service standards developed to foster positive change and ensure a positive impression of the Council.

n Workforce and capacity planning developed as a key business process.

s Further development of the i-procurement system and associated processes and procedures.

s Increased levels of collaborative procurement to deliver efficiencies.

s Further development of internal processes and procedures in conjunction with the use of regional and national procurement frameworks.

u Interim Property Asset management plan developed.

u Further development of the asset management plan to cover other areas such as land and ICT.

u Phased implementation of the asset management plan to support wider Council improvements.

s The corporate approach to risk management is further developed, adopted and embedded in tandem with the roll out of the new performance management approach and service planning.

August 2009

Sustained activity

April 2010

April 2011

To be finalised (see strand 8)

Sustained activity with 6monthreview


Achieved

Progress reviewed every6monthsfromOctober 2009


April 2010

n Angela Wilson

s DavidAlexander

u Jim McQuillan

28


Comments on the current status of activities related to Efficiency and Effectiveness (strand 7)


There has been strong progress with this improvement strand with considerable progress made on HR-related activity, procurement, asset management and risk management. In relation to HR, single status has been fully implemented across the organisation with a 99% employee acceptance rate. A strategic review of staff absence has been undertaken and monthly reporting to CMT is in place with increased use of occupational health interventions. Steady progress is being made in reducing absence figures. We are considering implementation of ‘Activity for Health,’ an NHS programme which promotes the benefits of a healthy active lifestyle. A Partnership Working Agreement has been reached with the Trade Unions and agreed at the September 2009 Leadership Panel. This is focused on a commitment to working in partnership with the Trade Unions to facilitate continuous improvement in service delivery. An employee survey is shortly to be undertaken.

In relation to procurement, the i-procurement system has been implemented within Corporate Services and measures are in place for implementation across the rest of the organisation. The Council continues to work with Scotland Excel on a range of collaborative framework contracts, and is involved in increased levels of collaboration with North and East Ayrshire and other authorities including for construction contractors, printing, training for drivers of Council vehicles, the purchase of tyres and office furniture, and lighting maintenance. We have also been making increased use of the Scottish Government Quick Quote online facility for contracts of less than £30,000.

Ourapproachtoriskmanagementhasbeenconsiderablystrengthened.DirectorateRiskRegisters have been developed, and are being proactively and continuously managed and reviewed. The Strategic Risk Register has been reviewed and updated following two strategic risk identification and profiling exercises with the Council’s Corporate Management Team. Strategic risk management action plans are now being developed with nominated risk owners in order to ensure ongoing mitigation of the key strategic risks identified. An updated Risk Management Strategy is on track to go to the Leadership Panel in April 2010 accompanied by the strategic risks register and associated action plans/mitigations.

An action plan has been developed to support implementation of the Interim Property Asset Plan. Strong linkage has been made between our work on asset management and the programming of capital expenditure and a 5-year capital investment programme. Some refinement work is required to accommodate recent major developments including the funding of the new Ayr Academy Secondary School in conjunction with the Scottish Futures Trust. The Interim Property Asset Management Plan is in the process of being further developed and will include new sections on property performance measures, risk assessment in terms of plan delivery, and greater detail and clarity on planned disposals. Work is now underway on a Housing Asset Management Plan, Property Asset Management Plans for Community Care and for Community and Leisure assets, and a Roads Asset Management Plan.

Our overall assessment is that our internal systems and business processes are improving particularly with respect to the key elements of weakness identified in the audit report. However, we fully recognise that further development of internal business processes is required and we are engaging with other authorities to see what insights we can gain from their approaches.

Work being undertaken in relation to strand 7 will position South Ayrshire Council well for BV2 particularly in relation to the ‘use of resources’ dimension.

We have a clear programme of work underway to improve our management of our people resource. Workforce planning and core HR polices have considerably evolved in the past 12 months. As with finances, we will need to ensure that the distribution of our human resource reflects our priorities and objectives.

Considerable progress has also been made with respect to moving towards smart, strategic procurement and thereby enhancing our consideration of the competitiveness BV2 characteristic.

Risk management has been given a high priority in the past year although consolidation work is required to be satisfied that we are moving towards being risk aware, not risk averse.

The past 12 months have seen considerable progress with asset management. The property asset management work is being progressively extended to encompass other assets and clear linkages have been made to our capital programme planning.

Improvement Strand 8: Core ICT Systems




Responsible officer

Internal systems support modern business processes facilitating the best use of resources in delivering the Council’s aims and objectives and enabling opportunities to be identified for improved efficiencies.

