Each Year the Council produces a Local Performance Plan setting out how well we perform against our plans and targets in the previous financial year and giving details of priorities, plans and targets for the year ahead.
The more detailed, full Local Performance Plan, published in June 2004 is available to download by clicking the following link:
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Councillor Jeremy Birch
We are calling the borough council's performance plan for 2004/05 'Delivering the Future'. We aim to deliver all the commitments in this plan over the next 12 months to improve quality of life for local people. We will be especially concentrating on the need to make our town 'clean, green and safe'. That's what you have told us is important to you.
This summary leaflet tells you about some of these commitments and reports back on some of the things we achieved in 2003/04.
We aim to deliver better quality and improved performance in everything we do because that is what you the council-tax payers have a right to expect. We were especially pleased to be told that, following an independent Audit Commission Inspection in November 2003 we have been categorised as a 'Good' council. The inspection looked at how well the council is run and how well we deliver services.
But we are also looking to the future - to a revived and more prosperous Hastings. The borough council will continue to be at the heart of the dramatic physical regeneration programme that the government's extra money is making possible. We intend to seize this once in a lifetime opportunity to transform the image and economic fortunes of our town and the next 12 months will see some important steps forward.
Delivering the Future sets out our immediate plans and our longer-term vision and shows how they link together. We hope they fit in with your hopes for Hastings too.
Leader of the Council
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2003/04 was the first of the years of delivery. We were at the heart of the preparations for big regeneration projects like the Millennium Community in Ore Valley, the Media Centre in Robertson Street and the University Centre Hastings (which is now up and running).
We also improved 33 derelict properties (our target was 20, our 3 year total is now over 150), gave over £300,000 to preserve some of Central St Leonards' historic buildings, created the incredibly popular 'Sticks of Rock' sea front lighting and helped put 15 'low floor' buses onto the streets.
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We created the 'Bar Watch' scheme with the Police and licensees to make the town a safer place at night which led to 19 people being banned from all pubs in Hastings. We also helped achieve 8 full Anti Social Behaviour Orders and 40 Acceptable Behaviour Contracts and dealt with 2,225 abandoned and untaxed vehicles (in 97% of cases we took action within 48 hours of the first phone call).
We improved 197 Unfit Properties (our target was 130), declared a Housing Renewal Area in Central St Leonards and helped establish Sussex's only Policing Priority Area in Central St Leonards.
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We improved our glass recycling by taking mixed colour glass at all recycling points and setting up new collection bins near local pubs.
We became the first East Sussex local authority to sign the Nottingham Declaration on Climate Change, took our Cabinet 'on tour', rigorously enforced laws and regulations on things like noise pollution and illegal parking, introduced an online payment system and employed an Equalities and Diversity Officer to make sure we treat everybody fairly and equally.
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Through sport and music projects, we helped keep vulnerable young people out of trouble. We also helped hundreds of young people stay busy during the long summer holidays with our incredibly successful 'Sport4U' programme and our weekly free play sessions in Alexandra Park.
We supported the Young Persons' Council so young people's voices are heard and worked with them on the 'Local Youth Strategy'.
We also improved the football pitches at Bexhill Road and footpaths in Alexandra Park and Warrior Square Gardens; resurfaced the skateboard ramps at White Rock Gardens, improved the changing rooms at Summerfields Leisure Centre and supported big events like the Half Marathon, Jack-in-the-Green and Bonfire Night.
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2004/05 promises to be another incredible year for the town.
We'll make sure good progress is made on the big regeneration projects such as Pelham Square, Campus Core and Station Yard. We'll also help increase bus passenger journeys, play a big part in developing a new Seafront Strategy, help get people into work, and establish with partners a new Community Transport Scheme to replace Dial a Ride.
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We'll make sure dedicated wardens patrol the areas where they're most needed reassuring people and focussing on issues like fly tipping and graffiti.
We'll also create 24 hour local CCTV monitoring, and with our partners, help tackle drug and alcohol related crime and domestic violence, and employ more staff to investigate Anti Social Behaviour.
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Now we've made this a 'Housing Renewal Area', we'll work with our partners on a 10 year multi-million pound programme to improve housing standards and the local environment.
We'll also make sure homeless families are not in Bed and Breakfast for more than six weeks, try to get 75 new affordable homes built, give £600,000 to voluntary and community organisations to help achieve our priorities, work with our many partners to improve life in our priority neighbourhoods and manage the Central St Leonards Policing Priority Area.
