Agenda item

The Q2 Performance Report 2022-23 as presented to Cabinet at its meeting on Tuesday 15 November is attached for the Committee to consider.

Contributors:

Councillor John Chilver, Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources

Holly Pedrick, Head of Insight and Business Improvement

The Chairman invited the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, Councillor J Chilver, to introduce the report. In the Cabinet Member’s presentation, the following points were highlighted:

• The report outlined the quarter two performance outturns and commentary for the Council’s 116 Key Performance Indicators. 67 of the indicators were green and 20 were red, which showed an improvement from the previous quarter. 97% of the Council’s new website had been updated, with completion expected by the end of this calendar year.
• The percentage of phone calls answered and the average call waiting time had significantly improved since the last quarter.
• During quarter two, the Council was affected by missed bins in the South and the delivery of the £150 energy rebates and the revenue and benefits system closure.
• Sickness absences were marginally over the target, showing an improvement since quarter one.

The following points were noted during the Committee’s discussion:

• Customers using Council Access Points (CAPs) could provide free-text feedback to suggest improvements to the service. The number of customers using CAPs would be circulated to Members.

Action: L Jefferies

• The number of phone calls to customer services fluctuated throughout the year, showing increases when council tax bills were issued or home to school transport was arranged. However, there were some unexpected increases this year due to waste bins and council tax rebates. After the new system had been rolled out, there had been a backlog, but this was expected to be resolved by the end of January 2023. It was expected that the percentage of calls answered would further increase in the following quarters, with improvements already being seen. External consultants IMPOWER had advised on the capacity needed for customer service, and a ‘rising tide’ framework of responses had been developed to respond accordingly to customer demands, such as moving call handlers to busier queues and implementing callbacks. Some lesser-used phone lines, such as libraries, had been temporarily closed to assist customer service during exceptionally busy times. However, these measures were short-term, two weeks maximum, and had been reinstated. A listening tool was also used to analyse the causes of increased demands, which could be acted on through behavioural nudges such as pointing customers to digital and self- service.
• Since the report was published, sickness rates had decreased from 9.56 days to 9.5 days. The team carried out additional analyses into different types of sicknesses and long-term sickness. Different interventions needed to be put in place for office-based and mobile staff. The Corporate Management Team were also working on mental health provisions, with various tools being developed for staff and managers. The data was also benchmarked across other councils and broken down in terms of directorates, though more comparison work with authorities who successfully measured sickness absence was needed. It was also noted that sickness rates had increased upon returning to the office, resulting in higher sickness rates when compared to 2020. Sick pay was offered as part of the Council’s employment contract, as not providing it would have negative implications for attracting and retaining staff. A robust sickness management policy was also in place to encourage staff to maintain the expected attendance levels, with the aim to ensure a smooth and quick return to work. A deep dive report on sickness had been carried out by the service and a number of Members expressed an interest in this being presented to the Committee.

Action: S Murphy-Brookman / C Ward

• There had been delays in issuing housing benefits due to the new system being implemented. Overall, however, the average processing times were within the target of around 12 days. The Council also had a strong track record in delivering the targets in processing times. An expedited hardship claimant route was also implemented for people adversely impacted by the new system.

The Chairman thanked the Cabinet Member for the report.