Agenda item

The Council considered a report, presented by the Mayor of Doncaster, Ros Jones, which sought approval of an updated Corporate Plan for 2021/22, which reflected the transition to a new Borough Strategy which would replace the Doncaster Growing Together (DGT) Plan.

The Mayor was pleased to propose a new Plan to set out the Council’s priorities for the next financial year which was being presented alongside the budget proposals to both shape and set the Council’s future strategy. 

The Mayor stated that responding to the COVID pandemic had dominated the past year.  In the face of an unprecedented health and economic crisis, the Council had delivered for its communities as part of an incredible Team Doncaster effort, to save lives, provide care and stop the virus spreading. The Mayor reported that the Council had been proactive in ensuring children, young people and families, had the support they needed, for example, through a bespoke free school meals offer which was good practice that had been recognised nationally by the Department for Education.  Financial support had also been provided to those whose businesses and livelihoods had been affected, and the employment hub had been used to support those who had found themselves out of work or at risk of redundancy.

It was reported that the Council had also continued to deliver key services and new homes and major projects, and the Mayor was pleased to see that exhibits were being added to the new Danum Gallery, Library and Museum, which was due to open this year and particularly, the ‘Atlantic 251’ and the ‘Green Arrow’ locomotives which had been built in Doncaster, and would play a key part in the Rail Heritage Centre.

Members noted that close by, there was a new University Technical College which would develop the digital and engineering skills needed for the rail industry of the future and it was also great to see the completion of the Junction 5 link to Stainforth and Unity, which would help unlock thousands of jobs and homes.

Responding to and recovering from the pandemic would be the Council’s number one priority and Members noted that the new Corporate Plan reflected this imperative whilst continuing to provide Council services and protect its most vulnerable residents, whilst working in a safe environment. However, the Council also needed to look ahead as itsambitions for the Borough must respond to a number of seismic challenges.  The climate change and biodiversity crisis remained a profound pressure. Flooding was an example of how this impacted on local wellbeing.  The pandemic had worsened inequalities in society, for example, for vulnerable people with underlying health conditions or for those on low incomes, and the Council must also support residents of all ages to catch up on lost earnings and learning.

It was also reported that the Corporate Plan marked the transition to a new Borough Strategy.  At its centre was the need to balance the wellbeing of people and the planet as you could not have one without the other.  The Strategy would build on the successes of the Doncaster Growing Together Plan and the partnership working that had been so crucial to the effective response to the pandemic.  The Corporate Plan set out six emerging wellbeing goals for the Borough, which focussed on creating a greener and cleaner Borough, together with:-

• supporting economic prosperity and connecting residents to jobs;

• developing a safer and resilient place;

• developing a more compassionate approach to improving health and wellbeing; and

• improving skills and supporting creativity.

This was all underpinned by the need to create a fair and inclusive Borough and the Corporate Plan summarised the actions the Council would take over the next year to contribute to these goals.

The Mayor pointed out that these actions would respond to the ongoing Doncaster Talks consultation, which could be delivered due to the effective management of the Council’s finances, and which would support individuals and businesses through the pandemic, deliver essential services and invest in the future; jobs, skills, housing and tackling the climate emergency.

The Mayor was optimistic for the future as the Council had the opportunity to:-

• develop a more regenerative Borough, for example a circular economy that kept finite resources in a loop of use and reuse for as long as possible;

• create new green jobs and businesses;

• invest in our local communities to enhance local assets, strengths and civic engagement; and

• develop the ‘foundational economy’ that delivered the essential goods and services, including health and social care which was essential to the COVID response, and for a thriving, inclusive economy and place.

In concluding her presentation of the report, the Mayor expressed her gratitude to the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee for considering the Plan and providing their feedback and support, and asked that the Council support the updated Corporate Plan which was a major turning point in the Borough’s drive to improve the wellbeing of current and future generations.

Councillor Richard A Jones, whilst welcoming the Plan, felt it was short on detail and sought clarity on various aspects of the Plan, in particular, he wanted to know what were the Joint Public Sector Arrangements on Assets, what was the Local Solutions Group and what was a Talent and Innovation Eco System.  He also questioned why there was no reference in the Plan to the Locality Model.

In response, Mayor Ros Jones explained that the Corporate Plan was a delivery plan to achieve the 10 year Borough Strategy and that the issues raised by Councillor Jones related to the detail of how the Plan would be delivered.  Subsequently, the Mayor requested Councillor Jones to put his detailed in-depth questions in writing and he would be provided with a written response on the issues he had raised.

RESOLVED that the 2021/22 Corporate Plan, be approved.