Agenda item

To consider the Improvement and Transformation Delivery Plan.

The committee considered the report setting out the Improvement and Transformation Delivery Plan for 2025–27. Members noted that the Plan would bring together all significant improvement and transformation activity into a single overarching document, aligning with the Cheshire East Plan 2025–29 and meeting the expectations of the non-statutory Best Value Notice issued by government in May 2025.

Councillor K Edwards addressed the committee as a Visiting Member. Councillor Edwards welcomed The Plan and stated that culture change needed to be driven by the Chief Executive and his senior leadership team. Cllr Edwards queried the ordering of the priorities and asked why the need for culture change to improve public services was not priority one. Cllr Edwards queried the role of Elected Members and their strategic leadership role which he felt had not been referenced within The Plan. In response, the Chief Executive and Assistant Chief Executive stated that the four improvement priorities were not in priority order and that this was stated within The Plan. The Chief Executive would be responsible for all four priorities and additional resource had been created as part of the senior leadership restructure including the appointment of the Director of People and Customer Service with responsibility for staffing matters across the organisation. There were a number of actions within the plan, including good governance and decision-making, which would focus upon supporting Members in their roles and review how policy frameworks could be improved to ensure Members lead this going forward.

Members noted that The Plan focused on four improvement priorities: financial sustainability, good governance and decision-making, leadership and culture change, and improving children’s services. It included clear milestones and deliverables for the next 18 months, supported by robust governance and oversight arrangements. The committee suggested that the numbering of the priorities be reviewed to ensure it was clear that the priorities were not ranked in terms of significance or importance.

The committee noted that progress would be monitored through the Improvement and Transformation Delivery Board, with regular updates to the Assurance Panel, Corporate Policy Committee, and MHCLG. The committee were pleased to learn that initial feedback on The Plan from the Assurance Panel had been positive and Assurance Panel members felt that The Plan clearly reflected areas of key focus going forward.

Member engagement and policy development were identified as areas for improvement, and the Plan set out actions to strengthen these alongside embedding a new governance model, implementing a corporate performance framework, and delivering transformation programmes across services. The committee acknowledged the importance of resourcing the Plan effectively and noted that transformation reserves and contingency funding have been earmarked to support delivery.

The committee noted that narrative had been included within The Plan in relation to Devolution and that this would be monitored and updated as roles and responsibilities became clearer in the future.

The committee requested that reference to budget management training be amended to ensure that training was delivered at appropriate level for specific Member roles within the new Cabinet/Leader form of governance. Officers agreed to amend this.

It was agreed that future updates on the delivery of the plan would be presented to the committee alongside the Strategic Risk Register.

RESOLVED (unanimously):

That the Corporate Policy Committee

1. Agree the Improvement and Transformation Delivery Plan 2025-27 at Appendix 1, subject to the feedback from the Assurance Panel meeting on 30 October 2025 and prioritisation session.

2. Delegate any final amendments to the Plan, and any updates throughout the next 18 months, to the Chief Executive in consultation with the Leader, Deputy Leader and Leader of the Opposition.