Tower Hamlets Council Environment & Culture Directorate Service...

Tower Hamlets Council

Environment & Culture Directorate Service Plan

2007 - 2008

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ENVIRONMENT AND CULTURE DIRECTORATE PLAN 2006/07 CONTENTS Section 1 Our Vision and Role 3 Section 2 Context and Achievements 4 Section 3 Development areas for Environment and Culture in 2007/08 15 Section 4 Key Performance Targets 21 Section 5 Year 2 Action Plan (2007-2008)

A) A Safer Tower Hamlets B) A Cleaner, Greener Tower Hamlets C) Healthier Communities D) Increased Educational Attainment E) Increased Participation in Sporting, Leisure and Cultural Activities F) Efficient and Effective Services G) Locally Focused Services Empowering Local People H) Stronger and More Cohesive Communities I) Improved Equality of Opportunity

26 26 30 35 37 38 43 46 46 47

Section 6 Resources 48

Section 7 Risk Management 50 Appendix 1 Directorate Services 51

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1. OUR VISION AND ROLE The Council’s vision shared with its partners in Tower Hamlets Partnership is to improve the quality of life for everyone living and working in Tower Hamlets. What We Do The Directorate of Environment and Culture covers 15 separate and widely differing service areas and is one of the most complex Directorates in the Council. These services are grouped into three main areas: Environmental Control includes Environmental Health, Parking and Market enforcement, Trading Standards and Consumer Advice. Street Management – dealing with refuse collection, recycling, street cleansing, road maintenance, street lighting, traffic management and road safety. Cultural Services – which manages a major arts and festivals programme, libraries/Idea Stores, the sport and leisure centres and all the public parks. The Directorate also has a number of very important services that currently sit outside a divisional structure pending completion of the corporate reorganisation. These are Transport Service, Emergency Planning and Civil Contingencies and Health and Safety. In addition there are three main internal support services - Directorate Finance, Directorate Human Resources and the Strategy and Programmes Unit. Finally there are. A fuller description of the services we provide is given in Appendix 1. The Local Context. The nature of the Borough presents a number of challenges to these service areas. The streets are narrow, heavily trafficked and heavily parked. The Borough is well known for its street markets but whilst they bring economic and social benefits they also create parking problems and generate significant levels of rubbish. Much of the housing in the Borough is high rise and on estates adding to the complexity of service provision in areas such as recycling. The Borough has a high level of people under 16, a high level of basic skills needs and is ranked the second most deprived local authority in the Country. However, whilst the Borough faces more

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challenges than most they are challenges that are being met through the provision of high quality public services and effective partnership between stakeholders. The Council is keen to respond to the concerns and priorities of residents as expressed in the Annual Residents Survey. The top three areas of concern in 2005/06 were Crime (50%, up 1% from 49%), level of Council Tax (28%), affordable housing 24% (up 7% from 17%) and litter/dirt in streets (22% down 6%). Directorate priorities must always demonstrate that they are customer-focused. Whilst focusing on service improvement the Directorate Plan particularly reflects the priorities expressed in this feedback from residents and will continue to focus heavily on achieving a step change in the quality and management of the public realm. 2. CONTEXT AND ACHIEVEMENTS National Priorities and Government Performance Measures The services provided by this Directorate are governed by national and regional directives. The principle measure of Council performance is the Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA). Overall, government inspectors currently rate the Council as ‘good’. In 2006/7 Cultural Services secured a CPA rating of 3 (up from 2). This excellent result followed the Council’s extensive investment in our leisure centres, a successful quality accreditation programme and continuing development of extensive arts, festivals and youth programmes. Apart from the City of London, which has the top rating of 4, we are the only borough in London to have a Level 3 rating for Cultural Services. Visits to Leisure centres reached a record 1.4m in 2006/ 7 and this is set to increase further this year with the opening of Phase 2 of the York Hall refurbishment and the opening of the first public sector spa facility in the UK. The quality of our parks and open spaces continue to improve with further borough wide improvement programmes planned for 2007/8. In 2006/7 we retained all of our green flag/ pennant/ heritage awards and seek to add to them this year. Last year was a year in which residents passed judgement on how well we are doing through the Government’s Best Value General Survey. This happens once every three years. Satisfaction with environmental cleanliness, waste services, recycling facilities, recycling collection, waste disposal, library services and parks / open spaces all increased significantly. Whilst these very positive results confirm the considerable progress we have made in recent years there will be no let up in the drive to deliver even better services.

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Street management made significant improvements to secure behaviour change and improve recycling activity amongst residents in 2006/7. The percentage of household waste recycled increased from 8.85% to 11.72%. Whilst we remain one of the best performing Council’s for environmental cleanliness in London and have met our targets for reduction in fly-posting and fly tipping we recognise that more must be done and the Action Plan continues to address this area as a priority. The CPA continues to place significant emphasis on environmental quality. Recycling remains a major challenge as, despite achieving significant improvements, it remains lower than we would like. This year will be the third year that the Government will impose landfill penalties for communities that fail to recycle sufficient amounts of their household waste in the face of rapidly dwindling supply of suitable sites. The Council recognises we must all adopt a more sustainable way of life and the Directorate is playing its part encouraging people to do so. The Plan identifies actions that will ensure that the strategies followed continue to support sustainability whilst delivering best value. This includes the development and implementation of the Corporate Environmental Strategy that will bring together the wide number of policy areas and work streams that are contributing to a more sustainable future. In 2006/7 we achieved Fair Trade status for the Borough and secured the best performing public sector organisation at the Mayor of London’s Green Procurement Awards. * Best Value Performance Indicators (BVPIs) are standard measures of performance set by government against which local authorities can be compared against one another.

Our Community Plan Priorities The five major themes of the Borough’s Community Plan form the framework for our priorities. These are to make Tower Hamlets, by 2010: A better place for living safely A better place for living well A better place for creating and sharing prosperity A better place for learning, achievement and leisure A better place for excellent public services

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The Council’s 12 Priorities The Council has identified 12 key priorities for action within the framework of the five themes of the Community Plan. These provide the focus for our service delivery for the period to March 2007. They are: Community Plan Theme Council’s Priority Living Safely A cleaner, greener, safer

Tower Hamlets Living Well Decent homes in decent

neighbourhoods Healthier communities Improved outcomes for vulnerable children and adults

Creating and Sharing Prosperity

Securing sustainable communities Increased local employment

Learning, Achievement and Leisure

Increased educational attainment Increased participation in sporting, leisure and cultural activities

Excellent Public Services Efficient and effective services Locally focused services empowering local people Stronger and more cohesive communities Improved equality of opportunity

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Together these priorities form the basis of the Tower Hamlets Index, which is calculated by looking at the progress we are making in a number of indicators adopted for measuring progress against each priority. The Corporate Planning Process The Environment and Culture Directorate Plan fits into a clear and structured planning framework and provides a key directional role for Directorate managers and staff as it seeks to organise services and plan resources to best deliver the Council’s vision.

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Core Values All services and teams in the Chief Executive’s Directorate work to the Council’s core values, which inform what we do and how we do it. They are:

i. Achieving results We are passionate about achieving the best for our communities. We want to be the best in the country at what we do and keep getting better and better, moving beyond excellence. We actively ensure we achieve value for money in everything we do.

ii. Valuing Diversity Equalities and diversity is at the heart of what we do and how we do it. It is built into leadership, consultation and involvement, services to our customers and recruitment and development of staff. We recognise that having a workforce that reflects the community is essential in order to deliver high quality services.

iii. Engaging with others To achieve results, we need to engage positively with others, the community, our staff and our partners. We need to ensure that we communicate effectively and create opportunities for involvement and engagement.

iv. Learning effectively We are a learning organisation. We take responsibility for our own learning and share our learning with others.

