Performance Management Framework

December 2013

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Foreword I am pleased to launch the council’s new Performance Management Framework. Like all local authorities in the UK, Bridgend County Borough Council is facing unprecedented challenges. Over the next four years, we expect to make recurrent savings of around £36 million, including £13 million by 1 April 2014. At the same time we are committed to working together with partners and citizens to improve lives in the county borough, focusing on our six clear corporate priorities. Realising our vision will depend on us all having a shared understanding of our corporate priorities and statutory obligations as well as our individual roles and responsibilities in their achievement. This performance management framework, designed for everyone involved in delivering the outcomes we want, sets out principles, processes and procedures of performance management, linking service delivery to our vision and priorities. It clearly identifies responsibility and accountability for each stage of the Council’s performance management process, from business planning, to service delivery, to performance review and to changes that may be necessary. I commend this framework to you. It is designed to help us continually to plan, implement, review and revise our work so that we can successfully improve lives in the county borough, working together with others. Darren Mepham Chief Executive Bridgend Council Borough Council December 2013

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Contents Purpose ................................................................................................................................................... 4

Scope ....................................................................................................................................................... 4

Background ............................................................................................................................................. 4

Our vision ............................................................................................................................................ 4

Our values ........................................................................................................................................... 4

Applying best practice ......................................................................................................................... 5

1. Defining performance management ............................................................................................... 6

1.1 Definition .................................................................................................................................... 6

1.2 Principle ...................................................................................................................................... 6

1.3 How does this principle work? .................................................................................................... 7

2. Plan.................................................................................................................................................. 8

2.1 Golden thread for planning ......................................................................................................... 8

2.2 How the ‘golden thread’ is applied ............................................................................................. 9

2.3 Corporate and directorate business planning process ............................................................. 10

2.4 Plan – roles and responsibilities matrix .................................................................................... 11

3. Do .................................................................................................................................................. 12

3.1 Implementing and monitoring our plans, priorities and actions .............................................. 12

3.2 Performance management processes, systems and information ............................................ 13

3.3 Do – roles and responsibilities matrix ....................................................................................... 14

4. Review ........................................................................................................................................... 15

4.1 Corporate performance review ................................................................................................ 15

4.2 Directorate performance review .............................................................................................. 16

4.3 Service/group performance review .......................................................................................... 16

4.4 Individual performance review ................................................................................................. 16

4.5 Core characteristics of review ................................................................................................... 17

4.6 Review – roles and responsibilities matrix ............................................................................... 18

5. Revise ............................................................................................................................................ 19

5.1 Analysis ..................................................................................................................................... 19

5.2 Making changes in moving forward .......................................................................................... 20

5.3 Revise – roles and responsibilities matrix ................................................................................. 21

6. Collaboration and commissioning ................................................................................................ 22

6.1 Working with our partners........................................................................................................ 22

6.2 Engaging and working with our citizens ................................................................................... 23

6.3 Commissioning .......................................................................................................................... 24

7. Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 25

APPENDIX A – Roles and responsibilities .............................................................................................. 26

APPENDIX B – Corporate and business planning timetable ................................................................. 27

APPENDIX C – Key considerations during the planning process ........................................................... 28

APPENDIX D – High performing behaviour – standards for managers ................................................. 31

Contact .................................................................................................................................................. 33

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Purpose The purpose of this Performance Management Framework is to:

define what performance management is all about within the Council at a time of strategic change;

ensure everyone understands their accountabilities in delivering priorities for less; and

provide a guide to all those involved in the performance management process.

Scope This framework applies to all those engaged in the delivery of the Council’s vision. It:

sets out the principles of performance management;

defines accountabilities for performance management;

provides processes and procedures; and

provides standards for managers.

Background In these times of reducing budgets and increasing demand for Council services, the need for effective performance management has never been greater, as this allows us to:

prioritise our goals and allocate our diminishing resources effectively;

ensure that everyone is clear of their roles and responsibilities and is accountable for delivering the Council’s service and financial plans; and

help improve services and outcomes for our citizens.

Our vision Our Vision as a Council is “to work together to improve lives”. This includes working closely with our citizens and partners in all sectors of the economy. Based on this vision, a clear set of improvement priorities have been identified, improvements we believe matter most to our citizens. This document sets out the means by which we transform our vision and priorities into improved services for our citizens, within the resources available.

