DRONFIELD TOWN COUNCIL

 

 

 

 

Best Value

 

 

Performance Plan

20010/2002

1

(Draft Plan for Consultation)

 

 

CONTENTS

 

 

Page

 

 

Introduction by the Town Mayor, Councillor Jack GoodhandTerry Furniss

3

Consultation and Feedback

4

Mission Statement and Corporate Objectives

5

The Town Council – an overview

6

Town Council Services

8

Review of Town Council’s Services – five year plan

12

Performance Indicators and Targets

13

Response to Audit and Inspection’s Report

16

APPENDIX 1  Members’ names and addresses

 

APPENDIX 2  Calendar of Meetings and Terms of Reference

 

APPENDIX 3  Town Council’s Staffing Structure

 

APPENDIX 4  Financial Statement and Estimates

 

APPENDIX 5  Capital Programme

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION

 

In April 2000, Tthe Government has introduced a new duty of best value on parish and town councils, with a budgeted income of more than £500,000 per annum from 1st April 2000.  Dronfield Town Council, who will become a best value authority in the financial year of 2000/2001 because of the 3 year rule, will therefore, be required to consult local people, review all its services every five years, measure its performance every year and publish a Best Value Performance Plan by 31st March of each year.

 

Consultation is not a new concept for this Council.  We have an excellent track record of listening to residents’ views, for example, the newly developed Civic Hall, the Alma Regeneration Scheme, the improvements to play areas throughout the town, the new bus shelter programme, the proposals to improve Gosforth Lodge and the changing room facilities at Coal Aston, to name but a few are all as a result of the consultation process.

 

We intend to put in place arrangements that will secure continuous improvement in the way we deliver our services, in order to make life better for people and for business in Dronfield.

 

This Plan sets out the Town Council’s objectives, the services we provide to achieve them, the cost of these services and how we intend to carry out a fundamental review of all our services over the next five years.

 

Your views are very important to us as we strive to achieve our objectives so please help us to help you by sending in your comments and suggestions to the Town Clerk or by speaking to your local Town Councillor.

 

It is important for us to receive your comments, queries and complaints on the services provided by the Town Council.  Rest assured we are here to serve you and that your views and comments will be given every consideration.

 

Thank you for your time in receiving and reading this, our first Best Value Performance Plan for Year 2;  we look forward to receiving your response.

 

Councillor Terry Furniss                                 

 

Town Mayor

 

 

 

 

Consultation and Feedback

 

 

We want to know your views on the contents of this Plan, and receive your comments, queries and complaints regarding the services provided by the Town Council.

 

We will publish the main points of this Plan and make the full Plan available on request to any resident.

 

We have provided a questionnaire at the end of this plan, and we should be grateful if you would help us by completing this and sending it to:

 

Roy Hunt, Town Clerk

Dronfield Town Council

Civic Hall

Dronfield Civic Centre

Dronfield

Derbyshire S18 1PD

 

 

For specific help or advice on matters concerning

The Town Council you can:

 

Telephone : 01246 418573

Fax : 01246 290702

Email : roy.hunt@virgin.netdronfieldtc@aol.com

 

 

Alternatively, contact one of your local Town Councillors –

 

You will find their names and addresses in Appendix 1

at the end of this document.

 

Mission Statement

 

Our aim is to provide and facilitate high quality, cost-effective services that best meet the need of the residents of Dronfield.

 

 

Our corporate objectives are:

 

1.                  To consult with, and take due regard of all comments received from other statutory bodies, voluntary organisations, residents and community groups to ensure an improving standard of services to meet with local needs.

 

2.                  To enable residents to enjoy high-quality social, recreational, and cultural facilities within the town and to seek the continuing improvement and development of these facilities in accordance with the desires expressed by the residents.

 

3.                  To encourage, promote and facilitate the economic and commercial vitality of the town.

 

4.                  To help to create an atmosphere of a sense of ownership and belonging by members of the community which embraces all its residents, irrespective of age, gender, culture, income, race or religion, and which seeks to develop their well being, knowledge, understanding, mutual co-operation and a progressive community social conscience.

 

5.                  To encourage, promote and facilitate an environmental policy that recognises the importance of safety and security for all residents.

 

 

 

Efficiency Improvements

 

The Council is committed to ensuring that each service, or function, of the Council operates to maximum efficiency.

 

Comprehensive studies and monitoring will assist the Council in ascertaining current efficiency levels, and the targets and performance indicators will be devised to ensure that efficiency improvements will be gained.  The Council have gone to great lengths to ensure that the targets are realistic and achievable within the constraints of proposed budgets.

 

 

Mission Statement

 

Our aim is to provide and facilitate high quality, cost-effective services that best meet the need of the residents of Dronfield.

 

 

Our corporate objectives are:

 

1.To consult with, and take due regard of all comments received from other statutory bodies, voluntary organisations, residents and community groups to ensure an improving standard of services to meet with local needs.

 

1.To enable residents to enjoy high-quality social, recreational, and cultural facilities within the town and to seek the continuing improvement and development of these facilities in accordance with the desires expressed by the residents.

 

1.To encourage, promote and facilitate the economic and commercial vitality of the town.

 

1.To help to create an atmosphere of a sense of ownership and belonging by members of the community which embraces all its residents, irrespective of age, gender, culture, income, race or religion, and which seeks to develop their well being, knowledge, understanding, mutual co-operation and a progressive community social conscience.

 

1.To encourage, promote and facilitate an environmental policy that recognises the importance of safety and security for all residents.

