Delivering the best for Chiltern

Chiltern District Council Performance Plan 2005-06

Note from the Leader ………………………………………...………..……..…… 2.2.2 Are we Improving? What you will find in this Plan ……………………..…………...…..…… 2.3 The Provision of Leisure Services Executive Summary ………………………………………...……………..…..…… 2.4 Consultation in 2004-05 2.5 Comprehensive Performance Assessment Section 1: About Chiltern 2.6 Service Review Programme 1.1 – the District and the Council 1.2 Chiltern District Council Objectives Section 3: Accounts 1.3 Chiltern Vision to 2020 and the Chiltern Community Plan 3.1 Statement of Accounts 1.4 Local Public Service Agreement 3.2 Statement on Contracts 1.5 Buckinghamshire Community Plan 3.3 Efficiency Statement … 1.6 National Priorities 3.4 Risk Management

Section 2: The Council’s Performance Section 4: Other Useful Information 2.1 The Council‟s Performance in 2004-05 4.1 Contacting the Council and its Partners ………………… 2.1.1 Executive Leader 4.2 Other Publications and sources of information 2.1.2 Community 2.1.3 Communications and Safety Section 5: Glossary of terms 2.1.4 Strategies and Planning 2.1.5 Environmental Management Appendix I: Performance Indicators 2.1.6 Good Health and Housing 2.1.7 Optimising Resources Appendix II: Bucks Local Public Service Agreement – 2.2 Best Value Performance Indicators - performance progress update May 2004 summary ………… 2.2.1 How do we Compare with Others ……….…

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Statement of Responsibility

The Council is responsible for the preparation of this Performance Plan and for the information and assessments set out within it, and the assumptions and estimates on which they are based.

The Council is also responsible for setting in place appropriate performance management and internal control systems from which information and assessments in the Plan have been derived. The Council is satisfied that the information and assessments included in the Plan are in all material respects accurate and complete and that the Plan is realistic and achievable.

The role of the Council’s External Auditor Robson Rhodes is to consider whether the Council has put in place adequate arrangements for collecting, recording and publishing specified performance information, and considering and reporting on whether the Council has complied with statutory requirements in respect of the preparation and publication of its Best Value Performance Plan.

Chiltern District Council Council Offices King George V Road Bucks HP6 5AW

01494 729000 www.chiltern.gov.uk

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Introduction from the Leader

Cllr Tom Dodd represents the Gold Hill District ward. He was first elected to Amersham Rural District Council in 1973 before it was amalgamated into Chiltern District Council the following year.

Cllr Dodd was elected Leader of Chiltern District Council in May 2004. He had been Deputy Leader since 2001

Teamwork has been the essence of our success, and I intend to continue to lead and support the team in Delivering the Best for Chiltern in the future.

Councillor Tom Dodd

Councillor Tom Dodd Leader, Chiltern District Council

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What you will find in this Plan

What you will find in this Plan

Chiltern District Council has sought over the years to continuously improve the services it provides to local people by making those services more efficient, effective and economic.

The Local Government Act 1999 introduced the Best Value initiative, which places a duty on councils to keep all services under review, set themselves challenging targets for performance and publish a Performance Plan each year. The Plan must show how well services have performed over the last year, and what improvements will be made over the next year.

Who this Plan is for

. Elected Members and staff working at Chiltern District Council, to provide guidance for our work over the coming year.

. Our auditors, the Audit Commission inspectors and ultimately central Government, so that they can assess our past performance, evaluate the actions we are planning and confirm that we are fulfilling our duties under the law.

. Our partners and local businesses, so that they can judge how well we are performing.

. Interested parties.

Changes Made to the Plan this Year

In March 2004, the Government published ODPM Circular 02/2004. This included guidance on reducing the required content of Performance Plans. It advised that it is no longer necessary to provide information that could be obtained from other sources. By design this Plan goes above that which is required to enable performance information to be held in one corporate plan.

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How this Plan is Organised

Section 1 sets the scene for this Plan and lays out the Council‟s key objectives and targets, how we monitor our performance and our community leadership role taken in developing and implementing the Chiltern Community Plan.

Section 2 relates to how we have performed in 2004-05 including facts and figures about how well we have performed for each of our portfolio areas, our planned actions for the coming 12 months and information about the consultation we have undertaken.

Section 3 provides a brief statement of the Councils accounts and outlines the Council‟s approach to risk management.