Our values Our values are our guiding principles that everyone, from Elected Members to frontline staff, must observe when we conduct our business. These values are:

Fair - taking into account everyone's needs and situation

Ambitious - always trying to improve what we do and aiming for excellence

Citizen-focused - remembering that we are here to serve our local communities

Efficient - delivering services that are value for money

Our Performance Management Framework has been developed to help us to reinforce our values, with particular emphasis on providing value for money.

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Applying best practice To help us achieve our vision and goals we will strive to learn from best-practices in performance management. Our Performance Management Framework, therefore, is developed based on the following best practice:

Source: Adapted from HM Treasury and the Cabinet Office’s ‘Devolved Decision Making Review’

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1. Defining performance management 1.1 Definition Performance management is defined as ‘taking action in response to actual performances, to make outcomes for users and the public better than they would otherwise be’ (Source IDeA).

1.2 Principle Performance management is important to everyone who wants to see our citizens better served by us as a Council. It allows us to:

prioritise what needs to be done within the resources available;

ensure we provide value for money;

motivate and engage staff and assign accountability;

identify and rectify poor performance at an early stage;

learn from past performance and improve future performance; and

increase public satisfaction. Effective performance management requires:

assigning responsibility to ensure accountability;

deciding and communicating what needs to be done (aims, objectives, priorities and targets);

a plan for ensuring that it happens (improvement, action or service plans);

some means of assessing whether this has been achieved or not (measures/indicators); and

information reaching the right people at the right time (reporting) so decisions are made and actions taken.

We follow the industry-recognised performance management principle of ‘plan-do-review-revise’.

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1.3 How does this principle work? Effective performance management relies on the ‘Plan-Do-Review-Revise’ cycle taking place at all levels of the Council. This means that at every level we are continually working towards delivering our vision, to meet the ever-changing needs of our citizens within available budgets. The timeframe for the cycle may be different depending on where we are in the organisation. Major reviews, such as the Council Vision, may happen only every few years. Conversely, at an informal level, managers may set tasks, deliver priorities, observe performance and give helpful feedback to staff on a day to day basis.

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2. Plan Each year, we must decide on our improvement priorities to ensure they:

reflect local priorities;

complement national priorities;

are affordable; and

have in place the best arrangements for delivery. This knowledge is used to prioritise what needs to be done, and from this plans and measures are developed that will lead to delivery and improvement.

2.1 Golden thread for planning The diagram below demonstrates the ‘Golden Thread’ that links the Council’s vision through to services delivered at the frontline of the Council, and how external factors influence our vision.

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2.2 How the ‘golden thread’ is applied 2.2.1 Single Integrated Partnership Plan (SIPP) Our Local Service Board (LSB), which comprises partners within the borough, publishes its plan entitled ‘Bridgend County Together’ which sets out actions required to deliver four key outcomes which the LSB wants to achieve for the county borough – outcomes which are the same as those we have identified in our Corporate Plan. 2.2.2 Corporate Plan Having our Corporate Plan aligned with the key outcomes of ‘Bridgend County Together’ will ensure that the Council is able to deliver on the commitments we have made alongside our partners, and enable a clear golden thread to be demonstrated within and across our partner organisations. The Corporate Plan covers 4-years and sets out the Council’s vision, improvement priorities and high-level actions that are identified to achieve those priorities. The vision and priorities that are set out in the Corporate Plan have a direct relationship with directorate business plans and service delivery plans at all levels, to ensure we are unified in working towards delivering our vision. 2.2.3 Directorate Business Plans Directorate business plans are the action plans to the Council’s Corporate Plan. Each plan outlines the contribution that the directorate will make to achieve the Council’s improvement priorities and presents the directorate’s priorities for the coming year. In addition, it describes the core services that the directorate provides and contains an assessment of their achievements in the past year. The action plan sets out what actions will be taken, how success will be measured and who will benefit. Links are also made to corporate risks, the Council’s Medium Term Financial Strategy and the collaborative arrangements that will help us to deliver the Council’s improvement priorities. 2.2.4 Service & Group Delivery Plans Service and group delivery plans are the cornerstone of effective performance management. They translate directorate plans’ objectives into service targets, aligning with finance, workforce development and risk issues. Team plans break service plans down to the lower, operational level. 2.2.5 Individual Plans (Staff Appraisals – ‘planning the next 12 months’) Individual plans (staff appraisals) translate group delivery plan objectives into practical working measures and targets for all members of staff within the Council. They ensure employees understand their contribution and accountability towards meeting the Council vision and objectives. A full staff appraisal for every member of staff must be completed on an annual basis, in accordance with the Council’s Staff Appraisal Policy. In addition to this, a ‘6-month’ review must also take place (see ‘Review’).