Complete implementation of core ICT systems, including the financial ledger, human resources and I-procurement systems.

Complete the final stages of Oracle Financials implementation to allow full transfer from CFACS system.

DevelopmentofOracleHRmodules.

Integration of Oracle HR/Payroll and implementation of Oracle Payroll.

Timelines need to reflect the completion of system healthcheck, advice on implementation of latest version of software and discussion with South Lanarkshire around shared services. The timeline for the improvement activities will be reported in the first monthly monitoring report.

DavidAlexander

Angela Wilson

30


Comments on the current status of Core ICT Systems (strand 8)An initial view on how strand 8 will contribute to our preparations for BV2

This is a technical strand which includes the development and integration of core financial, HR and payroll activities in support of more efficient integrated services. Key benefits will include simplified and modernised processes, automation where possible and improved management information and reporting. Oracle Financials modules are well established, with i-procurement fully implemented within Corporate Services and currently being rolled out across the Council. HR and Payroll development are next and considerable work has been undertaken to detail project requirements and options for delivery. Significant business change alongside technological development and upgrade will be required and an integrated system is expected to take approximately 1 year to implement. Procurement advice around the options available is currently being taken from the Scottish Government and if a tender is required this will addapproximately6monthstotheprocess.Theabsenceofadefinitivetimetablemeans that this strand is currently graded as ‘amber.’

There have been other developments in relation to our ICT systems. To facilitate collaboration, improve communications, facilitate flexible working and leverage cost savings within the organisation, South Ayrshire Council is implementing a fully Unified Communications system based on Microsoft Office Communications Server (OCS). This will also mean that many more Council employees can benefit from access to voicemail and other productivity tools, such as LiveMeeting, instant messaging and audio/video conferencing. Microsoft and one of its key partners have agreed to work with the Council in partnership to assist in the implementation of OCS, and to ensure successful delivery of this existing project. 3,000 employees will be using OCS by summer 2010.

Additionally, the Council’s current data network is largely built on traditional point to point data circuits which are unable to support the growing demand for faster access to information, additional voice and video services and a more responsive restoration of computer services in a business continuity context. To provide an upgrade path which will support and facilitate these growth requirements, improve security and provide a more resilient service, the Council has approved the implementation of a core fibre network interconnecting a number of Council offices, schools and Carnegie Library in Ayr. This project will deliver the network improvements required, mitigate the risk of network failure and provide a network infrastructure that can be expanded and built upon as the Council’s electronic services develop.

Additionally, the Council’s website has been named the top Council website in Scotland and one of the top 20 in the UK. The accolade from the Society of Information Technology Management (SOCITM) reflects the quality and quantity of information on the website, how easy the website is to use and the ease of access it provides to Council services.

BV2 envisages technology as a strategic driver for service improvements. We are working hard to get our internal systems fully functioning to facilitate such a consideration. Having our core ICT systems fully integrated will contribute to our efficiency and increase productivity. It is also part of our progress towards e-technology.

Improvement Strand 9: Customer Care




Responsible officer

A strong customer focus, with services responsive to the needs of service users and the general public.

Customers and the general public have a positive impression of engagement with the Council.

Technology supporting increased service accessibility.

Service design/delivery does not act as a barrier to any particular group of potential service users.

Adopt a more consistent approach to customer care and improve the accessibility of services.


The lack of consistent, good quality customer care.

n Completion of a customer services strategy.

n Commencement of a pilot customer services centre in Girvan.

n A customer contact centre opened.

s Service reviews encompass an explicit consideration of customer care and inclusion.

s A single equalities and diversity policy is developed.

s Engagement activity within improvement strand 11 captures an element of customer and community preferences.

s Public perception reviewed to assess progress in customer care.

Linkage with the service standard activity identified within improvement strand 7.

August 2009

September 2009

December2009

Sustained activity

October 2010

Sustained activity

Annually from April 2011

n Ian Woodburn

s Claire Monaghan

32


Comments on the current status of Customer Care (strand 9)An initial view on how strand 9 will contribute to our preparations for BV2

Disregardingthesmallissuerethegradingofthisimprovementstrand,goodprogress has been made on our approach to customer care. A customer care strategy was agreed at the August 2009 Leadership Panel and is helping frame training throughout the organisation. All the technical work to support the new customer contact centre was put in place pre-Christmas 2009 including commissioning a Customer Relations Management system, the telephony system, staff training, and adaptation to the John Pollock Centre where the new centre is located. The centre became operational on 15th February 2010 and work is on-going on the programme of services to migrate across to the contact centre beginning with council tax services in early March 2010. The first Customer Services Centre in Girvan has also been established and attention is now centred on further centres being established in the other towns within South Ayrshire.

