Wolverhampton Council bosses review ‘refreshed’ plan for services
Wolverhampton Council bosses have unveiled a “refreshed” plan on how specialist services for residents and businesses will be upgraded over the next two years.
A five-year programme outlining the proposals for Wolverhampton was launched in 2019. A meeting of the city council’s scrutiny board this week received a detailed update on the plan’s progress.
David Pattison, the council’s director of governance, told members: “This is a really important document that details what the council wants to achieve for our residents and our businesses in the city – which is linked in with a detailed performance framework setting out how we measure outcomes and impacts, also, critically, how we are spending our money linked into those plans and that framework.
“Ultimately these documents will go forward to full council but it’s important that these discussions take place early.”
The report, outlined to Wednesday night’s meeting of the scrutiny board – said: “The ‘Our Council Plan 2019–2024’ was approved on April4, 2019, and covers a five-year year period.
“It sets out how we will work with our partners and communities to make Wolverhampton a city of opportunity.
“Each year, a short ‘refresh’ of the council plan is carried out to ensure that resource and effort continue to be aligned to the needs of local people.
“Since the launch of the plan in 2019, the world we live and work in has changed significantly – key policy areas have been incorporated into a refreshed narrative and updated structure, which has a focus on delivery and performance.
“The refreshed plan also aligns the council plan with the key priorities and objectives identified in the ‘Relighting Our City’ recovery framework,” members were told.
“The plan continues to identify an over-arching ambition that ‘Wulfrunians will live longer, healthier lives’ delivered through six council plan priorities:
Strong families where children grow up well and achieve their full potential
Fulfilled lives with quality care for those that need it
Healthy, inclusive communities
Good homes in well connected neighbourhoods
Getting more local people into good jobs and training
A thriving economy in all parts of the city.
The ‘Relighting Our City’ recovery framework also identified three cross-cutting principles – to be climate conscious, the need to be driven by digital importance, and attention to fairness and equality.
“The climate emergency remains one of the biggest challenges facing the city, and Covid-19 has highlighted that digital connectivity and skills are vital to the social and economic prosperity of our communities,” said the report.
“We will continue to tackle the inequalities which impact the opportunities of local people.
“These principles are as important now as they were at the launch of ‘Relighting Our City’ and have been taken forward and incorporated into the refreshed plan.”
The document is set to go forward to full council for further discussion at a later date.