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2.3 Corporate and directorate business planning process

The diagram below demonstrates the links between the elements of the integrated corporate, business and financial processes. The table below shows the key timescales in respect of the planning tasks:

APPENDIX B provides a full timetable, showing how the corporate planning process links with the partnership and financial planning processes, and shows who is responsible for each task.

APPENDIX C provides the key considerations during the planning process.

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2.4 Plan – roles and responsibilities matrix

Key: L = Lead role

S = Supporting role

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PLAN

Corporate Plan

Accountable for development L S L S L S S S S S S

Scrutinise and make recommendations L

Approver L

Directorate Business Plans

Accountable for development S L L L S S S S S

Scrutinise and make recommendations L L

Approver L2 L3

Service & Group Delivery Plans4

Accountable for development L L S S L S

Approver L

Individual Plans (staff appraisals)

Individual objective (annual appraisal meeting) L L

1 Council is all elected members, together and individually.

2 Pertinent Cabinet Member.

3 Chief Executive.

4 Service and group plans, dependant on specific area – up to Head of Service to decide service-level.

Should have group level plan(s) which individual plans are linked to.

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3. Do The ‘do’ stage of performance management is about carrying out activities identified by corporate, directorate, service/group and individual plans to reach our desired outcomes. It is also about ensuring that there are proper systems and processes in place to support the achievement of our plans and ensuring that we use these systems and processes effectively. On-going performance monitoring is vital to achieve our planned outcomes, as it allows for immediate responsive action(s) on a day-to-day basis at all levels of the Council.

3.1 Implementing and monitoring our plans, priorities and actions 3.1.1 Corporate It is the responsibility of Cabinet and the Corporate Management Board (CMB) to lead the implementation and monitoring of the progress of our priorities and outcomes alongside the Medium Term Financial Strategy and Annual Budget. This is done on a regular (weekly) basis. This also includes examining strategic issues and corporate risks that might prevent the Council from achieving our planned outcomes. 3.1.2 Directorate It is the responsibility of the Corporate Director and their Directorate Management Team (DMT) to monitor our progress in implementing the service actions. This is done in regular DMT meetings, where the on-going monitoring of budgets and risks also takes place. Where necessary, corrective action(s) are cascaded down to the relevant Group Manager, who will raise as these at their next team/one-to-one meeting. 3.1.3 Service/Group It is the responsibility of the relevant Head of Service/Group Manager to deliver and monitor progress of our service or group plans. Any required actions that have cascaded down from the Corporate or Directorate level are assigned to relevant teams/officers who will take responsibility for it. Any significant performance breaches or risks identified during the monitoring process can also be filtered ‘up the chain’ to the Directorate level, for a corrective decision to be made. 3.1.4 Individual objectives It is the responsibility of staff to undertake and monitor their own individual objectives, as agreed in the staff appraisals, on a day-to-day basis. Regular one-to-one meetings between staff and managers should also take place throughout the year. This ensures that the frontline staff are doing exactly what needs to happen, and can adjust their work plan where needed based on the ‘corrective action’ cascaded down from corporate, directorate or service level. Regular one-to-one meetings between frontline staff and managers ensure that feedback from citizens and issues encountered by staff can be fed back and reported in a timely manner. This can be used as part of the ‘Review’ phase to assess how we are performing, or corrective action taken.

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3.2 Performance management processes, systems and information ‘Good performance management is crucial if authorities are to be able to evaluate their own performance effectively and deliver improvements to services. This needs the support of robust systems for identifying, collecting, producing, recording and monitoring performance information.’

