USE of Resources

Use of Resources is a key performance issue in the East of England and Improvement East is committed to working with local authorities to ensure that Use of Resources scores improve. Where local authorities score currently score a Use of Resources level 1, or have a recent history of scoring a level 1, Improvement East works directly with the authority to provide additonal support and external guidance. Authorities that are currently working directly with Improvement East are:

• Dacorum BC
• Great Yarmouth BC
• Norwich City Council 
• Uttlesford DC
• Waveney BC   
• Brentwood BC

Improvement East is pleased to report that all but one of these authorities gained an overall score of '2' for the 2009/10 Use of Resources.

Use of Resources Improvement Programmes

As well as providing direct support to a small number of authorities, Improvement East is also committed to working with all authorities across the East of England to improve Use of Resources scores and encourage a culture of improvement activity. 

Throughout the summer and autumn 2009, Improvement East ran a series of Improvement Programmes designed to assist authorities in improving their Use of Resources scores. All programmes have provided an excellent opportunity for practitioners in these fields to:

• learn more about emerging best practice in these areas
• form improvement plans for future developments
• make a full contribution to the Use of Resources process.

To learn more about the Use of Resources Improvement Programmes, CIPFA, Grant Thornton and Improvement East have written the following case study:

Promotional case study.doc

'HOW TO' guide for use of resources

Following on from the Use of Resources Improvement Programmes, Improvement East are ready to launch a Use of Resources 'How to Guide', which has been developed in conjunction with CIPFA and Grant Thornton to assist all authorities and Fire and Rescue Services (FRS) to deliver their best possible Use of Resources score and prepare for further improvements. The guide has been informed by emerging best practice from across the region and beyond.

November 2009 - Use of Resources 'How to Guide'.pdf

The templates for self assessments and improvement planning that are incorporated into this guide are also available as word documents for download:

Self assessment template to download.doc
Improvement Plan template to download.doc

CONTINUED NETWORKING: ACTION LEARNING SETS

Feedback from the Use of Resources Improvement Programmes also told us that local authorities really appreciated the opportunity to network with one another and learn from good practice across the region. Using that feedback, we have launched an Action Learning Set, which will meet on a monthly-6 week basisfrom October/early November through to February 2010. The first sessions will be facilitated by Martin Ellender from Grant Thornton and the Action Learning Sets will focus on practical issues - networking, problem solving and support.

The group is now full, but if you would be interested in joining a reserve list please email michelle.nuttall@improvementeast.gov.uk. Groups will be made up of 12-15 people.

FURTHER INFORMATION

 To learn more about Improvement East's work on Use of Resources or to provide feedback please contact michelle.nuttall@improvementeast.gov.uk or T: 01284 7258309