The technical elements of customer care have progressed well over the past year and training has been undertaken with staff directly involved in the contact centre and the first customer service centre. The next phase of work in relation to this improvement strand is highlighting the customer focus in everything we do and striving for a more consistent approach across the organisation which is underpinned and informed by customer engagement.

There are also service specific examples of improved customer care. The Housing Service for example, has developed an innovative way to provide housing for homeless people. This involves an extension to the Private Sector Leasing Scheme where the Council contracts with Private Sector Landlords to provide much needed accommodation which boosts the resources available to meet the needs of people presenting in desperate situations. Within sheltered housing, capital funding has been allocated to develop common areas within sheltered housing units to include both Tele Care and Tele Health provision and develop these units as hubs for social care for older people living in the community. In response to concerns about affordable housing, a strategic housing investment plan, a landbanking policy for housing development and a new council house building programme are now in place.

Accommodating equality and diversity considerations is also a key element of our approach to customer care. The Council has agreed the adoption of a single equality scheme and progress is being made in developing this. Further information is awaited on the outcome of recent consultations by the Scottish Government on new public sector equality duties particularly since these have implications for reporting frameworks.

Customer focus and responsiveness is a strong feature of BV2. The measures that are in place on a customer care strategy, appropriate training, a contact centre and customer service centres will assist our progress towards BV2. However, more integration is needed with the service review and modernisation work to ensure that services are designed closely around customer needs and that information on customer satisfaction drives service development.

Progress is being made on the personalisation agenda and on consideration of equalities which will aid our customer focus.

We need to embed customer focus and responsiveness throughout the organisation.

Improvement Strand 10: Joint Working and Shared Services




Responsible officer

Strong partnerships formed and delivering sustained improvements in outcomes throughout South Ayrshire.

Joint working (particularly with health and police) supports individuals with multi-faceted problems or hard to reach groups and action is better informed by sharing information and approaches.

Efficiencies flow from the opportunities to share and rationalise some functions with partners.

Strengthen joint working and the role of Community Planning to generate greater efficiency through shared services and asset management.


The need to develop community planning and joint working with partners and neighbouring councils.

A Single Outcome Agreement for 2009-2012 secured with Community Planning Partnerships.

Monitoring progress on delivery against the SOA.

Assess the impact of the Community Planning Partnership Improvement Programme by undertaking an audit with partners using the Audit Scotland self-assessment matrix and identify any further actions required to improve further work.

Pursue opportunities for joint working and shared services identified through the pan-Ayrshire Shared Services Group and the monthly meetings at chief executive level.

Extend strategic procurement collaborations with other public bodies.

Progressively integrate SMEs on a pan-Ayrshire basis, including the voluntary sector into the supply chain through the Supplier DevelopmentProgramme.

Achieved June 2009

September 2009 and6monthlythereafter

April 2010

Progress reviewed every6months



Claire Monaghan

DavidAlexander

34


Comments on the current status of Joint Working and Shared Services (strand 10)


The advent of Single Outcome Agreements has facilitated a renewed impetus for the Community Planning Partnership and we now have an agreed focus on how we are contributing to the national objectives and how these link to the Partnership’s objectives. A clear delivery and reporting structure is in place supported by theme group action plans and the adoption of a traffic light system. A Compact with the Voluntary Sector has been agreed. In October 2009, the Community Planning Board initiated a process of reviewing how the partners were variously contributing to addressing the economic recession and whether there was scope to make linkages to reinforce this work or ideas for exploring further joint work. The latest Scottish Index ofMultipleDeprivationfiguresrevealedadeclineinsomeareasofSouthAyrshire. A small operational group from the Community Planning Partnership has been established to consider how we can collectively address this and to target some Fairer Scotland Funding for new innovative approaches. The work of the Community Planning Partnership is augmented by the two community representatives and a representative from the Youth Forum who inject a consumer/user perspective.

Agreement has been reached on establishing a Joint Ayrshire Regulatory Service encompassing building standards, environmental health and trading standards. A Project Board and Project Team have been established from within the three Ayrshire authorities and a Project Plan has been approved. This Plan will lead to the implementation of a new Pan-Ayrshire Regulatory Services, an independent body supported by a lead authority, by April 2011.