Achieving Results

Engaging with Others

Learning Effectively

Valuing Diversity

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Some key achievements over the past year

Living Safely

Anti – litter campaign - Street Management launched an anti litter campaign in the autumn of 2006 backed up by high profile litter patrols. Transport hubs, fast food outlets, schools and other places where litter is common have been targeted. Working Together for a better Tower Hamlets Campaign - The Directorate contributed extensively to this campaign which delivered mainly between July and September 2006. A series of planned actions were developed to improve the environment and change behaviours including an extensive banner campaign promoting better environmental stewardship in parks, increased levels of park cleansing activity, the development of an eyesore register and associated action plan and a targeted anti – graffiti programme in Whitechapel Road. Assistance was provided for community estate cleanups and methods of reporting litter, abandoned cars and other cleansing issues were promoted. The Environment Volunteer Scheme – This scheme was successfully contracted to the Tower Hamlets Environmental Trust in 2006/7 and is now run in partnership by them. Volunteers helped to develop the anti litter programme and assisted Scrutiny Members with a review of recycling. They also helped with a programme of doorstep communication to encourage greater participation in recycling in January 2007 and organised a number of successful litter picking events. The Volunteers also help to promote environmental stewardship in their neighbourhoods and assist with the targeting of problem issues and swift removal of dumped material. The ‘low rise’ recycling contract for collections from low rise dwellings was re-let as was the Recycling Sorting Contract and these will deliver improved service performance. Speed of removal of abandoned vehicles continues to perform well – In 2006/07, our target was to remove 92.5% of abandoned vehicles within 24 hours of being legally able to do so, and we exceeded this achieving almost 96%.

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Street Cleansing – Street Management’s performance against BVPI 199 (the main measure of environmental cleanliness used by council’s nationally) improved from 23% to 22% in 2006/7. Our targets for reduction in fly-posting and performance against fly-tipping were met. Recycling Services Improved – 2006/7 saw a lot of activity to improve recycling facilities still further. New look recycling bring site bins were introduced to the street scene in October 2006. A community composting pilot scheme was introduced in the same month. ‘Its So Easy’’ recycling bags were re launched and distributed to all households. An incentive scheme for recyclers was launched. Markets Crime Reduction Programme -The Markets service undertook over 20 successful joint operations with the police to help drive out crime and make the markets even safer and more enjoyable. Development of the Local Environment Teams (LETS) – 2005/06 saw the introduction of LETS teams across the Borough. In 2006/7 they continued to work closely with communities and safer neighbourhood teams to quickly target Enviro Crime, dumping, litter, graffiti and fly-posting and respond more effectively to local priorities. Child Accident Rate remains amongst best in London – The Council is sixth lowest in London for child accident rates, and saw a reduction in accidents from 17 to 8 children this year. Last year we introduced two additional 20mph zones bringing the total to 22, whilst the expanded Junior Citizens scheme attracted 1,000 children, and the Junior road safety officer scheme was extended to an additional 3 schools. Safer Parks. The Parks and Play service incorporated a range of measures into 10 landscape improvement projects across the Borough to help make parks even safer. These measures included more CCTV, appropriate planting for sight lines , better lighting, improved access routes and the use of vandal resistant equipment and surfaces Residents continue to notice the difference – The Best Value General Survey for 2006/7 reported that satisfaction with environmental cleanliness increased from 51% to 60%. It also increased with waste services from 62% to 72%, with recycling facilities rising from 22% to 57 %, with recycling collection from 18% to 67% and with waste disposal rising from 45% to 60%. In the

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annual residents survey commissioned by the Council concern about litter dropped from 28% to 22%. Protecting health more effectively – The Council continues to monitor air quality across the Borough and is working to ensure businesses comply with air quality legislation ensuring that 100% of planned pollution control improvements to existing business installations in 2006/7 were completed on time (BVPI 217). The annual Curry Chef of the Year Competition was again used to good effect to promote good food hygiene practices and a ‘Houses in Multiple Occupation’ licensing scheme was successfully introduced. 5000 requests for service were dealt with by the Out of Hours Noise Service with 92% of all calls where noise was in progress visited within 45 minutes.

Living Well

The Directorate’s services supporting the improved health and well being of residents continued to improve. Healthy Lifestyles - The Healthy Lifestyles Team’s pioneering weight management programme for 8 to 16 year olds (BEST – Better Eating, Self Esteem and Total Health) won the Best Practice Award for 2006/7 from the Association of the Study of Obesity (ASO). 3 BEST courses were run for children aged 8-11 and their families which were attended by 54 children, and saw a 83% completion rate. Over 300 residents completed the GP referral course (60%) with a further 203 in the process of completing at the year end. More than half of those who completed took up membership at the Council’s leisure centres. The Healthy Walking Scheme saw 11 new walks mapped across the Borough (totalling 19), with 343 registered walkers taking part in the 550 walks that took place within the Borough. The Service also delivered two cardiac rehabilitation programmes over the year, with almost 170 patients accessing them. Access to sports for people with disabilities - has been improved through the state of the art Mile End Leisure Centre. The Sports Service has delivered a range of innovative sessions providing mainstream access to sport to people with disabilities. The success of these efforts was recognised at the London Sports Awards hosted by the London Sports Forum for Disabled People who awarded the Borough the ‘Local Authority of the Year Award’ for 2006/7. The award recognised the Council’s ‘Drive and determination to make sport accessible to residents with disabilities’.

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Helping children stay healthy and active - Four inclusive play sessions have been introduced to the weekly play sessions at Mile End Park which encourages participation by disabled children and their families. The number of recorded visits by young people who hold junior membership at the Councils leisure centres has increased from 4,024 to 15,678 (1,100 over the targeted increase). There were over 144,000 visits by women and girls who hold memberships at leisure centres, more than double the target set for the year. Young people-only activity evenings at Whitechapel Sports Centre (WSC) are held on Sundays – with attendances of 80-100 per week. In addition, a girls-only activity evening is held at the WSC on Mondays. In total, there were 262,745 visits by under-16s to leisure centres. Attendance at leisure centres continues to rise - With the range of improvements across all the Borough’s centres, and the activities and programmes held at the Mile End Park Leisure Centre, the Directorate delivered an increase in leisure centre attendance to a record 1.45m at the end of March 2007, an increase of almost 19% since the previous year.

Learning Achievement and Leisure

The Directorate continued to develop major improvements to the leisure and lifelong learning infrastructure of the Borough. Idea Stores improve participation – Another ground breaking Idea Store opened at Canary Wharf in 2006/7 underlining the Council’s commitment to delivery of excellent library and lifelong learning facilities in the Borough. Library and Idea Store visits increased to a new record of 1.9m. The Football Academy at Mile End (FAME )- comprising 10 all weather mini football pitches and targeting children (including girls) between the ages of seven to 11, continues to prove a major success. There were over 37,956 attendances by 7-11s at sessions, club development, and holiday courses. Community Festival Support – The Directorate continues to ensure that the Tower Hamlets maintains its reputation for celebrating diversity and for being the Festivals Borough. Over the year 81 major indoor and outdoor events were facilitated or delivered. These included the Brick Lane Festival (attracting over 60,000 people), Baishakhi Mela (85,000 people), 5th November Fireworks (45,000 people), River Cultures Festival (35,000 people), the Greenwich & Docklands Festival (21,000) and the new Paradise

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Gardens festival (39,000). We also programme and work in partnership on a variety of commercial and publicly-funded events such as the East End Film Festival (1,270 people) and Lovebox Music Festival (44,000 people).

Arts for young people – The combined number of workshops which includes both NRF and those funded under our Service Level Agreement with the Youth Service stood at 925 by the end of March 2007. These incorporate a wide range of different disciplines within the arts. There were over 8,700 young people in attendance at art classes at the Brady Centre, Kobi Nazrul and other venues across the Borough.

Open Space Strategy - The Directorate completed the first year of the actions set out in the Borough’s Open Space Strategy. This delivered park improvements in every LAP area focusing on improved children’s play facilities and improved safety features. Landscape improvement projects continue to incorporate measures to improve biodiversity in the Council’s parks. Over 250 additional trees have been planted and thousands of new bulbs have been flowering in the spring in the parks.