– External Audit (KPMG). 3.2.1 Processes We should have arrangements in place at each level of the Council where we are collecting, recording and monitoring performance information, including:

evidence of clear accountability and responsibility;

formal co-ordination arrangements established and followed, to oversee the production of performance information;

national or corporate guidance utilised by all officers involved in the collection, monitoring and production of PIs;

national or corporate guidance utilised by all officers involved in the target-setting process;

a timetable to plan and monitor routine production of data; and

regular checking and verification of the accuracy of information. 3.2.2 Performance management systems and information Timely and accurate data and information is essential for effective performance monitoring. It is the responsibility of Corporate Directors to have performance information systems (ideally a single version of the truth) in place and the duty of frontline staff to collect and record data accurately and in a timely manner. 3.2.3 Quality assurance Information reported to councillors and senior managers influences the decisions they make. Reports are only as useful as the accuracy of the information in them. Reporting inconsistencies can lead to misunderstandings or other errors, which in turn can lead to flawed decision making. Directorates (managers and business support) are responsible for undertaking their own quality assurance throughout the year, checking that systems and methods used to measure and report the data are robust and effective. 3.2.4 Coordination and analysis of information The Corporate Improvement Team is responsible for the coordination and analysis of information to support Cabinet and CMB with their on-going monitoring of performance and corporate risks. Services areas and the Corporate Improvement Team provide information and analysis for Scrutiny Committees to examine service performance. It is the responsibility of business support teams to provide accurate and timely information for monitoring performance against the directorate and service plans.

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3.3 Do – roles and responsibilities matrix

Key: L = Lead role

S = Supporting role

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DO

Advocate decisions and implementation L L L S S S S S S S S

Implement Corporate Plan L L L S S S S S S S S

Implement Directorate Business Plan L L S S S S S S S

Implement Service & Group Delivery Plans L L S L S

Implement Individual Plans S L

Gathering and recording information L L

Quality assurance of data L S L L S

On-going monitoring (performance/budget/risks/feedback)

L L L L L L S L S

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4. Review The review stage assesses whether or not we are on course to deliver our objectives and meet targets, so that corrective action can be taken where needed, and success can also be celebrated. This stage focuses on evaluating, or self-assessing, rather than monitoring.

4.1 Corporate performance review 4.1.1 Self-Assessment process

The diagram below captures the process at the corporate level, and how service performance monitoring feeds into the process: 4.1.2 Corporate Performance Assessment (CPA)

CPA is undertaken quarterly, and is attended by Cabinet Members, members of the Corporate Management Board, and Heads of Service, and is supported by the Corporate Improvement and Finance teams. The purpose of the CPA is to:

obtain a holistic view of the Council’s performance;

identify and explore cross-cutting issues and overspends that affect more than one area;

critically challenge areas of poor performance; and

identify service improvement opportunities, risks to delivery, and resource implications.

4.1.3 Scrutiny by Overview and Scrutiny Committee(s)

Overview and Scrutiny Committees examine the Council’s performance at their regular meetings. The Committees are appointed by Council and the scope of their responsibilities is set out below:

Overview & Scrutiny Committee Scope

Community Safety and Governance Legal & Regulatory Services and Community Safety Partnership

Corporate Resources and Improvement Resources Directorate

Health and Well-Being Wellbeing Directorate

Children and Young People Children’s Directorate

Community Renewal and Environment Communities Directorate (except Community Safety Partnership)

The Corporate Improvement Team coordinates the submission of performance management information by the Corporate Directors and directorate business support teams, and presents the analysis for the Scrutiny Committees.

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4.2 Directorate performance review Semi-structured management review is undertaken at directorate level in the form of Directorate Management Team (DMT) meetings. Performance is reported and scrutinised at regular meetings, chaired by the relevant Corporate Director and supported by the directorate business support teams. It is the responsibility of the Corporate Director and Finance Managers to ensure effective review at the directorate level. The business support teams are responsible for providing accurate and timely information for the directorate review.

4.3 Service/group performance review Non-structured management review is undertaken at the service and group level in the form of service or group meetings. Performance is reported and scrutinised at relevant meetings, which are chaired by Heads of Service/Group Managers. Meetings take place on a regularity agreed within the particular area. It is the responsibility of the Head of Service and their managers for effective review at the service or group level. The business support teams are responsible for providing accurate and timely information.

