The Improvement and Efficiency Programme aims improve the capacity and performance of local public services in the East Midlands. It is looking to achieve:

• Strong, inspirational leadership from the Region’s politicians.
• Imaginative, energetic and effective public services shaping places and building strong communities
• Collaborative, efficient, and improved service achieved through partnership working.

Introduction

The Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland Sub Regional Partnership Board meets quarterly and comprises the leaders of the County Council, City Council, Rutland County Council and Leicestershire District Councils. The Board Chair is the Leader of whichever is the host authority on the day.  Councillor Ross Willmott was nominated to represent the Partnership across the East Midlands and Leicestershire County Council will be the partnership’s accountable body.

Work Programme

The IDeA Leadership Centre supported the Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland sub regional partnership to develop proposals for robust, measurable projects. A programme containing 13 projects have been agreed covering the three priority themes of capacity building, improvement to services/LAA delivery and efficiency gains. The total cost for funding all the projects over the three years is £2m.

Theme one: Efficiency  - Achieving cashable savings

Projects are being developed which will seek to achieving cashable savings through:

• Shared Revenue services
• Management efficiency and shared services,
• Passenger transport shared services
• Winter maintenance shared service

Theme Two: Service Improvement, supporting LAA outcomes

Projects are being developed which will seek to

• Engage with hard to reach individuals
• Combat alcohol related issues
• Attract young people to engage in positive activities
• Reduce CO2 emissions
• Assist strategic housing and growth

Theme Three: Supporting authorities to improve capacity

Projects are being developed which will seek to

• Build partnership capacity,
• Develop members  
• Assists equality and diversity.

Projects

Shared Revenues Service

The project will carry out feasibility, options appraisal and implementation of the merger of the revenues services from seven District Councils and Leicester City Council into one single unit.

Integrated Passenger Transport Service

The project is to establish a shared Passenger Transport Unit between Leicester City Council and the County Council. Initial feasibility work has identified savings that range between £0.4m to £2m. The passenger transport study has been commissioned and delivered. Its recommendations will be incorporated into an implementation plan by the end of March.

Combating Alcohol Related Problems

The project will increase the provision of alcohol training, tier one screening and brief interventions for alcohol misusers. It will also create consistent and branded communication prevention messages across the sub region.  

Increase Young People’s Participation in Positive Activity

The Find Your Talent project in priority neighbourhoods seeks to engage hard to reach groups through activity such as street dance, basketball and football. Each authority lead officer has agreed to target the funds to maximise the impact on preventing crime and reducing anti-social behaviour.  They have begun to identify target groups, hotspot areas and priority neighbourhoods in which to develop new activities.