Green Flag Awards – Whilst there is still much to do across the Borough the quality of our best open spaces remains high. All of the Boroughs Green Flag Awards were retained in 2006/7 and this year we aim to increase their number.

Residents are noticing a difference – The 2006/07 Annual Residents Survey showed that residents rating the Parks as good, very good, or excellent increased to 51% (up by 4%). Leisure and sports facilities also saw an increase of 4%. The Best Value General Survey showed that satisfaction with the Library Service was up from 43% to 61%. Satisfaction with parks and open spaces was up from 57% to 65%.

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Excellent Public Services

The Directorate continued to improve its service to the public:

Quest Accreditation for leisure centres - St Georges achieved the prestigious Quest Award, bringing the total to three (others are Whitechapel and Tiller). This means that over 81% of the population is now within 20 minutes walking distance of a quality accredited leisure facility ranking Tower Hamlets amongst the best in the country against this new national sports performance indicator. We are aiming to gain accreditation for York Hall and Mile End for 2007/08.

Equalities Improvements – The Directorate has successfully completed all programmed Equalities Impact Assessments for 2006/07, and its Equalities Action Team is undergoing a major expansion to its duties and responsibilities, including a scrutiny role.

Awards: In 2006/7 our services were short-listed and /or won the following:-

- British Medical Journal Award for Healthy Lifestyles’ work with Bengali community - BEST (Better Eating, Self Esteem and Total Health), the Healthy Lifestyles Team's pioneering weight management

programme for 8 to 16 year olds, won the Best Practice Award for 2006 from the Association for the Study of Obesity (ASO). - Awarded "Local Authority of the Year" at the London Sports Awards 2007 by the London Sports Forum for Disabled People

(LSF). - Weavers Field, Island Gardens, Mile End Park, and Trinity Square Gardens retained their Green Flag Status in 2006. - Trinity Square Gardens retained its Green Heritage Site status. - Awarded a silver rating for the Borough's flower and plant designs by the London in Bloom judges. - Transports Services Unit awarded Charter Mark status, the Government’s national standard for excellence in customer

service. - King Edward Memorial Park was named Best Park in London in the 2006 Britain's Best Parks competition. - Idea Store Whitechapel won the Royal Institute of British Architects Inclusive Design Award.

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3. DEVELOPMENT AREAS FOR ENVIRONMENT AND CULTURE IN 2006/07

The major development areas for the Directorate are outlined broadly below under the relevant council priorities. More specific objectives, detailed activities, time scales and milestones are contained within the action plan that follows. It also includes all our commitments within the 2007/8 Strategic Plan.

A. A CLEANER, GREENER, SAFER TOWER HAMLETS

Achieving Step Change in Recycling

Whilst we again achieved a significant jump in recycling volume in 2006/7 the comparative levels with other boroughs remains low. Securing increased resident participation remains high on our agenda and we will be encouraging people to significantly increase the level of household waste recycled as part of our commitment to creating more sustainable communities. Improving performance of cleansing services and better Street Scene Management

Street cleanliness has improved significantly over the last six years. Our residents’ survey continues to show that refuse and street cleansing are the most highly regarded of all council services. Whilst concern about litter has fallen over this period (down from 3rd in 2005/6) it remains the 4th most important area to residents. We will be working to ensure that contractor partners deliver value for money and improved standards guided by a strategy that promotes innovative approaches to management and service improvement and that delivers where it matters- in the street scene. To this end our waste services will be reviewed by the Audit Commission and their recommendations will assist in the further development of our improvement plans.

As part of the Cleaner Safer Greener element of the Local Area Agreement we will continue to pursue new ways of working with other directorates, key partners, the public and the 3rd Sector to improve services, change behaviours, encourage better environmental stewardship, promote recycling activity and increase public safety.

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Increasing perceptions of safety, tackling fear of crime and reducing crime against property

We will continue to improve the effectiveness of enforcement against enviro-crime of all types. In addition we will continue to improve all aspects of the street environment particularly where this assists crime reduction, reduces fear of crime, improves public safety or reduces public nuisance. We will be working closely with the Local Strategic Partnership to target resources on joint initiatives to reduce crime and the fear of crime. There will continue to be a particular focus on crime reduction and antisocial behaviour in the borough’s markets in partnership with traders, the Police and a wider range of other organisations as these remain a target for organised crime. We will also be managing a major investment programme improving our highways and footways to benefit public safety and the quality of the built environment. A major review of licensing policy will be delivered based on a comprehensive public consultation exercise.

Reducing the number of people killed or seriously injured on our roads

The Directorate has ensured that Tower Hamlets is ahead of the national road accident reduction targets set by government. However it remains a key performance priority. Work programmes are in place for the coming year to make journeys to schools safer and to continue to work with children on kerb craft skills. The Road network will also be improved to help with safety.

Improving Open Space

2007/8 will be the second year of the Open Space Strategy. Cultural Services and some services in other directorates will be working to deliver the detailed 12 month action plan set out by that strategy. The Directorate recognises that the Borough is deficient in open space and is working hard to improve the quality of the parks and open spaces that we have. It is working with other directorates and partners to, where possible, increase open space provision. We will be seeking to increase the number of Green Flag Awards for parks this year and will be building on our excellent horticultural record in this years London in Bloom Awards. We will also continue to use parks as venues for festivals and events that bring the communities of Tower Hamlets together.

Working for a greener Tower Hamlets

Building on the award winning achievements of 2006/7 this year will see the publication of the Council’s Environmental Strategy that will set ambitious and clear goals for the Council as it strives to improve the impact of its work on the environment. A range of

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landscape initiatives across parks and open spaces will seek to improve biodiversity within the Borough. New travel arrangements for staff will be introduced including cycle provision and car pooling and staff will be encouraged to use public transport or walk where possible. The Directorate, in partnership with the Primary Care Trust (PCT), will be working with local businesses and residents to explain the Government’s new ‘Smoke free’ legislation that bans smoking in public enclosed spaces in 2007. As part of this exercise we will be supporting the PCT by helping to promote smoking cessation support services for smokers. The Directorate will continue to promote the re-use website ‘Freecycle’ and promote waste reduction. B. INCREASED PARTICIPATION IN SPORTING, LEISURE, AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES Preparing for the Olympics The Directorate will be working in a cross directorate capacity to support the preparations for the Olympic Games providing technical assistance to ensure that a lasting sports and leisure legacy is achieved for the community of Tower Hamlets.

Developing a strategic framework for Play

This is an important component of the Council’s Children and Young People’s Plan and the Directorate has been given the responsibility of leading the development of the Council’s strategic approach to play. This document will also support the Open Space Strategy and will link with the Planning Policies for the Borough. Developed with the help of the 3rd sector it will also form the foundation for bids to central government, as part of the Big Lottery’s commitment to support play development and these bids will also be co-ordinated by the Directorate Building on the success of the Idea Stores With the opening of the Idea Stores at Whitechapel, Canary Wharf, Bow and Chrisp Street we will be seeking to build on the programmes success and effectively develop service provision. The Idea Stores will be undertaking a review of services to under 16’s and will be improving stock management arrangement to further improve front line services. Idea stores will be working to increase use by under represented and hard to reach groups and will be developing their operational links with the Council’s Extended Schools Initiative.

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Further developing the Cultural life of the Borough The Council recognises the major role that cultural activity plays in improving the quality of life for its residents through improved health, learning opportunities for children, the bringing together of diverse communities, facilitation of lifelong learning and the enrichment of people’s lives. It is supporting and encouraging cultural activities in the Borough through the Cultural Strategy which will be refreshed this year, with a multi-million pound programme of major investment in leisure centres culminating in the opening of a fantastic new spa facility in York Hall also this year and showcasing of our cultural industries through our festival and events programmes. Hard to reach groups are being targeted through our sports development and healthy lifestyles programme. C. EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE SERVICES

Building in quality and value for money

The Directorate has set up a rolling programme of contract reviews to improve contract management and learn from best practice. A programme of efficiency reviews will be undertaken involving all Divisions where processes will be challenged and reworked to deliver more efficient services. The very successful top level sickness reviews for all services established last year will continue.