4.4 Individual performance review These are formal review meetings between individuals and their line managers. Managers and staff are jointly responsible in ensuring that staff appraisals and review meetings occur within the corporate timescales. There are two main parts to the structured individual performance review (staff appraisal). 4.4.1 Looking back – how the individual has performed in meeting last year’s targets. Where targets were met, success can be celebrated. Where targets have not been met, it is an opportunity to discuss and identify;

Were the objectives and targets that were set realistic and SMART?

What could we have done differently to achieve the targets? Finding solutions to these two fundamental questions will ensure we are in a better place moving forward and in a better position to meet the targets identified for the coming year.

4.4.2 Looking forward (after 6 months) - reviewing the planned objectives and targets that were

agreed at the initial appraisal meeting. Reviewing the ‘forward-looking’ aspect of the appraisal after 6 months is important, as it provides an opportunity for managers and employees to assess the employee’s current performance against this year’s objectives and targets. Where current performance is below what is planned, or where the team’s objectives have altered, it is an opportunity for staff and managers to make adjustments to the individual’s appraisal and forward work-plan.

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4.5 Core characteristics of review The following characteristics apply when we conduct review, or self-assessment: 4.5.1 Leadership and corporate arrangements 1. Strong member and senior management ownership and advocacy of the process. 2. All services included. 3. Sit within a commonly-understood strategic planning and performance management

framework. 4. Aligned/interacted with other internal evaluation processes, for example Annual

Governance Statement/other business planning rather than duplicate.

4.5.2 Undertaking Self-Assessment 5. Comprehensive evidence base. 6. Underpinned by effective engagement with customers/service users, partners and external

agencies, and staff/members. 7. Assessments of performance/improvement needs are honest and balanced, and based on

outcomes or end results for customers. 8. Linked to strategic objectives/improvement objectives. 9. Self-assessment identifies service performance, improvement scope, service and corporate

risks and highlight resource implications for improvement. 10. Self-assessment looks to consider more radical service delivery solutions, not just refining

existing model.

4.5.3 Internal challenge 11. Outcomes from self-assessment are subject to some form of robust internal challenge.

4.5.4 Integrating Self-Assessment with other corporate planning and PMF arrangements 12. Self-assessment timed to feed strategic planning, Medium Term Financial Strategy/budget

processes, improvement reporting, risk management planning and other corporate processes.

13. Self-assessment influences Human Resources strategy and training/development and leadership planning (golden thread).

14. Self-assessment is used to support an effective learning/sharing culture within the organisation.

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4.6 Review – roles and responsibilities matrix

Key: L = Lead role

S = Supporting role

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REVIEW

Corporate Performance Assessment (CPA) L L L S S S

Elected members review and challenge L L S S

Corporate performance information and analysis for CPA and review/challenge

S L S

Directorate performance review L S S S

Service and Group performance review L L S S S

Directorate/service performance information and analysis for review/challenge

L S S

Six month review (staff appraisal) meeting L L

Report Council performance to the public L L L S S S S S S S

Provide feedback L

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5. Revise This is about learning from the information we have gained during the ‘Review’ stage and from various other sources, including findings of external inspections and audit. This stage is crucial to developing an organisational culture of performance. It is about gathering and understanding information about what has and has not worked.

5.1 Analysis Knowledge and information is gathered and analysed from a number of sources, including:

current performance – how are we performing against targets? Are objectives and targets still relevant and realistic?

self-assessment – following evaluation from corporate through to service & team level, what have we learned about ourselves and how we are performing?

resource availability – how are we performing financially? Are we constrained or are there new opportunities? Can we get funding/resource from new sources? Are we over-spending?

risks – what are our main risks? How do we manage them?

surveys – what do our citizens and/or staff think about particular themes & objectives? Have our citizens’ priorities changed?

complaints/feedback – what are our citizens saying? What are we doing well/poorly?

staff views – what are our staff saying? Are our staff motivated and engaged in delivering our vision? What do they feel we could be doing better?

external audits and inspections – what are our regulators saying about us? How do they feel we are performing following inspection? Are changes needed, if so, how urgently?

internal audits – what are the outcomes and findings of audits? Have any recommendations been made? Do we have the necessary controls in place?

national priorities – have Welsh and/or UK priorities as a whole changed?

SWOT analysis – what are our current strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats? Based on our analysis, ‘revisions’ can be made at any level of the Council, from corporate priorities right through to individuals’ own personal objectives.

