Meeting documents

To consider item 16

The Corporate Planning Manager advised Members that this was an information item that provided an update on where the Authority was with the delivery of the current five year Corporate Plan which was now well into its final year. The original, and indeed ongoing purpose of the Corporate Plan, was to specify and programme the work needed to reshape the Service as envisaged by the 2015-20 Public Safety Plan.

The Corporate Planning Manager advised Members that an overview of progress made over the first four years of the Corporate Plan was set out at Section 2 of Appendix 1. It focused on what’s been achieved in relation to implementing the larger, more complex and, in some cases, more capital intensive elements of the Plan.

In particular, the Milton Keynes reconfiguration including the new Blue Light Hub at West Ashland, Workforce Reform, Business and Systems Integration programme and other technological advances. Changes to the Authority’s operating context, particularly the financial, government policy and legislative contexts were set out in Section 3. As Members would have noted, the financial forecast took the Authority out beyond the lifetime of the current plan and forms part of the context for the next Public Safety and Corporate Plans which would cover the period 2020-25. In particular, Members would see that, based on the current MTFP forecast, the Authority still had significant financial challenges, not least because the current mitigation was effectively based on drawing down reserves.

Section 4 provided an overview of the main updates to the Plan and areas of focus for the final year notably in relation to:

• Collaboration, particularly with the other Thames Valley fire and other blue light services; and,

• the further development operational resourcing via the Development of Operational Resourcing (DoOR) Programme.

Members would also see more detailed updates to individual projects and tasks at Section 7 highlighted in yellow. The following points show how different elements of the plan integrate and align to achieve greater effect. For example:

• the additional resourcing for the Authority’s Protection function which leverages its apprenticeship programme in pursuit of Strategic Objective 2; and,

• The Authority’s continued commitment to independent assurance of its operational functions and processes alongside its ongoing engagement with the HMICFRS in pursuit of SO4 which would both inform future planning out beyond the lifetime of this current plan.

The Corporate Planning Manager advised Members that regarding future plans, the Authority would be bringing the draft 2020-25 Public Safety Plan to the next Authority meeting on 18 September 2019 where it would be seeking approval to put it out for formal public consultation.

A Member asked when would the current Airwave contract finish and was advised that at present the exact date was still unknown.

The Chairman stated that on reading the report the achievements needed to be recognised, as although there were financial constraints, what had been achieved should be acknowledged.

RESOLVED –

1. That the progress achieved with the delivery of the 2015-20 Corporate Plan during the first four years to March 2019 be noted.

2. That the revision in section 7 of the 2015-20 Corporate Plan be noted.