Delivering the Local Area Agreement and Local Strategic Partnership Agreement

The Directorate has a range of specific activities planned to better meet the Governments Localisation Agenda and join up service interventions across the Council and with partners. In particular this includes joint working with the Safer Neighbourhood Teams and joint tasking with the Local Strategic Partnership and Crime Reduction Unit. Further improving customer focus within the Directorate This Plan sets out actions that will further improve our service responsiveness and ensure we are developing services that meet the needs and aspirations of local people. This includes greater use and analysis of satisfaction and perception data to inform service planning, greater emphasis on marketing and communication and continuing analysis of customer complaints to identify problems and correct them. Planning for Civil Contingencies and Business Continuity This is an important area of the Directorate’s work. This year work will be continuing to improve resilience to civil emergencies and we will continue to play a key role in the Central London Group. We will continue to develop the continuity advice available to

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business in the Borough with a specific focus on small and medium sized businesses. We will also be offering further training and support for the ‘Gold Team’ co-ordination group, alongside that offered by the London Fire & Emergencies Planning Authority.

To recruit, develop, support and retain staff at all levels of the Organisation The Council recognises that excellent services require excellent staff. The Directorate is contributing to the corporate application for IIP reaccreditation. This year will see a strengthened emphasis on Performance Management with a two stage service plan development review process and the introduction across the directorate of the Excelsis performance monitoring system. This Plan sets out a range of actions that will ensure that the Directorate continues to develop a first class workforce and continues to work towards a workforce that reflects the community. D. LOCALLY FOCUSED SERVICES EMPOWERING LOCAL PEOPLE

Empowering Local People

The Directorate recognises the vital contribution its services make to the goals of the Local Strategic Partnership and the importance of continuing to work closely with them. This plan will help to involve stakeholders more fully in the decisions relating to the services it provides and ensure that priorities of local people are being effectively addressed. We are working to develop services that are more responsive local needs through the work of the LETS teams. We will also be delivering a range of planned environmental interventions jointly with the LSP as part of the work we are undertaking for the Local Area Agreement. We will continue to develop the Environment Volunteers and to expand 3rd sector involvement in the management and maintenance of local open spaces. Building on faith group work from previous years the Directorate facilitated the formation of a Muslim Women’s Environmental collective in 2006/7. This year we will be working with this collective to help them identify priorities, find solutions and empower them to deliver those solutions. The Council’s approach to the development of the Big Lottery funding programme for play will be developed by the 3rd sector and local people and should we be successful in our bid, many of the activities in the programme will be commissioned from them.

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Improving communication with our users, partners, staff and the public. The Council recognises the importance of effective communication with the public and key stakeholders. To improve the level and quality of information provided to residents and users and ensure feedback is sought, considered and acted upon Environment and Culture will improve the way it works with all key stakeholders and other parts of the Council. E. IMPROVED EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY Equalities including Workforce to Reflect the Community Whilst the Directorate has achieved Level 5 (the top) of the National Equalities Standard there is still much to be done to improve the effectiveness of our equalities approaches. The Directorate will continue to improve its equalities work including further faith group work on environmental issues, the introduction of a top level scrutiny function for service planning and improved data management. Workforce to Reflect the Community remains a priority for the Directorate and further work will be undertaken over the coming months to increase, where possible, the rate of change within the directly employed workforce. To facilitate this an equalities training programme has been developed and will be rolled out to all staff. As part of the Directorate’s review of contracts we will also seek to ensure effective monitoring and management of the equalities content of these contracts.

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4. KEY PERFORMANCE TARGETS FOR ENVIRONMENT AND CULTURE DIRECTORATE

Living Safely: THI Indicators for 2007-2011 OF SIGNIFICANT RELEVANCE TO ENVIRONMENT AND CULTURE CONTRIBUTE

Priority Performance Indicators Outturn 2006/07

Target 2007/08

Target 2008/9

Target 2009/10

Target 2010/11

A safer Tower Hamlets

Number of adults and children killed or seriously injured on the roads (LPSA / LAA primary) 111 113 110 95 95


Target 2007/08

Target 2008/9

Target 2009/10

Target 2010/11

Proportion of relevant land and highways that is assessed as having combined deposits of litter and detritus (BVPI 199) (LPSA / LAA primary)

22% 12.0% 11.0% 10.0% 9.0%

Improved perceptions of antisocial behaviour: reduced percentage of the population who view rubbish and litter lying around as “a very serious problem” (LPSA / LAA secondary)

32% 23% 20% 19% 18%

% of people asked who think that parks, playgrounds and open spaces are good, very good or excellent

50% 52% 54% 56% 58%

Percentage of household waste recycled (LAA primary)

11.72% 22.00% 24.00% 26.00% 31.00%

A cleaner, greener Tower Hamlets

Percentage of people who think that street cleaning is good, very good or excellent (ARS)

TBC 61% 63% 64% 65%

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Quality of surroundings – Number of green flag award parks

TBC 5 6 6 6

Increase in the percentage of abandoned vehicles removed within 24 hours from the point where the local authority is legally entitled to remove the vehicle (BVPI 218b)

95.8% 96.0% 97.0% 97.0% 97.0%

Percentage of municipal waste landfilled N/A 81.0% 80.0% 64.0% 55.0%

Percentage of municipal waste recycled N/A 19.0% 20.0% 21.0% 22.0%

LIVING WELL: THI Indicators for 2007-2011 of significant relevance to E+C


Target 2007/08

Target 2008/9

Target 2009/10

Target 2010/11

Prevalence of (a) obesity (b) overweight in sample of year 7 children (LPSA / LAA primary)

TBC

22% 36%

21% 35%

N/A N/A Healthier Communities Increased % of primary age pupils having 2

hours + PE per week (LAA primary) TBC 80% 85% 90% TBC

*Targets based on 2001 baseline

LEARNING ACHIEVEMENT AND LEISURE : THI Indicators for 2007-2011 of significant relevance to E+C


Target 2007/08

Target 2008/9

Target 2009/10

Target 2010/11

Increased Number of under 16s who are active users of the Council’s Idea Stores and libraries

13,473 19,272 19,465 14,304 14,404

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Total number of library items issued to under 16s

266,303 317,000 320,170 300,000 300,500

Number of under 16s regularly attending study support sessions

750 765 785 800 810

Number of under 19s completing a course in Idea Stores, libraries and learning centres

1,741 1760 1780 1800 1,805

Number of physical visits to public library premises per 1000 population

9.182 9,881/ 9386

9,884 9390 9,391

Percentage of people asked who think that leisure and sports facilities are good, very good or excellent

52% 48% 51% 54% 57%

participation in sporting, leisure and cultural activities

Cost per visit to libraries (new-CPA 13) £3.19 £3.17 £3.03 £2.91 2.80

Budget performance TBC Nil - Balanced Budget

Nil - Balanced Budget



CPA Use of Resources Indicator (a) Overall score (b) VFM score

TBC 4 3

4 3

4 4

4 4

Percentage of Gershon efficiency savings achieved

TBC 100% 100% 100% 100%

Percentage of residents agreeing that the Council “provides value for money for the council tax I pay”

TBC 42% 45% 48% 51%

Number of working days / shifts lost due to sickness absence per employee

7.92 7.75 7.50 7.25 7.00

Efficient and effective services

Percentage of undisputed invoices paid within 30 days

91.87% 96.00% 97.00% 97.00% 98.00%

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Target 2007/08

Target 2008/9

Target 2009/10

Target 2010/11

TBC 73% 76% 78% 80% Percentage of residents who agree that the Council is doing a good job:

(a) Borough average

(b) Gap between the overall borough average and the LAP area with the lowest performance

TBC

No LAP to fall 10% below the borough average




Percentage of residents who feel that they can influence decisions affecting their local area

41% 65% 70% 75% 80%

Number of residents attending LAP events 5202 5250 5500 5750 6000

Percentage of Council hotlines answered within the Customer Promise standard of 15 seconds

