Strategic Performance Framework - latest performance results for Legal and Democratic
North Lanarkshire Council · 1 March 2023
Back to Finance and Resources Committee — 1 March 2023 and its agenda
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Finance and Resources Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref Date 01/03/23 Strategic Performance Framework - latest performance results for Legal and Democratic From Archie Aitken, Chief Officer of Legal and Democratic E-mail AitkenA@northlan.gov.uk Telephone Executive Summary Following a comprehensive restructure of Legal and Democratic in April 2022, the Service comprises the following service areas:- (1) Democratic, with a responsibility for committees, governance arrangements, Members Services, and the administration of Children’s Panels; (2) Enterprise, supporting, with legal advice and representation, all contractual, planning and property matters, together with an advisory and co-ordinating role in respect of data protection and freedom of information; (3) Litigation, which provides all legal advice and assistance, not otherwise within the remits of Enterprise and People, and representation in court proceedings; and (4) People, with responsibility for the Civic Centre complex, community councils, elections, employment law, licensing, registration, serious organised crime/counter- terrorism and veterans issues. Performance across all of these areas is monitored, as required, at fortnightly extended management meetings chaired by the Chief Officer. As can be seen from the above summary of the Service, significant areas of service delivery are carried out in support of other Council Services and, accordingly, performance targets are often not within the sole gift of Legal and Democratic. The indicators set out in Appendix 1, therefore, focus on those areas where the Service does have control of performance. Recommendations It is recommended that the Finance and Resources Committee: (1) Review the high-level performance overview presented in Appendix 1, and the supporting data contained within the linked Excel spreadsheet, and identify where further information is required to understand or investigate performance further.
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1. Background 1.1 There are six inter-related strategic frameworks which are key to assessing the success of The Plan for North Lanarkshire and monitoring delivery towards achieving the overall vision by ensuring each stage is appropriately planned, guided, implemented, and governed. 1.2 The six frameworks focus on ensuring a corporate one council approach in respect of Policy, Governance, Performance, Self-Evaluation, Project Management, and Demonstrating Improved Outcomes for Communities. 1.3 The Strategic Performance Framework comprises performance measurement at three levels (as per the diagram on the right). This aims to collectively provide an overview of performance to help understand the impact of council activities on improving services and outcomes for the people and communities of North Lanarkshire. The measures in this Framework allow for day to day activities, and progress towards achieving the long- term vision set out in The Plan for North Lanarkshire, to be regularly monitored, reported, assessed, and scrutinised. 1.4 The Strategic Performance Framework is aligned to the Accounts Commission statutory direction which places a requirement on councils to report a range of information in terms of (1) improving local services and outcomes, and (2) demonstrating Best Value. Key points of note in this respect are that the Accounts Commission also expect to see: (a) A balance in reporting areas of improvement that have been achieved and not achieved. (b) Reporting that is undertaken in a timely manner. (c) Easy access to performance information for all citizens and communities. 1.5 A Performance Reporting Schedule supports the timely submission of a range of performance information that facilitates Elected Members and senior management to undertake regular performance reviews that inform scrutiny, challenge, and decision making processes. This Schedule, endorsed by the Audit and Scrutiny Panel in February 2023, includes Chief Officer’s individual six monthly Performance Reviews at Service Committees in line with the Strategic Performance Framework. 1.6 This report therefore presents the Finance and Resources with the latest performance results for Legal and Democratic for Members’ further review and scrutiny. 2. Strategic Performance Framework Finance and Resources Committee responsibilities 2.1 In line with the terms of reference outlined in the Scheme of Administration, the Finance and Resources Committee is responsible for monitoring and reviewing performance information for the following Ambition Statements from The Plan for North Lanarkshire: The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority All priorities Ambition statement All ambition statements
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21. Continue to identify and access opportunities to leverage additional resources to support our ambitions. 25. Ensure intelligent use of data and information to support fully evidence based decision making and future planning. 2.2 The high-level performance overview in Appendix 1 presents Members with a summary of the latest results for each performance indicator within the remit of the Chief Officer of Legal and Democratic. 2.3 The information in Appendix 1 comprises the following: • An ideal direction arrow - this indicates whether a higher or lower figure is the preferred direction of travel. • Measurement unit - for example whether the result is a %, a number, a unit cost (in £), or a ratio. • Performance results for the last four financial years (depending on availability of data) along with the latest year’s target and corresponding RAG status (for indicators where it is appropriate to set targets). • The most recent monthly or quarterly results, along with the corresponding target and RAG status. Note the inclusion of this information is dependent on the measurement frequency of the indicator and availability of data as at the time of reporting. • A trend graph - this captures the direction of travel achieved over the four financial years and includes the most recent monthly or quarterly results where available. • Comments - narrative summarising the current position and providing an explanation for any significant variations in performance. Where applicable, this narrative also highlights the effect of the pandemic on service delivery, e.g. any increase or decrease in the volume of transactions or enquiries processed. 