Section 4 guides you to some other sources of information that may be of interest, and gives details which will make it easy to contact us should you wish to do so.

Appendices ?? to ?? contain tables of detailed information about how the Council is performing both year on year and compared with other Councils, our targets for the coming three years and an update on the Buckinghamshire Local Public Service Agreements.

This Performance Plan was produced by Chiltern District Council‟s Policy and Performance Team in June 2005

For more information, contact the Policy and Performance Officer on 01494 732779 or send an email to [email protected]

A four-page summary of Chiltern District Council‟s Annual Performance Plan 2005-06 appeared in the Spring 2005 edition of Chiltern Chronicle. This four- page summary is available from the display of leaflets and other publications in the reception area of our offices in King George V Road, Amersham, and on the Council‟s website – www.chiltern.gov.uk.

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Executive Summary

Each year the Council produces a Performance Plan showing how it has performed over the previous 12 months, and setting out what it hopes to achieve over the coming year. This forms part of the Council‟s commitment to secure continuous improvement.

Continuous improvement will not happen unless strategic planning is converted into specific targets, action programmes and accountabilities. This is the process of Performance Management – that is combining the Council‟s four key objectives with our everyday work.

The Council‟s objectives are –

1. A vibrant, safe and healthy community.

2. Protecting, preserving and improving the environment.

3. Continuing to deliver a range of high quality customer focused services.

4. Pursuing effectiveness and efficiency in all we do.

Our objectives were formed after extensive consultation, drawing on those aspects of the Community Plan the Council leads or can directly deliver balanced against the resources available. As resources become tighter, the need to prioritise becomes greater and the Executive consider that “pursuing effectiveness and efficiency in all we do” is our top priority in the next few years.

The Council is responsible for a range of functions and services within a three-tier system of administration that also includes Buckinghamshire County Council and 16 Parish and Town Councils.

The Council understands the benefits which can result from working with partners, and takes every opportunity to develop partnerships to deliver local services with the widest range of other organisations.

All these are represented in the Chiltern Community Partnership (the local strategic partnership). The Chiltern Community Partnership is an increasingly effective body that has developed a long term Vision for Chiltern taking us to 2020, and a series of actions to help turn that Vision into a reality.

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The Council has delivered a raft of outcomes against its objectives and priorities over the last 12 months. The tables below provides just a flavour of some of what we have achieved -

Pursuing effectiveness and  Together with our partners in the Chiltern Community Partnership we have developed a Vision for Chiltern for 2020 – we efficiency in all we do are now using this to inform the Councils programme of work  We consulted our customers in November to check that the services we provide meet local needs  We have continued to develop our website – with the CLAIRE air quality section winning a national award for the second year running  We have successfully let people know about the services the Council provides through “The Chiltern Hills” DVD  Bucks County Council Highways have leased office space at Chiltern District Council offices  For the second year running the Council has had no findings of maladministration found against it – the Local Government Ombudsman has said that “this was a real achievement”

Promoting a vibrant, safe  10 Police Community Support Officers have started work across the District and healthy community  51 new affordable homes have been secured in Chiltern in 2004-05  A Buckinghamshire-wide Youth Strategy and Older People‟s Strategy have been developed – these include a range of actions specific to Chiltern  Supported the Festival – on the Saturday over 1,000 people attended with views collected to inform the Chesham Vision and market town health-check work  Supporting the development of the Tithe Barn youth centre in Chalfont St Peter as an outcome from the community appraisal. An active committee now manages the centre and regular sessions are held run by local volunteers  In 2003 Chiltern attracted £1,015,903 worth of external funding  Sports Zone was set up in using monies from a range of sources – this work has had a positive effect on the behaviour of individuals  A Car Safe award has been given to the multi-storey car park in Amersham following refurbishment  The Council provided 40 disabled facilities grants to enable people to stay living in their own home  The Chesham Old People‟s Action Group (COPAG) has started – having an active role in the local community

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Protecting, preserving and  We have developed a plan of action to address the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act improving the environment  We have supported the development of the Chesham and Amersham town Visions, and are now involved in delivering the action plan  We have cleaned up 20 contaminated land sites, and assessed a further 40 sites across the District. External funding was secured to enable the Council to create an additional post to undertake work on contaminated land sites  We are now providing a more reliable waste and recycling collection service working with our new contractor Verdant  The environmental improvements in have been completed – this was a jointly funded project led by Chiltern District Council  £534,316 has been secured by the Council from the Government in the form of a Planning Delivery Grant  Works have been undertaken in Nicol Road, Chalfont St Peter to prevent parking on the grass verges. This was a jointly funded project led by Chiltern District Council