69% 77% 80% 80% 80%

Percentage of letters responded to within the Customer Promise Standard

N/A 90% 90% 90% 90%

Percentage of calls handled by Council Call Centres

N/A 45% 47% 49% 50%

Percentage of complaints handled within target – Stage 1

65% 80% 80% 80% 80%

Locally focused services empowering local people;

An increase in the number of people recorded as or reporting that they have engaged in formal volunteering on an average of at least two hours per week over the past year

29% 15% 20% 25% TBC

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Percentage of residents who are satisfied with their local area as a place to live

63% TBC TBC TBC TBC


Target 2007/08

Target 2008/9

Target 2009/10

Target 2010/11

70% 77% 79% 81% 83% Percentage of residents who feel that Tower Hamlets is a place where people from different backgrounds can get on well together:

(a) Borough average

(b) Gap between the overall borough average and the LAP area with the lowest performance

TBC





Stronger and more cohesive communities Percentage of attendants at LAP events who

are from targeted communities: a) BME residents b) Bangladeshi residents c) Somali residents d) Young residents (16-25)

a) 54% b) 39% c) 5% d) 35%

a) 48% b) 33% c) 5% d)15%

a)48% b)33% c)5% d)15%

a)48% b)33% c)5% d)15%

a)48% b)33% c)5% d)15%


Target 2007/08

Target 2008/9

Target 2009/10

Target 2010/11

A workforce to reflect the community: percentage of top 5% earners that are from minority ethnic communities

15.26% 18.00% 22.00% 25.00% 28.00% Improved equality of opportunity A workforce to reflect the community:

percentage of top 5% earners that are women 53.21% 50.00% 54.00% 55.00% 58.00%

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5. ACTION PLAN FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND CULTURE DIRECTORATE The following action grid sets the Directorate Plan Performance targets for 2007/08. These targets relate to the development areas set out above, activities that support the Community plan and strategic plan priorities and those targets already included in the strategic plan itself. The key activities included in the Strategic plan are marked (SP) and their associated milestones are repeated. More detailed plans are available for each service area and are set out in their team /service plans.

Living Safely: Implementation Plan 2007/08

A. A SAFER TOWER HAMLETS Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone

To reduce crime and the fear of crime Contact officer: John Palmer, Service Head - Street Services.

• Improve street lighting levels in areas with high levels of fear of crime

• Identify target sites by 31 July 2007

• Review lighting levels by 31 September 2007

• Approval of proposals for improvement by 30 October 2007

• Implementation by 28 February 2008

• To work with fast food outlets to reduce the litter impact on the surrounding environment

• 20 "fast food" outlets signed up to a "keep your scene clean - responsible business commitment" through the Trade Waste Service and LETS team interventions by March 2008

Contact officer: Bryan Jones, Service Head – Environmental Control.

• Undertake with the Police joint anti crime and enforcement initiatives within Markets

• Bi-monthly strategy partnership meeting with Metropolitan Police to review, agree and resource joint-operational activity in Markets (BLPSG)

• Undertake 21 joint operations with the police in Markets by March 2008 (10 by October 2007)

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone

• Parking Services’ Abandoned Vehicles Team to work with the Police, Safer Neighbourhood Team and other Groups to provide a co-ordinated approach to tackling ASB and the impact on the community

• Participate in 6 Special Operations with Police and Safer Neighbourhood teams by March 2008

To reduce the level of anti-social behaviour and the impact which ASB has on the quality of life of our communities Contact officer: Bryan Jones, Service Head – Environmental Control.

• Undertake a review of the licensing policy • Complete consultation by June 2007

• Draft Policy to Cabinet by October 2007

• Full Council approval by December 2007

To make streets, public areas, residential areas and open spaces safer Contact officer: Bryan Jones, Service Head – Environmental Control.

• Continue to contribute towards ensuring the free flow of traffic and improving pedestrian and road-user safety by developing and implementing a new Parking Enforcement Plan

• Undertake analysis of existing enforcement practises by April 2007

• Benchmark enforcement practises against other similar boroughs by September 2007

• Parking Enforcement Plan submitted for approval by November 2007

• Action Plan produced detailing schedule of ‘works’ by November 2007

• Further improve the abandoned vehicle

service infrastructure • Consolidate the lease options for the Car Pound

September 07. • Enforce against abuse and fraudulent use

of permits and blue badges • 1 joint operation with enforcement partners by

May 07

• Additional 3 operations by March 08 Contact officer: Paul Martindill, Acting Service Head – Cultural Services.

• Improve the profile of Park Community Ranger Service with community

• Gain membership of The National Parkforce Programme by May 2007

• Enhanced parks monitoring and information programme implemented by September 2007

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• Develop and implement a wider programme to reduce crime and anti social behaviour in Parks and open spaces in consultation with the LAPS

• Develop programme with delivery plan by June 2007 in line with LAP Director consultation

• Improvement in number of people feeling unsafe or very unsafe in parks from 19% (2006/07) to 16% (2007/08) as measured by the Parks KPMC survey

Contact officer: John Palmer, Service Head - Street Services.

• Introduce 3 local safety schemes targeting locations with the worst road accident casualty records

• 3 priority sites confirmed by April 2007

• Outline design completed by July 2007

• Public & statutory consultation completed by September 2007

• Scheme implementation completed by January 2008

• Introduce 4 new safe routes to school

schemes at schools with approved School Travel Plans

• School Travel Plans approved by April 2007

• Outline designs completed by September 2007

• Public & statutory consultation completed by November 2007

• Scheme implementation complete by March 2008

• Deliver targeted road safety education and awareness programmes to vulnerable groups to help them to be safer on the roads

• School Travel Plans approved by April 2007

• Outline designs completed by September 2007

• Public & statutory consultation completed by November 2007

• Scheme implementation complete by March 2008

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• Junior Road Safety Officer scheme 2007/08 established in 50% of schools by October 2007

• Child Pedestrian Training volunteer programmes delivered in 30 schools by March 2008

• 2 Drink Drive campaigns completed by December 2007

• 2 Junior Citizen schemes (2000 pupils) completed by November 2007

• Introduce new 20mph zones to reduce the

speed of traffic in residential areas

• Complete consultation on Isle of Dogs 20 mph zones by June 2007

• Outline design of Bethnal Green (27N) zone complete by September 2007

• Construction of Isle of Dogs zones complete by October 2007

• Consultation on Bethnal Green (27N) zone complete by December 2007

• Construction of Bethnal Green (27N) zone complete by March 2008

• Manage a programme of improvement

activities through the BV199 Project Board • Undertake Pilot Cleansing projects based on BV

199 data analysis of stressed areas in the Borough and performance levels. March 08

• Investigate the potential for improving the quality of information relating to cleansing timing September 07.

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B. A CLEANER, GREENER TOWER HAMLETS Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone To improve the cleanliness of the borough’s streets including housing estates and parks Contact officer: John Palmer, Service Head - Street Services.

• Improve the management of cleansing in parks

• Development of enhanced monitoring regime in partnership with Grounds Maintenance Contractors to provide improved comparative data. Implementation by April 2007

• Survey and review of initial data set October 2007 to ensure revised regime demonstrates improved efficiencies and effectiveness

• Implement enforcement activities to tackle

enviro crime

• Undertake a review of anti pigeon measures under all bridges in the Borough and engage owners to undertake necessary remedial action.

• Number of fixed penalty notices for littering and dumping increased by 20% from 1,500 to 1,800 by March 2008

• Numbers of prosecutions for littering and dumping increased by 100% from 5 to 10 by March 2008.

• 60 private properties assisted with graffiti and flyposting removal by September 2007, with 120 by March 2008

• Project scoping completed July 07

• Survey completed December 07

• Owners contacted January 07 To improve recycling activity and performance and reduce waste in the borough

• To reduce municipal waste, improve recycling activity and increase efficiency in managing waste

• Re-let integrated recycling contract by March 2008 to increase recycling levels and to reduce the average cost of collection per tonne (all

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone Contact officer: John Palmer, Service Head - Street Services.

recycling) by 14% in 2008/2009

• Undertake a programme of awareness raising through door knocking:

• 15,000 low rise properties visited by August 2007

• 65,000 high rise properties visited by March 2008

• Phase 1 of conversion of high rise doorstep collection to bulk recycling bins for 1,500 properties to be completed by March 2008 date

• Implement the provisions of the Recycling and Waste Prevention Improvement Action Plan 2007/08 by March 2008

To protect the environment Contact officer: Bryan Jones, Service Head – Environmental Control.