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We'll hold a big community event to celebrate the park's £3.4 million Heritage Lottery joint funded restoration.
With a new entrance, improved planting, new ponds, a play park, a new cafe and a better bandstand, the park is now somewhere everybody can be proud of.
We'll also improve access and interpretation at our Hastings Museum & Art Gallery, make our website more appealing to young people and help create a covered tennis centre at White Rock Gardens.
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We'll improve our already successful fly tipping & rubbish removal service, keep improving street cleanliness and if our funding bid is successful, expand our recycling initiatives to include a 'Green Waste Scheme' for collection of garden waste and paper recycling for all households.
We'll also take over the licensing of the sale of alcohol from the Magistrate Courts and encourage all the town's pubs to join our 'Bar Watch' scheme to make it safer to go out at night.
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We'll hold another 'Street Fair' so people can find out more about our work, meet the decision-makers and get their questions answered.
We'll also strengthen our organisation so we can continue with our ambitious programme to improve the town, start making our offices Disability Discrimination Act compliant, encourage Benefits takeup (especially by older people who might not be claiming) and launch web pages about Councillors.
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| 2004/05 | 2003/04 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolios | gross
expenditure £'000 |
gross
income £'000 |
net
expenditure £'000 |
net
expenditure £'000 |
| Community Safety & Enforcement | 3,482 | 3,916 | (434) | (467) |
| Environment & Highways | 5,234 | 1,018 | 4,216 | 3,995 |
| Housing & Neighbourhood Renewal | 10,787 | 3,440 | 7,347 | 6,781 |
| Leisure & Culture | 6,401 | 1,506 | 4,895 | 4,621 |
| Organisational Development | 47,412 | 43,202 | 4,210 | 5,752 |
| Regeneration & Planning | 3,871 | 1,645 | 2,226 | 2,340 |
| 77,187 | 54,727 | 22,460 | 23,022 | |
| Capital Financing & Interest Charges | (8,472) | (7,251) | ||
| Reserves & Contingency | (422) | (985) | ||
| Net Council Expenditure | 13,566 | 14,786 | ||
| Collected Fund - Council Tax Deficit | 30 | 56 | ||
| 13,596 | 14,842 | |||
| Less Government Grant | (7,924) | (9,610) | ||
| Amount to be met from Council Tax Fund | 5,672 | 5,232 | ||
Last years provisional overall expenditure is £562,000 greater than the original budget expectations. The most significant changes relate to reduced benefit subsidy (£98,000), high cost of homeless accommodation (£331,000) and reduced net interest earnings (£119,000)
This years net revenue expenditure is framed to ensure we continue to develop and invest in our services, and encourage others to meet the needs of our residents. This years net expenditure is funded by:
Government Grant: £7.9m
Local Tax: £5.7m*
Total: £13.6m
* the increase in our part of the local Council Tax is 4.5%
Our Long term borrowing at March 31, 2003 amounted to £9.65 million.
Short term borrowing at that date amounted to £3.36 million.
We've set aside reserves for a number of purposes, including provision for the renewal and repair of equipment, vehicles and buildings.
The estimated balance on these reserves at March 31, 2005 is £2.56 million compared with an estimated £3.18 million at March 31, 2004.
We're planning to spend £7.8 million on capital projects during 2004/05.
Significant schemes include (£'000):
Housing Renewal - 2,655
White Rock Area Improvements - 353
Other Parks & Leisure Areas - 244
Play Areas - 154
Decorative Lighting - 100
Conservation Schemes - 89
Regeneration Schemes - 440
Long Term Beach Management - 559
Housing Advice and Office Accommodation - 1,200
Information Systems & 'e' Government Issues - 553
Cliff Stabilisation - 400
Safety Measures - 83
Traffic Schemes & Car Parking - 296
Other Schemes - 685
Total (£'000): 7,811
Directorate of the Deputy Chief Executive - 124
Communications & Organisational Development Directorate - 54
Regeneration & Planning Directorate - 63
Housing & Neighbourhood Renewal Directorate - 89
Environment & Safety Directorate - 131
Leisure & Cultural Development Directorate - 75
Total: 536
We only have space to tell you some of the things we plan to do in 2004/05. A more detailed document, 'Delivering the Future 2004/05 - Local Performance Plan', which includes a full report back on our achievements in 2003/04 and more information on our targets for the next year will be available at the end of June.
We always welcome comments on our work, plans and priorities and use these to improve the services we offer.
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For further information on the Local Performance Plan, please contact our Local Performance Plan section.
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This page last updated: 30/06/2004