Agenda item

Report attached.

Members considered a report of Councillor Munsif Dad BEM JP, Leader of the Council, presenting an action plan for adoption by the Council, addressing the Corporate Peer Challenge recommendations.

Councillor Dad provided a brief introduction to the report.

Councillor Zak Khan commented that Recommendation 8 (below) – Forward Planning, appeared not to have been fully implemented, as a number of reports at the meeting had been provided by way of a supplemental agenda.  The Leader confirmed that this was still a work in progress.

Approval of the report was not deemed a key decision.

Reasons for Decision

The Local Government Association Corporate Peer Challenge had culminated in a peer team visit to Hyndburn between 29^th and 31^st October 2024.

The team had presented their main findings and recommendations verbally to the Council on their final day in Hyndburn and had provided a formal report just before the Christmas break.

The following were the peer team’s key recommendations to the Council:

1. Conduct the planned review of the corporate strategy and align the organisational structure accordingly.
2. Engage in top team development to develop effective relationships within Cabinet/CMT as a group to create agreed ways of working and clarity of roles and responsibilities.
3. With partners, lead the development of a clear and well understood vision for the whole Borough (Place Strategy).
4. Consider what capacity and skills the Council needs to develop and address this as part of the review of organisational structure, including options for collaboration with partners and the use of consultants.
5. Design a transformation & digital strategy and action plan.
6. Develop a strategy for income generation, including commercial income, fees & charges and council tax.
7. Review and implement new plans for internal and external communication, aligning it with the new corporate strategy.
8. Create and implement a well understood and effective process for forward planning of Council decision making which engages Cabinet members and Scrutiny.
9. Promote the Council’s approach to climate change and decarbonisation and play a key role in leading the Borough on this agenda.
10. Continue and broaden the authority’s engagement with local government and beyond in order to learn from others and offer the Council’s experience and learning.

Reports to Council and Cabinet during January had shared the report (now published on the authority’s website as required by the LGA), outlined the many positive findings, and set out the recommendations. 

The Council was required to agree an action plan to address the recommendations within three months.  The following steps had led to the action plan, as appended to the report:

• January / February - Management Team and Service Managers had considered recommendations and developed a draft action plan.
• February – cross-party working group established. (Terms of Reference agreed by Cabinet)
• Early March - Draft action plan brought to working group for discussion.
• 26^th March 2025 - Final draft to Cabinet for formal agreement.

A progress visit was being arranged for some or all of the peer team for early September 2025.

The action plan was intended to be a living, working document.  The actions against the recommendations would develop as time passed and in response to progress.  The working group intended to meet monthly to monitor progress.

Alternative Options considered and Reasons for Rejection

In agreeing to the CPC process, the Council had committed to developing an action plan based on the recommendations.

Resolved                                 (1)   To formally agree the action plan which has been developed in response to the recommendations of the Corporate Peer Challenge undertaken in October 2025.

(2)   That the Chief Executive is given delegated authority to update and amend the action plan, following consultation with the LGA Corporate Peer Challenge Working Group.