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5.2 Making changes in moving forward The ‘golden thread’ that was identified as working its way down through the organisation during the ‘plan’ phase is reintroduced here, this time showing knowledge and feedback working its way back up through the organisation, based on information gathered during ‘do’ and ‘review’. As can be seen from the diagram above, information is received from numerous sources to help inform decision-making at all levels. This also demonstrates how the feedback received from citizens and staff at the frontline is fed back up the thread. As a result of analysing all the information, informed decisions can be made and corrective action(s) taken where needed. This may include a redistribution of resources, revised plans and timescales, or even a revision to our objectives and priorities in the next round of planning.

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5.3 Revise – roles and responsibilities matrix

Key: L = Lead role

S = Supporting role

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REVISE

Corporate information gathering, analysis and recommendation

L L S

Make informed decisions on required changes and add anything new if necessary

L L L L S S S S S

Communicate and implement – linked to Planning process

L L L L L L L S S L S

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6. Collaboration and commissioning 6.1 Working with our partners In order to achieve the overall vision for the County Borough, we must work effectively with our partners. The following principles should be observed when we look for new opportunities to collaborate with partners:

achieve efficiency savings

improve service quality

share expertise and capacity

enable access to more resources

result in more co-ordinated delivery of services When considering partnership working, we must ensure that we apply the same high standards of performance management in order to achieve our shared outcomes. The following chart demonstrates the way in which we work in partnership with a range of public , private and third sector organisations locally, regionally and nationally to meet our citizens’ needs:

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6.2 Engaging and working with our citizens To achieve our vision for the County Borough, we must engage and work together with our citizens. The input and involvement of our citizens is vital if we are to keep our focus on their needs. Input and feedback is important at each stage of the ‘Plan-Do-Review-Revise’ cycle: We can work alongside citizens and gain their input by various means, including:

customer surveys;

focus groups;

feedback forms;

citizens’ panels;

consultation (online/postal/face-to-face);

meetings with ‘hard-to-reach’ groups; and

dealing with complaints. Once the information has been gathered and analysed, it is important that it is reported and built into the decision-making process.

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6.3 Commissioning

We have a responsibility to find more effective ways of making public money deliver better outcomes for our citizens. In the current financial environment this has never been more important, as we face the unprecedented challenge of balancing the ever increasing demands and expectations for services at a time when budgets are being significantly reduced.

Commissioning is the process for deciding how to use the total resources available to the Council in order to improve outcomes in the most efficient, effective, equitable and sustainable way. Getting commissioning right is important to ensure that we continue to deliver the right services to the people that need them most and deliver the expected outcomes. Commissioning should focus on outcomes, rather than inputs, and the balance between quality, sustainability and cost of service.

Where the Council enters into a commissioning activity, we should ensure that all parties involved are committed to the following principles and recognise that they remain at the core of the process:

To deliver user-focused services that meet the needs of the individual and the locality at a price that all can afford.

To commission services that have the potential to provide benefits beyond the individual service provided.

Have clear performance management arrangements for commissioning plans so that all concerned parties have a firm understanding of what ‘outcomes’ we want to achieve.

To create significant and sustainable value for all parties that neither the Council as commissioner nor our commissioning provider could achieve on our own.

The diagram below sets out our process for joint Commissioning: The Council’s Commissioning framework sets out the Council’s policies, approaches and responsibilities for joint commissioning.

When considering our commissioning partners, we must ensure that they share our same high standards of performance management to ensure our vision and the needs of our citizens are met.

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7. Summary Effective performance management is essential if we are to provide the best services we can to our citizens, as it allows us to:

prioritise use of our limited resources and budgets, based on informed decisions;

identify roles, responsibilities and accountabilities at all levels;

engage our citizens in decisions that affect them and identify their priorities;

assess how we are performing and identify areas where we need to concentrate our efforts;

ensure the relevant decision-makers have meaningful and accurate information;

be open and transparent with our citizens on how we are performing; and

link risks, resources and citizens’ feedback to future planning activities and actions. The diagram below shows how the ‘Plan-Do-Review-Revise’ process is a continuous cycle: This ensures that our goals, plans and service delivery reflect Council priorities and any new risks, issues and feedback are factored into future planning. Everyone has a part to play and is responsible for implementing this framework.