Preliminary discussions are underway about possible joint working arrangements with the other Ayrshires in relation to grounds maintenance including the development of common business models, benchmarking, performance monitoring and harmonising specifications and supply contracts, shared training and technical services (landscape design and forestry).

The three Ayrshire chief executives meet monthly and the development of shared services is a standing item on the agenda. Along with the Leaders, they also recently met Sir John Arbuthnott to discuss his work related to the Clyde Valley partnership and what that might suggest for shared services on a pan-Ayrshire basis. The Council is an associate member of the Clyde Valley training and development shared services programme and meets regularly with partners on a range of joint initiatives to enable efficiencies to be delivered on staff training and development. One key success in this area was the joint procurement of an e-learning platform with a commitment to share current and future content across the partners. The Improvement Service has also introduced partnership groups across learning and development and South Ayrshire has committed to participating in these. The national Collaborative Leadership programme is a further example of shared services through the engagement of a development consultant to facilitate leadership development across five Community Planning Partnerships alongside representatives from the Scottish Government. This modular programme started in February 2010 with further events scheduled throughout the year. Whilst good progress has been made on this improvement strand, this is an area where acceleration of activity may be required to support reductions in public spending with the accent falling on the business benefits deriving from collaborations. There is also a need to enhance member involvement and scrutiny of community planning.

Partnership working and community leadership are core elements of BV2.

We have made good progress with mandatory partnerships such as Community Planning and regional partnerships (pan-Ayrshire).

Our partnership work is typically underpinned by clear objectives and activities will be encompassed within our performance management framework.

There are pockets of practice emerging in relation to sharing resources.

As we move towards BV2, we will need to work on communicating our partnership work effectively.

Improvement Strand 11: Communication and Engagement




Responsible officer

Customers, partners and staff have a clear understanding of what the Council does, what scope there is to shape decisions, how to engage in that process, and what the impact of their engagement has been.

Proactive engagement informs the Council’s Improvement Agenda and strategic and service planning more generally.

Traditionally hard to reach groups are engaged.

Improved internal communication contributes to staff feeling valued and being able to positively represent and promote the Council.

Put in place a communication and engagement strategy in relation to customers, partners and staff.

Communications strategy developed for internal and external communications drawing on information knowledge of current communications mechanisms and their effectiveness and research into the medium and form that people would like to receive information from the Council.

Communications strategy implemented and kept under review for impact, effectiveness and identification of refinements to further improve internal/external communication.

Review the way that the Council (and possibly other partners) engages with communities and assess what is effective at general engagement and what works well with specific groups.

Based on the review and drawing on the National Standards for Community Engagement, develop a comprehensive approach to community engagement that will underpin the strategic planning by the Council and service reviews and modernisation and consideration of improving our customer focus.

Review the impact of the revised approach and refine in light of experience.

March 2010

Reviewed every 6months

April 2010

October 2010


Claire Monaghan

RoddyMacDonald

36


Comments on the current status of Communication and Engagement (strand 11)


Almost all improvement strands have a co-dependency on communication and engagement so this is an area being given a high priority. That said, it is an area of complexity since success depends on an understanding of who our audiences are, which mediums work for different audiences and for different purposes, and what needs to change in our current approach and what gaps require to be filled. The initial priority has been on revamping our approach to news releases changing the balance from factual to people focused and utilising simple messages. Earlier involvement of the communications function in ‘hot’ or developing topics across the organisation is now underway and is allowing better communications planning.

To facilitate public awareness of budgetary issues facing the Council and the Improvement Agenda, we initiated a series of Conversations with communities, businesses and employees. The move to an open dialogue was welcomed but participation was generally low. The exercise provides a helpful approach for us to build on in terms of our communication and engagement.

Internal communication has been improved with the use of Chief Executive bulletins at key points (e.g. pre-recess) and on key issues (e.g. the budget) but further work is underway to explore how we might best fully engage with our staff. Consideration is currently being given to the early adoption of a team briefing approach, an in-house magazine/newsletter and the overhaul of the Council’s intranet.

The development of the communications strategy is well advanced and on track to be presented to the May 2010 Council meeting. The Corporate and Community Planning Standing Scrutiny Panel has identified communications as a scrutiny review within its current programme.