2.4 A large volume of data supports the high-level performance overview in Appendix 1. This is outlined in the latest performance results for Legal and Democratic Excel spreadsheet which is available through the following link for Members to carry out a deep dive and review and scrutinise each performance indicator further. The Menu on the second tab of the spreadsheet contains built in hyperlinks that automatically take the user to a tab for each performance indicator and therefore provides a useful navigation aid to review the contents of the file. • Latest performance results for Legal and Democratic.xlsx Current context 2.5 As a result of the service restructure in April 2022, it was necessary to allow a period of time for the new arrangements to be implemented, including a change to the roles and responsibilities of a number of officers and this process was concluded by the end of July in time for the new committee cycle. As a consequence of these changes, the performance indicators for the Service required to be reviewed and those set out in Appendix 1 are currently considered to be the most meaningful. They will, however, be subject to ongoing review to ensure that they set out targets which accurately reflect A higher figure is better A lower figure is better Key to RAG status Performance is on target and/or within acceptable thresholds Performance does not meet target and is outwith acceptable thresholds Performance surpasses the target and exceeds expectations
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the operational activities of the Service and are able to be measured against Service specific controls. Recent performance highlights 2.6 With reference to Appendix 1, it can be seen that the ratio of legal versus non-legal work undertaken reflects the continuance in delivery of an efficient and effective service, with a low hourly rate and a high proportion of staff time spent on the delivery of legal advice and support as opposed to management/administration. With regards to the Registration Service, while inspection outcomes are still awaited from National Records of Scotland for the last two calendar years, it is anticipated that accuracy levels will remain in the top quartile nationally, as per the outcomes previously reported on an annual basis, notwithstanding the significant increase in workload over that period and statutory changes to the way the service required to be delivered, as a result of the pandemic. It should be noted that, in respect of Freedom of Information, there has been full recovery from the pandemic’s impacts on service delivery and a return to previous compliance levels has been achieved. Areas of performance requiring improvement 2.7 With reference to Appendix 1, while there are no red indicators in terms of RAG status and, therefore, no identified areas for improvement, each indicator will continue to be closely monitored on a regular basis, as set out in the Executive Summary. Next steps 2.8 As noted in paragraph 1.5, the Strategic Performance Framework is supported by a Performance Reporting Schedule. This sets out the arrangements for service, statutory, and Strategic Performance Framework reporting to committee. In this respect Finance and Resources Committee can expect to receive the following in respect of Legal and Democratic during 2023/24. Report Description Committee cycle Freedom of Information annual report This report provides details of the number of Freedom of Information (FOI) and Environmental Information Requests (EIR) received by the council during the previous financial year and those completed by the statutory deadlines and also provides further comparative and ancillary information. Cycle 3 in 2023 Registration service performance This report provides an update on the performance of the registration service, for the latest calendar year. The performance of the Registration Service provided is monitored annually by the District Examiners from National Records of Scotland. Note production of this report relies on the timely receipt of the respective performance data from the NRS. Cycle 1 in 2023 Annual data protection report This reports on the council’s data protection compliance and activity for the latest financial year in lined with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) which came into force on 25 May 2018. The report is from the council’s Data Protection Officer (DPO) and provides an update, following the introduction of the legislation, in relation to data sharing, breaches, complaints, and training. Cycle 1 in 2023
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3. Measures of success 3.1 Measures of success include: • Regular oversight and monitoring of performance across the organisation to gain assurances in terms of governance and accountability. • Regular review and challenge processes to scrutinise the performance of the council to ensure effective use of resources and that resources are directed in accordance with agreed policy and according to priorities, while ensuring sound decision making and clear accountability for the use of resources in achieving improved outcomes for service users and the local community. • Performance monitoring, management, and reporting arrangements that support the demonstration of improved performance in local services and outcomes, and the delivery of Best Value. 4. Supporting documentation 4.1 Appendix 1 - High-level performance overview Chief Officer of Legal and Democratic 5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality- and-fairer-scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts have been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts have been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact?
