23 March 2011
Eastbourne Borough Council won Council of the Year at last night’s (22 March) 2011 Awards Ceremony hosted by iESE, the South East’s body dedicated to delivering improvement and efficiency in local public services.
The judges were impressed by Eastbourne’s concerted effort to radically overhaul its culture and performance and deliver major improvements to the area.
After receiving the lowest Comprehensive Area Assessment rating in the South East in 2009 and posting qualified accounts for several years, the approach has paid off. The council has already made the first year’s savings of its three-year savings plan and has finally closed its accounts. Its service delivery is innovative, the private sector is working successfully with the council on major redevelopment, it has a programme of investing in community facilities and has improved its community engagement.
Winners in each of the awards categories were:
Connecting people (joint winners)
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Hampshire County Council and YOU for their innovative telecare project enabling people with learning disabilities to live in independent accommodation with better care and dignity.
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Surrey County Council for its user-led citizen hub, a unique project run by disabled people to reach out and support disabled people and their carers, many of whom would not normally approach statutory services.
Delivering efficiency
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Waverley Borough Council for its Foresight Efficiency Programme, a swift and determined approach to service transformation which has led to significant efficiency savings.
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Highly commended: Adur District Council and Worthing Borough Council for their shared approach to efficiency.
Working together (joint winners)
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Brighton and Hove City Council for it partnership with RoyalSussexHospital’s patient discharge team. Care plans are put in place before individuals are discharged which have led to better support at times of crisis and fewer re-admissions to hospital.
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Dorset County Council and Dorset district councils for the Dorset Waste Partnership which is delivering a single in-house team to collect the county’s waste. Costs will drop and recycling rates increase.
Progress through innovation (joint winners)
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Kent County Council and Kent Climate Change Network for the Kent Adaptation Action Plan, a blueprint to reduce the impact of the county’s lifestyles on climate change. The tools developed to model climate change are transferable to other areas.
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Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead for RecycleBank, the UK’s first incentivised recycling scheme. Open to all households, the initiative works closely with local retailers and businesses to encourage rewards to boost long-term sustainability.
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Highly commended: Aylesbury Vale District Council for its Be the Change initiative, an innovative programme to support the council’s managers to drive transformation.
Progress through transparency:
Fire and Rescue project of the year
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Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service for its collaborative approach to uniform procurement, a project that has saved nine Fire and Rescue Services (FRS) £500,000 and created a national framework available to all FRS and other emergency services.
Police project of the year
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Hampshire Police and Hampshire Autistic Society for their unique autism alert card, car sticker and passport designed for people on the Autism Condition Spectrum who come into contact with emergency and criminal justice agencies. It’s believed to be the first of its kind, not only nationally, but internationally.
Chairman’s award
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Ian Lowrie, Chief Executive of Adur District Council and Worthing Borough Council, for his outstanding contribution to iESE and local government, particularly his pioneering of new models of collaboration and service delivery. As a result, the South East can claim the first full partnership of two councils anywhere in England and where he led, over 30 joint chief executives now follow.
Congratulating the winners, Councillor Paul Bettison, chairman of iESE, said, “Time and again, I’m deeply impressed by the sheer hard work and imagination of council employees to find new ways of meeting the challenges facing their organisations and their communities. These awards celebrate their achievements and help share details of their work so that the sector and its partners can benefit from the best.
“The quality of entries was extremely high and I wish to congratulate the councils and their partners that were shortlisted and to thank all those who entered. I also offer a special thanks to our wise judges and sponsors for their kind support to make the awards happen.”
iESE’s annual awards celebrate the achievements of the South East’s councils, police and fire authorities. They are also open to public bodies outside the South East delivering transformation in major areas of spend on local services.