In relation to engagement, South Ayrshire has pioneered some excellent local initiatives. South Ayrshire Council has established a Strategic Group in partnership with key community stakeholders to take an overview of the future of Girvan. The Strategic Group will play a key role in the regeneration of the area. We have also had good engagement with young people. Elected members and CMT have had sessions with representatives from the Youth Forum and a young person sits on the Community Planning Board. In addition, a youth conference was held as part of the development of the SOA.

Our approach to community engagement will build on insights secured in these examples and draw on the National Standards for Community Engagement. Further community engagement mechanisms are required to support community planning and the objective is that these should reside comfortably alongside Council developments on community engagement and the continual development of community councils. A new community engagement manager post has been created and a strategy is now under development due for reporting to Council in October 2010.

As with the current approach to best value, communication and engagement are intrinsic components of BV2.

The measures we are putting in place to improve our internal and external communications will support our progress towards the BV2 framework. However, the pace and complexity of local government and public service working look set to intensify and that will require even more effort to be concentrated on clear, accessible public messages. People will increasingly want to access information in different forms. While our work in print and web media is developed, we have not yet embraced social media routes.

The BV2 framework highlights the importance of information that is useful to citizens in relation to performance management and with a special emphasis on hard-to-reach groups. We will need to work on both of these aspects going forward.

Community engagement is a core characteristic of BV2 with a strong emphasis on community engagement securing improved outcomes. The BV2 focus will be reflected in the development of our community engagement strategy.

Improvement Strand 12: Information and Training for Elected MembersWhere do we ultimately want to get to?



Responsible officer

The Council has high standards of governance and accountability. It has effective political and managerial structures and processes to govern decision-making and the exercise of authority within the organisation.

Members receive relevant and timely information to allow them to make decisions, monitor performance and discharge scrutiny functions.

Build upon developments in political management and further strengthen governance and scrutiny arrangements by providing members with improved information and relevant training.


There is little effective scrutiny of performance by members.

Strong linkage between this improvement strand and improvement strands 4 (the roles of members) and 5 (performance management)

Training to support the implementation ofDeliveringGoodGovernanceinLocalGovernment Framework.

Guidance provided on scrutiny reviews to assist panels identify review topics and progress and report on reviews.

Guidance reviewed annually.

Elected Members annual personal development planning process aligned to role profile. Learning, training and guidance co-ordinated, delivered and monitored and reviewed in line with identified needs – for example, training on scrutiny.

Elected members to participate in some aspects of the leadership programme (improvement strand 3) according to their role profile, training needs analysis and personal development plan.

April 2010

July 2009

July 2010 and then annually

Sustained activity according to need

Sustained activity according to need

Valerie Andrews

Angela Wilson

38


Comments on the current status of Information and Training for Elected Members (strand 12)


Good progress has been made with respect to information and training for elected members. As well as improved usage of information notes to elected members, a programme of interactive briefing with elected members has been developed. Lunch and Learn/Breakfast Briefings have been held on the following topics:

• CelebrationofYouth• TheCouncil’sImprovementAgenda• CorporateParenting• TheCorporatePlan• AyrRenaissance• TheDeliveringGoodGovernanceFramework• ICTAcceptableUsePolicy• BestValueRevisitSubmission Forthcoming sessions prior to summer recess include:

• Scrutinyforelectedmembers• ChildProtection• CivilContingencies• CommunicationStrategy• SingleequalitiesandworkundertakenbytheViolenceagainst

Women Partnership

Scrutiny review guidance is now in place and the Panels have all agreed a work programme for the coming year.

The annual training needs analysis programme has now been completed and an ElectedMembersDevelopmentPlanisbeingprepared.Thiswillbesubmittedtothe next Standards and Governance Panel. In addition, the Council is working withtheImprovementServiceonapilotprojectforCPDforElectedMembersand a range of training interventions are being developed in support of these. Theprocessallowsfor360degreeappraisalsandthiswillbefurtherdevelopedwith members during 2010. The Improvement Service is also delivering a range of Master classes for Members throughout Scotland and details of these have been circulated to all South Ayrshire Council Members.

Effective governance and accountability within the BV2 framework is underpinned by elected members receiving the information and training they require to perform effectively in their roles.

The training programme in place within the Improvement Agenda should support our progress towards BV2. However, this needs to be kept under continual review to ensure it remains relevant.

The past 12 months have been a period of immense growth and development for South Ayrshire Council.

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The past 12 months have been a period South Ayrshire … · The past 12 months have been a period of immense growth and development for South Ayrshire Council. Building on our own