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5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts have been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)?
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Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services.
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Appendix 1 Legal and Democratic High-level performance overview - as at January 2023 Indicator id ideal direction unit of measurem ent 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 2021/22 target 2021/22 RAG status 2022/23 ytd 2022/23 target 2022/23 RAG status trend comments Freedom of information - % of requests responded to within 20 working days i112 higher figure is better % 98.3 98.8 94.6 98.3 100.0 green only measured annually 100.0 Compliance levels during 2020/21 can largely be attributed to the effects of the pandemic, particularly in the first quarter of 2020/21 following changes to ways of working and delivering services were prioritised. The Coronavirus (Scotland) (No. 2) Act which revoked the extension that had been made to FOI timescales on 27 May, also had an effect on compliance in quarter one - as the council had been working to the extended 60 day timescale and had little time to adjust to the return of the 20 day timeframe. The remainder of 2020/21 saw a return to more typical levels of compliance and the final rate for 2020/21 is in the range considered “good” by the Scottish Information Commissioner. Compliance levels in 2021/22 (98.3%) have returned to pre pandemic levels. Legal services - cost per hour of providing the legal service function i102 lower figure is better £ £47.26 £30.15 £32.23 £32.48 £44.76 blue only measured annually £32.19 As apportion expenses were removed in 2019/20, a new formula for calculating the indicator was introduced for 2020/21 onwards but the targets were not revised accordingly. Revised targets in line with the new formula will be introduced from 2022/23 onwards. Legal services - hours spent delivering legal services as a percentage of all staff hours in the service i101 higher figure is better % 84.3 80.9 80.8 84.1 100.0 green only measured annually 100.0 Latest results for 2021/22 show that 84.1% of hours spent delivering legal services can be attributed to proportion of hours that solicitors and paralegals spend on specific legal work (as opposed to management/admin roles) - this shows the high proportion of the service’s time that is spent on service delivery. Registration of events - % of entries without errors i125 higher figure is better % 99.17 99.01 100.0 blue only measured annually 100.0 2021 registers are still being examined by the NRS District Examiner and 2022 has not been started yet. The latest figures (for 2020) show a slightly reduced accuracy rating compared to previousn years; this service was impacted on by Covid restrictions and births and marriages were not being registered at certain points during 2020. Children's panel expenses - % processed and passed for payment within 3 working days i122 higher figure is better % n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a only measured annually New measure from 2023/24 onwards. Appeals hearings - % acknowledged within 5 working days i035 higher figure is better % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 blue only measured annually 100.0 The council has a duty to respond to requests to hold education exclusion and school placing request appeal hearings within the required statutory periods; all 48 hearings requested during 2021/22 were acknowledged within 5 working days. Appeals hearings - % heard within 28 calendar days i036 higher figure is better % 100.0 100.0 100.0 97.9 100.0 green only measured annually 100.0 The council has a duty to respond to requests to hold education exclusion and school placing request appeal hearings within the required statutory periods. Appeals about placing requests and exclusions are heard by an appeal committee, set up and maintained by the education authority. During 2021/22 there were 47 out of 48 appeals hearings heard within 28 calendar days. Appeals hearings - % decision notifications made within 14 calendar days i037 higher figure is better % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 blue only measured annually 100.0 The council has a duty to notify decisions made in terms of education exclusion and school placing request appeal hearings within the required statutory periods. An appeals committee must give its decision within 14 calendar days of the end of the hearing. During 2021/22 all 48 appeals hearing decsions were notified within 14 calendar days. 80.0 85.0 90.0 95.0 100.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 £0.00 £10.00 £20.00 £30.00 £40.00 £50.00 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 75.0 80.0 85.0 90.0 95.0 100.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 80.0 85.0 90.0 95.0 100.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 80.0 85.0 90.0 95.0 100.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 80.0 85.0 90.0 95.0 100.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 0.00 20.00 40.00 60.00 80.00 100.00 2018/19 2019/20 0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22