Continuing to deliver a  The new leisure contract started on the 1st May 2005 – our aim in developing the new contract is to provide a service that range of high quality better meets local people‟s needs customer focused services  We supported the setting up of a youth mediation service – Room 2 Talk  A Home Improvement Agency has been set up  The Sanctuary project has been started to support victims of domestic violence  100% of food inspections were carried out, and we exceeded our target for health and safety inspections  We have sustained our high performance in providing Revenues and Benefits and Development Control services  The Compact Funding Code has been drafted, and is currently being consulted on  The Chiltern Leisure Advisory Board and the Strategic Waste Management Board have been set up to take a strategic overview of these two key contracts

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Section 1: About Chiltern

Chiltern District – the District and the Council

Chiltern is located about 25 miles north west of London, just outside the M25, and covers around 19,635 hectares. Much of this is countryside falling within the Metropolitan Green Belt and the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

A total of 88,474 people live in the District (mid-year population estimate for 2004-05 based on 2001 census data). Around one-third live in the main towns of Chesham (the third largest town in Buckinghamshire) and Amersham. The other main settlements are the Chalfont‟s (Chalfont St Peter, and ), , Great Missenden, and .

National wealth indicators confirm that Chiltern District is an affluent area. However, these figures mask the fact that there are also several pockets of deprivation in parts of Chesham and Amersham. There is a small but diverse multi-cultural population (4.6 per cent).

The Council has a total of 195.4 (as at 31st March 2005) full-time equivalent officers, led by a Chief Executive, and has been Investor in People (IIP) accredited since 1993. It is responsible for a range of local government functions and services within a three-tier system of administration. Its key services are:

Environmental Health; Waste collection, recycling and street cleansing; Planning; Building Control; Community activities including leisure provision and sports development; Car parking; Concessionary fares; Community Safety; Legal and Land Charges; Housing Strategy; Financial Services; Personnel; Community development and revitalisation; Council Tax, Revenues and Benefits; and elections

The other two tiers of administration are:

. Buckinghamshire County Council, whose responsibilities include education, roads, social services, libraries and trading standards.

. Two town councils and 14 parish councils, whose responsibilities vary but include parks and open spaces, allotments, cemeteries, some street lighting and maintaining some of the District‟s pavements

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Directorates

The Council is organised into two Directorates – Planning and the Environment, and Corporate Services. The Directors, along with the Chief Executive, make up the Management Team, which is supported by Heads of Service who manage individual service areas. The Management Team‟s responsibilities are:

. Chief Executive – Electoral and Member Services; Policy and Performance; Communications; and Personnel.

. Director of Planning and the Environment – Building Control; Engineering and Contract Management; Health and Housing; and Planning Services.

. Director of Corporate Services – Customer Services; Financial Services and Audit; Information and Communication Technology; Legal and Land Charges; Revenues and Benefits; and Central Administration.

Political structure

The next two pages illustrate the political structure of the Council and each portfolio‟s key services, responsibilities and partnerships.

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. Overview Committees .

. Cabinet of seven Portfolios: . Executive The role of the Overview . Leader Committees is to challenge and . Community . scrutinise the Council, the . Communication and Safety Executive and other public . Strategies and Planning bodies in the area, to assist in . . Environmental Management policy development and review . Good Health and Housing and to oversee the Council’s . Optimising Resources programme of Best Value . . Overview reviews. The Committees fulfil . Committees this role in relation to these . Performance & Resources . Licensing and Overview Committee specific Executive Portfolios: . . Regulation Performance & Resources . Committee Overview Committee . . Housing & Planning Leader . . Homelessness Overview Committee Optimising Resources . . Committee Housing & Planning . Overview Committee . . Community & Environment Strategies and Planning . Boundary . Council Overview Committee Housing aspects of Good Health . Committee and Housing . . . Community & Environment . Appeals Planning Overview Committee . Committee Committee . Community . Communication and Safety . . Personnel Standards Environmental Management . Regulatory Constitutional . and other Committee Committee Health aspects of Good Health . Review and Housing . Committees . Committee

