§ The Minister for Local Government, Regional Governance and Fire (Mr. Nick Raynsford)Authorities categorised as excellent1 by the Audit Commission following comprehensive performance assessment are given a wide range of freedoms and flexibilities in recognition of their performance and capacity to improve.
These freedoms and flexibilities include the removal of almost all plans, virtually no inspection and a dramatic reduction in ring-fenced grants. A programme is in train which has already provided some substantial freedoms. Others will become available as the Local Government Act 2003 and other deregulatory measures come into effect.
The Government have decided that councils which lose their status as excellent where their performance has slipped should in principle retain the full range of freedoms and flexibilities for the following year, 2004–05. Exceptionally freedoms could be retained for a further year if that proves necessary in securing improvement in key areas of weakness.
The Government will meet with formerly excellent authorities as soon as possible after recategorisation to determine how best to secure the necessary improvement in performance. The relevant Inspectorate/Department (as appropriate) will agree with the authority:
- the way in which the authority will tackle declining performance and what steps are needed to move back up to excellent;
- the time period within which improvement in performance is expected to take place; and
- how performance improvement will be supported and assessed.
The principle of an inspection holiday will be retained for councils subject to an agreement, but there will need to be some inspection involvement in respect of any specific service in which performance has deteriorated. However, the scale and scope of assessment will be the subject of discussion with each authority and will be proportionate to the scale of the problem to be addressed. It could include a large degree of self-assessment.
The duration of the agreement will be tailored to individual councils' circumstances but will be up to 12 months, although in exceptional cases it could be up to 24 months. 32WS
1 Excellent authorities that are currently less then 3 star education performers will gain access to the full package of flexibilities, including the inspection "holiday", as they relate to education on achieving 3 star status.Councils which have been recategorised downwards from excellent will remain members of the Innovation Forum.
An agreement will be made when:
a rule comes into play eg
- Social services performance falls below 2 stars;
- Education performance falls below 2 stars;
- Financial standing; the auditor's judgement falls to 2 or below on the 4 point scale;
- Any other core service scores 1 on the 4 point scale.
Overall service scores fall below the 2002 threshold for excellent based on the 2002 CPA methodology.
In exceptional circumstances drops in service or corporate performance may be sufficiently serious as to warrant immediate removal of some or all freedoms and flexibilities. These circumstances include:
Service failure in either social services which would lead to zero star or special measures status, or education, in the event that an LEA receives an OFSTED inspection report graded "unsatisfactory" or worse;Exposure of fundamental problems in the council that had not previously been evident;Breakdown of relations between members and officers such that the council ceases to be able to run itself effectively.The reaction would be different in different cases and would be proportionate to the scope and severity of the failure. In the event of service failure in education or social services any removal of freedoms and flexibilities would be limited to those related to the relevant service area.