Ealing Council is 'Doing Great Things' For Community
According to a glowing report just released
Ealing Council - currently facing criticism over the introduction of the controversial new wheelie bin system - has just released a new report claiming it's doing 'great things for its community'.
The Corporate Peer Challenge - which was commissioned by the council - involved a small team of fellow local government workers who attended meetings, spoke to officers, members, partners and residents.
The panel were in Ealing from 1st - 4th March - prior to the rubbish system changeover - and their report claims ‘Ealing maintains strong service performance across the board with excellence in many parts.'
The panel also highlighted the council’s ‘impressive’ regeneration programme which they claim is ‘driven by its motivation to improve lives for its residents’. This included the council’s town centre regeneration work and its ability to make the most of opportunities, such as Crossrail, to help shape the borough.
The group was also impressed with children’s services’ ‘ground breaking’ Brighter Futures programme which has bucked the national trend by reducing the number of those taken into care. In addition the panel noted the council’s work in reducing the number of young people who are not in education, employment or training, which is amongst the best performing in the country.
The review panel recognised that the council has a ‘real appetite to use ICT more effectively’ and set out recommendations on how the council could make the most of technology to improve services for residents and improve organisational efficiency. The panel also suggested considering alternative approaches for business planning and budgeting to further focus on outcomes.
Leader of Ealing Council, Julian Bell said: ''We welcome the results of the Corporate Peer Challenge which have been encouragingly positive. Peer reviews provide a rigorous and objective assessment of how the council is performing and are key to delivering further improvements. I am confident that we will use the recommendations from the report to continue to make Ealing a great place to live and do business."
The review concluded that: ‘Ealing is a high performing council with strong and ambitious political and managerial leadership. Partners trust the council and hold it in high regard. The council is doing great things for its community.’
16th June 2016