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Portfolio Services, Functions Partnerships

Leader Political Leadership, Policy Direction and Coordination, Community Plan, Chiltern Community Partnership (LSP), Vision, Performance Management, Financial Strategy, Budget, Council Tax, Buckinghamshire Strategic Partnership, BCC, Treasury Management, Annual Performance Plan, Comprehensive Performance Government MPs, Regional Organisations Assessment, Urgent Items

Community Grants policy and awards, Young People, Older People, Liaison with the Bucks Compact, Voluntary Sector, External Service voluntary sector, Concessionary Fares, Discretionary Rate Relief, Sports and Providers, Disability Focus Group Leisure Policy and Monitoring, Community Development and Revitalisation Action Plan Coordination (includes Local Agenda 21 and cultural strategy)

Communication and Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy, CCTV, Liaison with Thames Valley Thames Valley Police, Police Authority, Town and Safety Police, Health and Safety (Internal and External), Building Control, Emergency Parish Councils Planning, Liaison with Town and Parish Councils, External and Internal Communications, Consultation, Marketing

Strategies and Planning Regional Planning, Local Development Documents, Local Area Committee, SEERA, SEEDA, Local Revitalisation Groups, Revitalisation Initiatives, Local Business Links, Special Parking Area, On and Chilterns Conservation Board, Colne Valley off street parking, Rural Issues, Chilterns AONB, Colne Valley Regional Park, Regional Park Trees, Conservation Areas, Historic Buildings and Monuments (Policy), Transport

Environmental Waste Management, Grounds Maintenance and Street Cleaning, Public Joint Waste Committee, Chilterns Crematorium Joint Management Conveniences, Abandoned Cars, Fly tipping, Licensing Policy, Contaminated Committee Land Strategy, Crematorium Services, Travellers

Good Health and Housing Environmental Protection, Food Law Enforcement Plan, Health Promotion, Pest Housing Service Providers, Primary Care Trust, Control Service, Dog Control Service, Housing Strategy, Homelessness, GOSE Housing Benefits, Energy Advice Optimising Resources Customer Focus, Asset Management Plan, Capital Strategy, e-Government Bucks Connect, BCC Superannuation Fund Strategy, Information Communication Technology, Personnel and Recruitment, Central Support Services, Legal Services, Cemeteries, Street Naming and Numbering, Local Land and Property Gazetteer, Geographic Information System, Member Services, Local Government Superannuation Scheme, Data Protection, Access to Information

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Joint working

The Council is committed to working in partnership with other organisations, and takes every opportunity to develop working agreements with a wide range of partners to deliver local services. Council officers and representatives of partner organisations, including town and parish councils, meet regularly to discuss opportunities for joint working.

Examples of this type of joint working include:

. The Joint Waste Committee with Buckinghamshire County Council and the other District Councils in Buckinghamshire – Vale, South Bucks and Wycombe. Over the last 12 months considerable work has been done to prevent and prosecute those committing fly tipping offences and abandoning vehicles. A new Waste Strategy is currently under preparation, this will consider options for waste disposal in the long term.

. BucksConnect - Government funding is enabling Buckinghamshire‟s five councils to improve the delivery of their public services through the application of new technology as part of the local “E-Government” programme. The partners operate a combined five-council website at www.bucksonline.gov.uk, and have been taking work forward together as part of Customer First looking at delivering a seamless service to customers.

. Buckinghamshire Local Public Service Agreements 1 and 2 (see section ?? on page ??).

. A Special Parking Area has been negotiated, providing six wardens across the District who will enforce off and on road parking regulations. This will become operational from September 2005, and has been agreed in partnership with Buckinghamshire County Council.

. Eleven Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) are now patrolling the streets of Chiltern. This scheme to tackle low level anti social behaviour and to provide a visible presence in our community has been developed in a partnership between Chiltern District Council, Thames Valley Police, Buckinghamshire County Council and some Town and Parish Councils involving the pooling of second homes Council Tax discount and Home Office monies.

. Buckinghamshire Strategic Partnership (see section ?? on page ??).

. The Bucks Youth Strategy 2004-07 was launched in December - http://www.chiltern.gov.uk/housingcommunity/default.asp?step=4&pid=132. From this an Action Plan has been developed for Chiltern to ensure that locally relevant service improvements are delivered that meet the needs of young people in the 13 to 19 age group.