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APPENDIX A – Roles and responsibilities

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APPENDIX B – Corporate and business planning timetable

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APPENDIX C – Key considerations during the planning process Citizens’ feedback Public participation enables the citizens and communities of Bridgend County Borough to contribute to the decision making process. In turn this contributes to the improvement of service delivery in line with the needs and priorities of the community. Resource availability Allocating resources and funding needs to be based on a clear set of priorities. There will always be a range of desired outcomes and limited amounts of resource to achieve them. Tough decisions therefore need to be made about how to prioritise these outcomes. To prioritise successfully:

evidence from citizens’ feedback is used to establish priorities;

councillors are involved in setting strategic aims and in ranking them;

aims and priorities, and their relative importance, are clear and underpin the Council vision;

funding and resources are linked to aims and priorities;

aims and priorities have been communicated internally and externally;

aims and priorities are cascaded down to individual actions and there are systems to support monitoring of this activity;

partners’ priorities and plans reflect council priorities and vice versa; and

priorities are reviewed at appropriate intervals, dependant on level, to reflect changing demands and current performance.

Current Performance Understanding how we are currently performing is vitally important in how we plan and target future priorities and objectives. Through performance analysis, we are able to:

see if we are on target – is actual performance better or worse than planned/forecast?

identify trends – are we getting better or worse?

make comparisons – how are we performing compared to other regional/Welsh Councils? By analysing existing performance and trends we may be able to shift resource and/or budget to concentrate our efforts on high priority areas where performance needs to be improved. National Priorities The ‘Programme for Government’ is the overarching policy of the Welsh Government. It sets out national priorities and proposals for action, which local authorities will have an important role in delivering. Risks A risk in performance management is anything that could stop us from achieving our objectives. Risk management should be closely integrated into all performance management activities, in particular when developing and reviewing directorate, service or group business plans.

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Performance Indicators (PIs) Types of Performance Indicator Against each plan, measures or performance indicators and actions need to be set. We can categorise the types of indicators we use into two main groups:

National indicators NSI (National Strategic Indicators) We have a legal duty to collect and report on these. This set of indicators is used to measure our performance against national priorities and is collected and published annually by Welsh Government. PAM (Public Accountability Measures) A small set of ‘outcome focused’ indicators to which Leaders of the 22 local authorities have signed up. They reflect aspects of local authority work that are considered to be important in terms of public accountability. SID (Service Improvement Data) These are benchmarking indicators which are agreed by services. They are reported nationally, but local authorities are not obliged to collect them. We are responsible for setting targets (see below) against these indicators and for having systems in place to ensure the accurate collection and reporting of data against these PIs.

Local indicators We also have locally identified measures, such as outcome indicators, which are used to gauge long-term results of services for our citizens against the priorities defined in the Corporate Plan. It is our own responsibility to identify or develop these indicators and set targets against them. Developing Performance Indicators To ensure our performance indicators are meaningful and effective, the following criteria should be considered when developing individual indicators/measures:

relevant to what the Council is aiming to achieve;

avoid perverse incentives – not encouraging unwanted or wasteful behaviour;

attributable – the measured activity is linked to the actions of the Council and is clear where accountability lies;

well defined – clear and unambiguous, so data will be collected consistently and the measure is easy to understand and use;

timely – producing information regularly enough to track progress and quick enough for all data still to be useful;

reliable – accurate enough for its intended use and responsive to change;

comparable – with either past periods or similar activity elsewhere; and

verifiable – documented so that the process of data collection can be validated and others can test and audit that this is an accurate measure of performance.

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Outcomes and Outputs Understanding the difference between outputs and outcomes is important.

Outputs relate to ‘what we do’ and ‘who we reach’ – quantitative.

Outcomes refer to ’what difference has this made’ – qualitative. In the past, measures and indicators have tended to focus on outputs. Now however, we need to ask the question: ‘What difference has this actually made?’ This is a question about outcomes. Outcomes can rarely be measured in terms of a single measure so we often need to identify a group of PIs that collectively provides a ‘picture of performance’. Targets Understanding how to use a target will help design and plan for achievement. Targets can:

promote accountability. These targets are likely to focus on outputs that must be reported publicly – such as a specified level of better GCSE results within three years.

help manage a service. Targets can achieve this by focusing on particular outputs, such as increased visits to libraries or productivity measures, such as benefits claims decided more quickly.

stretch performance. Identifying a goal that is difficult to achieve in full but where all progress is beneficial, such as all school leavers in higher education, training or employment.

enable self-improvement. These may be personal performance or development goals that aren’t formally reported on.