• Consider a parking permit scheme linked to vehicle emissions

• Consultation undertaken to identify views of relevant stakeholders- April 2007

• Report to Cabinet outlining recommendations- Autumn 2007

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone • Continue to raise awareness and stimulate

interest in the protection and enhancement of biodiversity, local wildlife species and their (potential) habitats, among all people living and working in Tower Hamlets

• Organise and advertise a minimum of 12 local wildlife events per annum by March 2008 (6 by December 2007)

• Develop and implement a wildlife and habitat awareness communications programme by March 2008

• Implement programme to improve biodiversity

• within parks, green spaces and aquatic areas, with wildlife/habitat sustainability improved at 8 parks/green spaces by March 2008

• Integrate biodiversity themes into the Tower Hamlets in Bloom competition categories by November 2007.

• To develop a working relationship with local universities on environmental and sustainability issues

• To deliver a minimum of one lecture to a local university on local government sustainability issues- March 2008

• To host a minimum of two university student placements- March 2008

• To develop an Environmental Strategy for

the Council • Strategy finalised in April 2007

• Cabinet approval in June 2007

• Produce a feasibility report of cost and resource implications of adopting ‘One Planet Living’ Principles.

• Report produced September 07

Contact officer: John Palmer, Service Head - Street Services.

• Formal adoption and Implementation of Staff Travel Plan

• Formal adoption of Travel Plan July 31st 2007. Implementation August 2007

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone • Further develop membership of the Tower

Hamlets Freecycle initiative that links up unwanted items with new owners

• To increase the membership of Freecycle from 1,260 to 2,100 by September2007and to 2,800 March 2008

To improve the physical environment

• Prioritise the removal of abandoned vehicles from the public highway, estate and private land

• At least 98% of new reports of abandoned vehicles to be investigated within 24 hours of notification

Contact officer: Bryan Jones, Service Head – Environmental Control.

• At least 96% of abandoned Vehicles to be removed within 24 hours from point which the Authority is legally entitled to remove the vehicle

• Investigate the potential of a single vehicle removal contract for Parking Services and Estates Parking to improve efficiency and reduce costs- options appraisal to be completed by April 2008

• Continued investigation of potentially contaminated land in the borough, as required by the LBTH Contaminated Land Strategy

• Following re-issue of DEFRA guidance, recommendations for all 5 intrusive investigations undertaken in 06/07 will be formulated with partners by March 2008

• Contaminated Land communications pack produced and final reports on 2006/07 intrusive investigation released to residents by March 2008

• LBTH’s consultants to undertake 2 further intrusive investigations by December 2007 and a further 4 (6 in total) March 2008

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone Contact officer: John Palmer, Service Head - Street Services.

• Whole corridor improvements introduced on 3 key streets, involving improved provision for pedestrians, revised waiting & loading, street lighting improvements, reduction in street clutter, highway maintenance, accessibility improvements particularly around bus stops and cycle facilities (Sites probably – Bethnal Green Road, Poplar High St, Roman Road or Westferry Road)

• Outline designs prepared by August 2007

• Public & statutory consultation complete by November 2007

• Implementation complete by March 2007

To improve the provision and quality of public open space Contact officer: John Palmer, Service Head - Street Services.

• Construction of Meath Gardens pedestrian and cycle bridge to increase accessibility to Mile End Park

• Detailed construction designs complete by July 2007

• Confirmation of all required funding by October 2007

• Construction complete by March 2008

Contact officer: Paul Martindill, Acting Service Head – Cultural Services.

• Progress quality improvements in parks and open spaces

• Develop and implement year 2 of the Park and Open Space Strategy. Prepare action plan April 2007

• Progress capital programme in conjunction with LAP Directors implementation by March 2008

• Secure at least one additional Green Flag Award and retain all existing Green Flag Awards by July 2007

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Living Well: Implementation Plan 2006/07

C. HEALTHIER COMMUNITIES Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone

• Support the 3rd Sector to deliver an active play in parks scheme

• Develop programme with 3rd Sector and LAP Directors by April 2007

• Provide programme on a minimum of 4 sites between July-September 2007

To improve the health of children and young people Contact officer: Paul Martindill, Acting Service Head – Cultural Services.

• Provide 3 x 9 weight management programmes for obese children (7-11 and 12-16)

• One course to be completed, determined by age groups, and dependent on need and numbers for each school term

• 20 children to be admitted for each course

• Support the School Sport Partnership in increasing the number of young people taking part in 2 hours + of PE and school sport within and beyond the curriculum

• Deliver 3 x 6 week sport coaching sessions in 4 sports to schools that are underperforming as identified by the 06/7 PASSCL survey. 1 by December 07. 2 by March 08.

• Deliver 5 training days for primary teachers in 4 sports and disability sports management.

• Deliver a minimum of 3 x 6 week tennis coaching sessions at selected schools by July 07

To improve the health of adults at risk of coronary heart disease Contact officer: Paul Martindill, Acting Service Head – Cultural

• Deliver six 10- week GP exercise referral programmes at 3 leisure centres

• 200 referrals with 60% completion (10% improvement) in March 2008

• Increase Cardiac Rehabilitation Programme Phases 3 & 4 from 1 leisure centre (Whitechapel) to 2 leisure centres (Mile End Park LC) September 07

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone Services.

• To increase from 3 8-week programmes to 6 8-week programmes (subject to funding confirmation from PCT)

• Deliver a targeted 8 week Adult Weight

Management Programme ‘Shape Up’ • Programme implementation September 07

• Evaluation March 2008 • In partnership with the PCT promote

smoking cessation support as part of the Smoke Free legislative communication and business outreach programme

• PCT joint promotional activities scoped April 07

• Staff support and internal cessation programme scoped April 07

• Implementation May 07

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Learning, Achievement & Leisure: Implementation Plan 2006/07

D. INCREASED EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone

• Provide a range of dedicated unsupervised outdoor play areas, skate parks, etc.

• Audit and analysis completed by June 2007

• Unsupervised play strategy and future development plan considered as part of the Olympic Strategy by December 2007

• Integrate 1 O’ Clock Club services into a combined model managed by Children’s Services

• Consultation, resources and planning completed by October 2007

Extend opportunities for all children, including those with disabilities, to enjoy a range of activities outside of school hours including participation in play, culture, arts Contact officer: Paul Martindill, Acting Service Head – Cultural Services.

• Develop with partners a play strategy for Tower Hamlets

• Draft finalised- April 2007

• Cabinet- July 2007

• Develop with partners a ‘big lottery’ portfolio of priority actions for play and submission to the Big Lottery- September 2007

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E. INCREASED PARTICIPATION IN SPORTING, LEISURE AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone

• To establish a Leisure Centre Public Consultation Group

• Group established with terms of reference by June 2007

• Second meeting held by January 2008

• Public service standards agreed by the Group by February 2008

• To increase the proportion of residents within 20 minutes walking distance of a quality accredited facility to over 90% of the boroughs population by increasing quality ‘Quest’ accredited leisure facilities from three to four by March 2008

• Quest self assessment undertaken by October 2007, with formal assessments by February 2008 and confirmation of Quest Accreditation by March 2008

To improve the quality of leisure provision and customer experience Contact officer: Paul Martindill, Acting Service Head – Cultural Services.

• Complete stage 3 of York Hall redevelopment plan

• To complete a review of the Cultural Strategy

• Bar and hall improvements completed by March 2008

• Review completed September 07

• Updated Cultural Strategy Action Plan December 07

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone To increase community engagement and participation in cultural activities Contact officer: Paul Martindill, Acting Service Head – Cultural Services.