 

 

 

Efficiency Improvements

 

The Council is committed to ensuring that each service, or function, of the Council operates to maximum efficiency.

 

Comprehensive studies and monitoring will assist the Council in ascertaining current efficiency levels, and the targets and performance indicators will be devised to ensure that efficiency improvements will be gained.  The Council have gone to great lengths to ensure that the targets are realistic and achievable within the constraints of proposed budgets.

 

 

6.                The Town Council – an overview

 

Dronfield Town Council is the parish authority for the town of Dronfield.  With a population of almost 23,000 it is the largest parish in Derbyshire.  The Ttown Council supplements the provision of local government services in Dronfield and provides a wide range of social and recreational facilities, while promoting the town in its representations to other bodies.  The Town Council works in partnership with the larger North East Derbyshire District Council, which also covers the areas of Clay Cross, Eckington, Killamarsh, Wingerworth and Grassmoor and is responsible for local plans and development control;  environmental health;  refuse collection and major recreational facilities e.g. Sharley Park at Clay Cross and Dronfield Sports Centre.  The Town Council also maintains a close working relationship with Derbyshire County Council, which covers the whole of Derbyshire, except for the City of Derby and is responsible for education;  social services;  highways and transport policy;  strategic planning and libraries.

 

The Town Council has 17 Town Councillors, elected for a term of four years.  The next Town Council elections are in May 2003.  The Chair of the Council, who also undertakes the office of Town Mayor, is elected annually by the Councillors in May, together with a Deputy Town Mayor.  Town Councillors are unpaid and do not receive any attendance allowance or payments for their duties, which they undertake purely on a voluntary basis.

 

The Town Council does not operate a committee structure but all business is conducted and transacted at a meeting of the full Council, which is held on the first Monday of every month.  Agendas are available to the public three clear days before the meeting date and notification of such meetings are available on all public notice boards throughout the town.  Meetings are held in the Civic Hall, Dronfield and the public are encouraged to attend and may put questions or make statements on any matter at the end of every meeting of Council.

 

A calendar of meetings, together with membership of the Council is shown at Appendix 2.

 

The Town Council occasionally appoints ad hoc working groups of the Council to investigate, analyse and report back on specific projects or functions.  The Working Groups are time/project limited and have specific terms of reference and, therefore, a limited life span in that when the Council adopts the project or strategy, then the Working Group for that project is wound up.

 

 

Group

Reporting to

·        Best Value Working Group (6 Members)

Town Council

·        Properties Working Group (4 Members)

Town Council

·        Town Twinning 30th Anniversary Working Group (6 Members)

Town Council

·        Road Safety/Traffic Calming Working Group (6 Members)

Town Council

·        Town Guide Working Group (5 Members)

Town Council

 

 

The Town Council employs a team of 7 full-time staff and 8 part-time staff headed by the Town Clerk, Roy Hunt.  The Town Council’s staffing structure is shown at Appendix 3.

 

The Council Tax paid by Dronfield residents includes the spending requirements of Derbyshire County Council, North East Derbyshire District Council, Derbyshire Police, Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service and Dronfield Town Council.  The District Council is the charging authority responsible for collecting your Council Tax.  Contrary to popular belief, Dronfield Town Council does not receive any revenue support from Government, unlike the District and County Councils;  neither does it receive any funding from local businesses and retailers through their Unified Business Rates.

 

Each year, the Town Council calculates the money it needs to raise to provide its services.  We then deduct income receivable from fees and charges, e.g. allotment rents, lettings and booking fees at the Civic Hall, Gosforth Lodge, Multi User Games Area in Cliffe Park and profits from the Kiosk sales to leave the amount we require to spend on the services we provide for the year ahead.  This sum, called the precept, is the amount we levy on the District Council which is paid to us in two instalments and collected by the District as a proportion of the total Council Tax paid by Dronfield residents.  Thise year, ending 31st March 20010 ourthe precept was £460,00027.500.  If you live in an “average” Band D house, you would have contributed £60.1058.13 of your total Council Tax Bill to Dronfield Town Council.  The precept for 2001/2002 has been set at £490,000.

 

This Best Value Performance Plan has been initiated and devised by Members and Officers of Dronfield Town Council, and has who have acknowledged that Dronfield tTown Council has a public duty to ensure that all the legal and administrative procedures of such a body have been met, and where appropriate, exceeded.

 

Dronfield Town Council has policy statements on the following functions and this plan is intended to complement or improve upon the requirements of both those policy statements and all other legal requirements as determined from time to time by HM Government.

As part of Year 1’s Best Value process, Dronfield Town Council was committed to agree written policy statements on all its services and functions by the end of the calendar year 2000, and these have now been used as the Council’s strategic objectives for each service and function.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Town Council Services

 

The Town Council provides the following services to achieve ouitsr Corporate Objectives:

 
 
Allotments                                                 

 

 

·        130 plots on four sites.

 

Parks, and Recreation Grounds Gardens and Open Spaces

·        Cliffe Park

·        Sindelfingen Park

·        Jubilee Park

·        Coal Aston Recreation Ground

·        Stonelow Recreation Ground

·        Dronfield Woodhouse Recreation  Ground

·        Hilltop Recreation Ground

·        Cemetery Road Recreation Ground

 
 
Comprising of                                             

 

·        9 Football pitches

·        3 Cricket pitches

·        1 Hockey pitch

·        3 Bowling Greens

·        1 Roller Hockey Court

·        4 Basketball Courts

·        7 Tennis Courts

 

·        12 heated changing rooms and hot shower facilities

 

Children’s Play areas are situated at

 

·       

 
Co