All our objectives, actions and targets should be SMART:

Specific the need for a specific goal over a more general one, stating exactly what is expected

Measurable if it is not measurable, how will we know how we are performing?

Achievable goals and targets need to be challenging yet realistic, and not necessarily aspirational

Relevant choosing goals that matter and have a strong link to the improvement priorities

Time-bound helps us to focus our efforts, and quite often deadlines are externally set

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APPENDIX D – High performing behaviour – standards for managers Why are standards for managers important? In order for the Council to achieve its vision and improve performance it needs to have effective management. The standards describing high performance behaviours have been developed to:

• help managers understand what is expected of them; • promote improvements in service delivery; • support the management development programme; • support performance management arrangements; and • help create and enhance a performance management culture across the Council. How are they used? The culture of the organisation is influenced by the style or behaviours managers at all levels adopt. These standards give a clear indication of the behaviours which are expected of managers and underpin our core values. They are useful because they:

• identify and describe the behaviour, attitudes and actions needed for work to be accomplished to the accepted/ agreed standard;

• encourage managers to review, renew and extend their skills and knowledge, and enable better identification of individual training and development needs;

• can help our people identify what represents effective and ineffective management; • can form a basis for individuals and teams to assess their present level of skills/ knowledge/

behaviours to inform both personal and team development plans; • provide objective judgement criteria and will promote consistency when undertaking

appraisals; and • provide a basis for the development of realistic and consistent person specifications.

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Our 10 ‘Manager Standards’

1. Leading and Inspiring

Effective managers communicate the organisational vision and purpose in a way that others can understand and are inspired by. They adopt an appropriate style and approach depending on the situation, and are able to motivate the whole team. They accept that they are accountable for outcomes of service delivery, and recognise the achievement and effort of others towards this.

2. Managing resources

Managers are accountable for handling the resources (finance, people, equipment, places, property) under their control efficiently and effectively whilst also understanding their responsibility for sustainability.

3. Delivering good results and managing performance

Effective managers plan, prioritise, take action, monitor and evaluate progress towards objectives and targets to ensure an efficient, effective and high standard of service delivery. They understand the components of good performance management, for example programme management, project management, risk management, human resource management and finance management.

4. Focus on customers and delivery

Managers need to be aware of who their customers are, and include all relevant stakeholders in their thinking. They must consider the needs of all of their customers when planning and providing service delivery.

5. Building teams and partnership working

To be effective, managers need to work with their team, across the organisation and with external bodies and other stakeholders to achieve our planned objectives. They will build trust to enable service delivery partners to identify shared goals and common ground.

6. Communicating well and sharing information

Effective communication and information sharing is central to a range of managerial activities. Managers communicate and share information with a variety of people, and in a variety of ways; effective managers will make sure that the way they communicate meets the needs of the people they are communicating with.

7. Managing in a political environment

Managers should demonstrate that they understand and are sensitive to the political dimension in which they work. They seek to build appropriate and positive relationships with Elected Members.

8. Equality and diversity

Effective managers embrace and promote fairness, integrity, respect, sustainability and accountability. Their managerial style is inclusive and ethical, and they will always challenge discrimination and discriminatory attitudes, language and behaviours. They recognise the impact of their decisions.

9. Developing our staff and ourselves

Good managers provide an environment where learning and development is valued. They support their teams to identify their learning needs, and help provide opportunities to address these needs. Team members are encouraged to learn from each other and take opportunities to improve their own learning. Effective managers are open to learning about new ways of working and promote good practice in service delivery.

10. Promoting safety and well being

All managers need to understand how to manage a healthy and safe working environment. They will be aware of what can assist their staff to give their best, and will understand how to consistently apply policies designed to promote the well-being of staff, service users and other people.

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Contact Address: Corporate Improvement Team

Finance and Performance, Resources Bridgend County Borough Council Ravens Court | Brewery Lane | Bridgend | CF31 4AP

Phone/Ffôn: (01656) 643224 | Text phone/ Ffôn testun: 18001 01656 643224 Email/E-bost: improvement@bridgend.gov.uk Website/Gwefan: www.bridgend.gov.uk