• To train 80 volunteers to support the delivery of sport in the borough

• 20 trained by June 2007

• 20 trained by September 2007

• 20 trained by December 2007

• 20 trained by March 2008

• Support and deliver a borough-wide programme of festivals and events reflecting the diverse needs of the community

• 70 festivals with an audience of at least 100 delivered by March 08

• In partnership with the Parks Service develop a new playing pitch strategy.

• Project brief prepared May 07

• Strategy finalised September 07

• To deliver a programme of arts activity for young people (13 to 19 years old) at youth centres across the borough

• 636 young people reached/engaged by March 2008

• 381 young people taking part in projects for an average of 10 weeks by March 2008

• Increase the use of the Mile End Park Art

Pavilion by both artists and the Tower Hamlets community

• Increase the number of entries to the summer show from 80 to 100 by August 2007

• Determine baseline figure for visitors by March 2008

• Increase the number of exhibitions from 8 to 11 by March 2008

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone • Provision of performance showcasing

opportunities for young people • Twelve showcases including one national

showcase delivered March 2008. 6 by June 07. • Run East End Film Festival across three

boroughs. • Festival delivered April 07

• Develop the use of the Brady centre by external organisations /partners

• Ten new partnerships or users March 08

To improve participation in Idea Store, library and lifelong learning activities Contact officer: Paul Martindill, Acting Service Head – Cultural Services.

• Improve user access to books, DVDs, CDs, the library catalogue, on-line services and information in Ideas Stores, libraries and learning centres to services and increase participation to assist achieving reduction in unit costs (achievement of CPA13)

• New IT system procured by April 2007

• 1% Increase in overall issues against 2006/07 outturn

• Undertake Idea Stores users' survey for people under 16 to improve knowledge and understanding of needs of under 16s

• Complete library users' survey for young people under the age of 16 by June 2007

• Implement under 16s development plan/s by January 2008

• Increase the use of libraries and Ideas

Stores as a resource for children and young people in the borough

• Extended Schools and Children’s Centre plans link with use of libraries and sports and arts facilities by March 2008

• Develop activities to increase and widen the number of older people participating in the Idea Store Service

• Increase the active members who are aged 60 and over from 4.8% to 7.0% of total active membership by March 2008

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• Improve fixed play equipment on a range of sites

• Determine site priority from Play Strategy August 2007

To increase participation in sport and physical activity for the community Contact officer: Paul Martindill, Acting Service Head – Cultural Services.

• To increase visits to leisure centres by 15,000 in comparison to 2006/07 outturn

• Agree list and priorities with LAP Directors October 2007

• New leisure guides and programmes produced in April 2007

• New programme for ‘Over 60’s’ in place April 07

• Phase 2 York Hall refurbishment (health spa) open April 2007

• New membership package launched April 2007

• To utilise the Sports Search programme to improve young peoples participation in sport

• To complete Sports Search tests and surveys at 4 schools each term

• Baseline established for demand for specific sports, new sports clubs and after-school activities

• Establish Football Development partnership

forum

• Terms of reference agreed May 2007

• Forum established by June 2007

• Deliver a football development programme for 7-11s in schools and at the Football Development Centre

• Increase participation from 25,000 in 2006/07 to 26,000 in 2007/08. 8,666 participants in football programme by July 2007, 8,666 additional by December and a further 8,666 by March 2008

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone • Deliver a Learn to Swim programme for

schools

• Increase numbers of children achieving 25m standard to 1,000 by July 2007, with an additional 1,000 by December 2007 and a further 1,000 by March 2008

• To increase usage of leisure centres of key

target groups

• Usage increased by 1% by March 2008 for: young people, older people, people with disabilities, BME, and women

• Usage increased by 5% by March 2008 for older people

• In consultation with ‘Link Age’ develop comprehensive programme of targeted activities for Older people by April 2007

• To upgrade the qualifications of 40 sports

coaches • 10 coaches upgraded by June 2007

• 10 coaches upgraded by September 2007

• 10 coaches upgraded by December 2007

• 10 coaches upgraded by March 2008

• To enter 40 teams in the London Youth Games including 6 teams in disability sports activities

• Participation in London Youth Games July 2007

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone • Engage with the 2012 Unit on

implementation Olympics and Paralympics Strategy

• Explore opportunities and contribute to specifications for legacy leisure facilities June 07

• Attend meetings as sport leads at 5 borough meetings March 08

Excellent Public Services: Implementation plan 2006/07

F. EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE SERVICES Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone

• Draft a Compact for Park Friends’ and similar environmental groups

• Officer group to finalise draft text by May 2007

• Consultation with Park Friends’ and similar groups June/ July 2007

• Publicity programme and sign-up of groups by October 2007

To increase the capacity of the third sector to participate in the planning and delivery of excellent public services Contact officer: Paul Martindill Service Head – Cultural Services.

• Provide programme of review and performance monitoring for Leisure Management Contract

• Review of information completed June 07

• New system implemented July 07

Contact Officer: Robin Beattie Head of Strategy and Programmes.

• Develop a Joint Programme of environmental projects and capacity building with Muslim Women’s groups (Subject to outcome of 2006/07 LAA faith group initiative and 2007/08 funding)

• Engagement plan agreed by April 2007

• Agenda agreed by May 2007

• Development programme finalised by June 2007, with implementation by July 2007

• Undertake a review of the programme from March 2008

To improve the performance and efficiency of services

• Review the organisational structure of • Review starts August 07

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Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone Contact Officer:Bryan Jones Service Head – Environmental Control.

Parking Services

• Complete refurbishment of Mortuary • Implementation of agreed changes March 08

• Mortuary brought up to required standard by May 2007

Contact Officer: Luke Cully – Directorate Finance Manager.

• Complete an efficiency review of back office functions for the Directorate

• DMT report June 08

• Review concluded March 08 Contact Officer: Robin Beattie – Head of strategy and Programmes.

• Waste Services Re Inspection by the Audit Commission

• Position statement and evidence submitted to the A.C April 07

• Inspection May 07

• Report June 07 Contact Officer: Alex Cosgrave/Luke Cully – Corporate Director Environment and Culture.

• Star Chamber programme covering sickness absence, Budget control and Contract Monitoring

• Sickness absence reviews begin July 07

• Budget Control reviews begin July 07

• Contract Monitoring begins May 07.

Contact Officer: Robin Beattie – Head of Strategy and Programmes.

• Data quality management plan developed and linked to corporate data quality strategy

• Data quality actions for services identified by July 07

• High priority areas identified by August 07

• Draft plan prepared September 07 • Develop CPA Key Lines of Enquiry

Directorate Action Plan • Review of existing directorate KLOE focused

activity completed June 07.

• Draft Action Plan completed July 07.

• Corporate programme supported on going. • Development of Directorate Marketing

Strategy • Analysis of priority areas May 07

• Structure agreed June 07

• Implementation July 07 • Re run the Cleaner Safer Baseline

Perception and behaviour survey • Process scoped and survey procured by

September 07

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• Report January 08 • Complete Brady Centre comparative cost

study with other arts centres • Benchmarking family identified September 07

• Report completed December 07 To provide support for deliberations on Crossrail. Contact officer: Bryan Jones : Service Head Environmental Control.

• Ensure the interests of the community of tower hamlets in relation to health and safety are properly considered by the project leaders

• Ongoing -March 08

Support the introduction of Smoke Free Legislation under the Health Act 2006 Contact officer: Bryan Jones : Service Head Environmental Control.

• Introduce National Smoke Free Legislation, communications programme and enforcement regime .

• Communications programme finalised May 2007

• Introduce enforcement regime under the smoke free (premises and enforcement) regulations 2006 and other supplementary regulations. July 2007

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G. LOCALLY FOCUSED SERVICES EMPOWERING LOCAL PEOPLE Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone Support services to deliver Local Strategic Partnership and Local Area Agreement commitments. Contact Officer: Robin Beattie – Head of strategy and Programmes.

