 | Cambridgeshire Conservatives Record of Service Briefing |
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CAMBRIDGESHIRE CONSERVATIVES
JUDGE US ON OUR RECORD OF SERVICE
We are really proud of the progress we have made over the last four years against our priorities, aiming to create communities where people thrive and want to live and work.
Despite our growing population and increasing demand for public services, we have consistently improved the performance of our services whilst keeping council tax levels in Cambridgeshire amongst the lowest in England. Improving efficiency and delivering value for money are watchwords for us but that is not achieved at the expense of high quality services. Don’t just take our word for it; we are regularly inspected by Government watchdogs. What do they have to say?
How well are we performing?
Cambridgeshire County Council is the most improved County Council in England based on its performance over the last three years according to the Audit Commission. Particular areas of improvement include trading standards and planning where Cambridgeshire is ranked first out of 388 councils for its improved performance. Children’s services continue to perform strongly and sustained improvement has been made in social care for older and vulnerable people.
How about services for Children?
Cambridgeshire provides services for children and young people that are consistently above required standards according to an OFSTED (Office of Standards in Education) inspection last year. Management of the services was singled out for particular praise.
Inspectors said that effective action had been taken to reduce teenage conceptions, smoking and childhood obesity. Fostering and adoption services were both described as good and inspectors found a good level of investment in family support services. They said that the overall effectiveness of Cambridgeshire’s schools was good with some of them outstanding.
Over the past four years Cambridgeshire has seen significant improvements in Key Stage 2 results for Maths and English and an increasing number of pupils getting five or more GCSE’s at Grade A* - C. We are significantly closing the attainment gap for some groups of Black Minority and Ethnic (BME) children and have also improved educational attainment for children who are in need or looked after. Since 2005, we have also continually improved the stability of placements of children in care.
How well are Adult support services doing?
Last autumn, the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) awarded the County Council two stars for adult support social care services, up from the previous one star rating. They found that Cambridgeshire’s services are delivering improved health and emotional well-being, improved quality of life, and are helping people to maintain personal dignity and respect. They said there is promising capacity for continued improvement.
How about value for money?
For the second year running, the Audit Commission has given top marks to the County Council for its use of resources.
Inspectors awarded the County Council a score of 4 – the highest mark achievable – for their financial management and their approach to delivering value for money. It puts Cambridgeshire as one of only eleven County Councils in England to be given such a high rating.
Despite continuing to receive miserly increases in our Government grant (this year’s increase of just 2% compared with a national county increase of 5.2%) we have managed to keep council tax in Cambridgeshire amongst the lowest of any county.
Keeping the county moving – safely!
Despite growing traffic levels which have increased far more than the national average, we have kept the number of roads requiring major structural maintenance comparatively low. We have invested significantly in improving the minor road network and in safety and traffic calming schemes in many of our villages. A £2 million boost for road maintenance and safety was agreed recently. Removing the danger and nuisance of heavy lorries from our villages is a key priority which we are addressing individually with Parish Councils.
Road safety remains a top priority and figures just released show that the number of people killed or seriously injured on Cambridgeshire’s roads during 2008 was at an all time low. Given the startling increase in traffic on our roads over the last decade this is quite a remarkable achievement and a credit to all.
We have an excellent track-record for promoting public transport and working with bus operators to provide better public transport. The increase in passenger journeys in Cambridgeshire in recent years far exceeds the national average increase.
As part of our commitment to providing alternatives to the car, we have continued to invest in schemes that promote cycling and where possible segregate cyclists from other road users.
Caring for the Environment
Over the past four years the Council has achieved major improvements in recycling waste and reducing public transport emissions. We are one of the top counties for recycling and have agreed a new contract for handling waste in a state-of-the-art centre that will further reduce the amount of waste going to landfill.
Supporting Cambridgeshire’s Communities
Inspectors have praised the County Council for the way it listens to local people and involves communities in determining policies and service levels. Our Trading Standards service, which is dedicated to looking after the interests of the consumer, is highly acclaimed and has been successful in tackling underage drinking.
Our record of working in partnership with others is second to none, whether it’s a joint effort with the police to tackle anti-social behaviour or, supporting voluntary groups such as the Citizens Advice Bureaux who are under such pressure at present.
8th May 2009
 
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