• Participate in LSP/LAA action planning

• Progress monitoring

• CPAG Action Plans agreed April 07

• Monitoring completed October 07 and March 08

• Complete review and analysis of Corporate Complaints

• Report to DMT Feb.08

H. STRONGER AND MORE COHESIVE COMMUNITIES Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone To promote social cohesion . Contact officer: Bryan Jones : Service Head Environmental Control.

• Undertake a needs assessment of travellers as required by the CRE common ground report

• Assessment complete2007

Contact officer: Robin Beattie-Head of Strategy and Programme.

• Complete 3 total service EqIAs and develop a more comprehensive EqIA programme

• EqIA training delivered August 07

• EqIA priority services reviewed and updated July 07

• New EqIA scrutiny programme developed for EAT July 07

• Service EqIAs completed March 08

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I. IMPROVED EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY Objective and Lead Officer Key Activity Progress Milestone To promote and develop equal opportunities best practice.: Contact Officer Robin Beattie – Head of Strategy and Programmes.

• Development of Joint advice and guidance with the London Sustainability Exchange for engagement with Muslim faith groups on environmental issues

• Guidance finalised July. 07

• Launched by November 07

• Develop enhanced Scrutiny role for the Directorate Equalities Action Team.

• Terms of reference revised April 07

• Equalities Scrutiny training delivered June 07

• Full scrutiny programme in place July 07 • Plan and deliver a comprehensive

programme of bespoke equalities training for all managers and staff

• Training for DMT delivered May 07

• SMG by October 07

• 4th Tier March 08 • Develop activities that will improve the

Directorates performance regarding Workforce To Reflect the Community.

• Facilitated DMT Review of systemic barriers to progress competed May 07.

• Analysis of relevant directorate and corporate processes and structures completed August 07.

• Enhanced action plan developed by September 07.

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6. RESOURCES Financial Summary 2007/8 1. Revenue The Environmental & Cultural Services Directorate has a Revenue Budget for 2007/2008 of £64.2m net expenditure. This represents 23% of the Council’s total General Fund Services Budgets (£277.6 m). The detail is contained in a report to Cabinet on 7th Feb 2007 which was approved by full Council on the 8 March 2007. The Directorate’s net Revenue Budget of £64.2m is identified to divisions of service as shown in the table below.

Environmental & Cultural Services Directorate 2007/2008 Original Estimate

£000 Street Management 30,896 Environmental Control 12,023 Cultural Services 21,330

Support Services (HR, Finance, Strategy & Programmes) - Total Revenue Resources 64,249 Gross expenditure on services is £89.6m and gross income is £25.4m Staffing resources are estimated at £24m. The Council’s Budget Book describes more fully the resources available to deliver services.

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2. Capital Environmental & Cultural Services Capital Programme resources for 2007/2008 currently total £8.8m. These are outlined below. Service Area £000 Major Projects (York Hall ) 550 Street Management (Homes Zones, Traffic Calming, Improvements to Highways, ) 4,728 Cultural Services (Park Improvements, Parks Furniture) 3,523

Total Capital Resources 8,801

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7. RISK MANAGEMENT Risk management is defined as the effective management of both potential opportunities and threats to the Council achieving its objectives. The Council has formally adopted a Risk Management Policy and strategy to support its approach to risk management. The Environment and Culture Directorate identifies risk at project, partnership and service level. The risks to the achievement of corporate and service objectives are actively considered as part of service planning and the identification of risk is a key part of the planning framework at all levels. Each division has a risk register that captures the risks to the achievement of their objectives. The most significant of these are captured by the Directorate Risk Register. These are:

• those that are inherent in the business of a local authority – e.g the maintenance of effective financial management systems;

• those that arise form strategic initiatives of the Council – e.g The expanded schools programme;

• those that arise from initiatives to improve the business infrastructure of the Council – e.g the ICT/e-Government programme. Each risk has an identified owner and mitigating actions and controls. The registers are updated through out the year and are considered by the Corporate Risk Group , which identifies the strategic risks for reporting to CMT. In this way senior managers assess the risk, develop mitigating actions and monitor progress in a systematic manner. The directorate finance manager is the Environment and Culture Risk Champion and the key contact for risk issues in the Directorate.

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APPENDIX 1. ENVIRONMENT AND CULTURE SERVICE FUNCTIONS

1. Street Management

1.1 This may be the part of the Council that people use more than any other. In sweeping the streets, repairing roads and pavements and collecting domestic refuse and recycling. Street related services have an enormous impact on the condition of the Borough and how people feel about it.

1.2 The services provided by Street Management :-

� CCTV � Town Centre, covert and Docklands Security Cordon. � Street Cleansing � Highway (including footway) maintenance and management (including regulation of utility company street works) � Street Lighting and Parks and Open Spaces lighting � Refuse collection and disposal and transfer of waste � Flytip removal � Neighbourhood LETS teams � Waste reduction, re-use and recycling programmes � Trade waste enforcement � Traffic and transportation planning

2. Cultural Services

2.1 This division embraces arts, sport and general leisure activities. It is dedicated to promoting art and cultural activities that reflect the diverse nature of the Tower Hamlets population and which meet the variety of artistic and cultural needs/ aspirations of the community. In addition they provide sports development and healthy lifestyles services and work with a wide range of community groups and voluntary organisations to help them offer services to their client groups.

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2.2 The services provided by Cultural Services are: - � Arts and events planning including festivals development and implementation � Community and arts exhibitions � Film production support and promotion � Community arts development and events funding � Management of the Brady Arts Centre and the Jack Dash Gallery � Youth arts support services � Library Services and Idea Stores � Arboricultural (tree) maintenance for parks, streets, schools and estates. � Horticultural planning and planting for parks, open spaces and traffic islands, � Grass maintenance for estates, open spaces, parks and sports fields. � Sports/leisure centres, sports pitches and swimming pools � Maintenance of some public play grounds. � Landscape architectural services � Sports development and school sports support � Healthy Lifestyle Projects and the GP sports referral scheme. � Anti racism in sport initiative

3. Environmental Control

3.1 These services are primarily regulatory and concerned with improving the physical environment of the Borough and ensuring public safety. It comprises Environmental Health, Trading Standards and Consumer Services, Parking Control and Markets. These services carry out vital work to ensure that the public are protected from public health hazards and maintain quality of life for residents.

3.2 The services delivered by the Environmental Control are:-

� Consumer protection and advice � Pest Control and advice � Dog fouling control and Dog Wardens � Noise patrol, nuisance and safety inspections

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� Public health inspections � Pollution control and monitoring � Contaminated land mapping. � Parking Control, � Management and promotion of Street Markets � Removal and destruction of abandoned vehicles.

4. Other Important Services

There are a few very important strategic services that form part of Environment and Culture that currently do not sit within a division. These are :-

� Transport Service, fleet management and maintenance – providing high quality transportation services to Adult services, � Children services and the 3rd sector. � Emergency Planning and Civil Contingencies – Providing emergency response infrastructure and planning services. � Health and safety monitoring and enforcement within council buildings. – Providing expert health and safety advice to

council staff to ensure that they keep themselves and the public safe.

5. Support Services

5.1 This Directorate has a support infrastructure, which assists the senior management to manage the complex range of services and the associated Personnel. These services are not part of a dedicated division but comprise the Strategy and Programmes Unit, Directorate Human Resources Section (dual reporting to the Corporate Head of HR) and the Directorate Finance Section (dual reporting to the Director of Resources)and report directly to the Corporate Director. They provide a highly effective, flexible and targeted resource that managers can call upon to assist with key areas of service delivery and development.

5.2 The work undertaken by these services are :-

� Strategic management support including service quality development � Project management and fund raising support

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� Equalities � Directorate marketing and communications � Human resource management � Financial Planning and Resource Management � Performance management and monitoring � Directorate Co-ordination of Corporate programmes

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APPENDIX 2. STRUCTURE CHART

Corporate Director Environment and

Culture

Alex Cosgrave

Service Head Environmental

Control Bryan Jones

Service Head Street

Management John Palmer

Service Head Cultural Services

Paul Martindill

Transport Manager

John Stevens

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