. The Bucks Older People Strategy has now been agreed - http://www.chiltern.gov.uk/uploads/documents/CCP%20Policyolderpeopledraftstrategy.pdf. Again, an action plan for Chiltern is being developed as part of the Agewell work that is already in place.

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. Working with partners as part of the Chiltern Community Partnership to identify and tackle pockets of deprivation using the 2004 Indices of Multiple Deprivation - http://www.chiltern.gov.uk/CommunityPartnership/default.asp?step=4&pid=4601.

. Better Homes Better Health, Safer Homes and the Handy Van Scheme partnership projects focusing on helping elderly and vulnerable people to live safely in their own homes. These are partnerships between Chiltern District Council, Help the Aged, Chiltern and South Bucks Primary Care Trust, Bucks Fire and Rescue Service, Thames Valley Police, Bucks County Council and Chiltern Hundreds Housing Association. More information can be found at http://www.chiltern.gov.uk/services/default.asp?step=4&pid=425.

. A new contract has been negotiated and awarded to manage the leisure centres in Chiltern – this will ensure that better services are on offer and that leisure is used to promote healthy lifestyle choices. Projects are being delivered in partnership with Wycombe Leisure Ltd, such as SportsZone. More information about the leisure services on offer in Chiltern can be found at http://www.wll.co.uk/default.asp?step=1&contractID=1.

. A new contract has been awarded to Verdant for refuse and recycling collections across the District. This includes a kitchen waste pilot to look at ways of reducing the amount of waste going to landfill.

. The Bucks Compact has been agreed, this sets out a framework for the future working relationship between the „statutory sector‟ (Buckinghamshire County Council, District Councils, Primary Care Trusts and Thames Valley Police) and the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) in Buckinghamshire. More information can be found at http://www.chiltern.gov.uk/buckscompact/default.asp?step=4&pid=4458.

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1.2 Chiltern District Council Key Objectives

Delivering the best for Chiltern

We reviewed our corporate key objectives and targets in 2004-05 to make sure that they reflected local people‟s needs and continued to help deliver the priorities identified by the Chiltern Community Plan (see section 1.3 on page ??) and by Community Appraisals. These appraisals are initiated by Chiltern District Council, led by the Town and Parish Councils and/or the revitalisation groups and facilitated and supported by Buckinghamshire Community Action and Chiltern District Council. They enable communities to appraise their own needs, identify funding requirements and opportunities and increase community participation. They also enable the Council to integrate the principles of community development across all its policies.

Our approach – Delivering the best for Chiltern – is supported by four key objectives, each of which is broken down into a number of priorities or actions. They are explained in full in our booklet Key Objectives 2004-06. Copies are available from the Council offices or on the Council‟s website – http://www.chiltern.gov.uk/uploads/documents/policykeyobjectives200406.pdf.

We combine these objectives and priorities with our everyday work through a series of detailed plans for each of the Council‟s services, which contain specific objectives, action programmes and targets. These Service Plan objectives, in turn, are translated into personal objectives for individual staff members and teams to work towards, with clear targets and expectations.

In this way, each member of staff can see where his or her individual contribution fits into the Council‟s key objectives, and the Council can monitor and develop staff and constantly seek to improve performance.

The Council‟s key objectives and priorities can be seen below. The objective and priorities in italics have been identified by the Council as being of top priority.

Objective 1: Promoting a vibrant, safe and healthy community

A – Working with partners to make the District a safer place to live and work. B – Promoting the good health of local people and tackling health inequalities. C – Supporting the provision of services to older people and young people. D – Facilitating community participation, community appraisals and the sustainable development of communities. E – Assessing local housing needs and conditions and ensuring that appropriate action is taken to meet local needs and to make best use of existing housing.

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Objective 2: Protecting, preserving and improving the environment

A – Managing development pressure in order to protect the Green Belt and enhance the environment. B – Implementing a decriminalised parking area in the District. C – Keeping out streets and open spaces clean and well maintained and dealing effectively with nuisances. D – Providing residents with a high quality, reliable waste service and reducing waste and promoting recycling. E – Supporting the revitalisation of town and village facilities and services. F – Ensuring the improvement of Council operated sites. G – Effective management and prevention of traveller incursions. H – Preparing a Local Development Scheme which is the timetable and project plan for the review of the Local Plan and undertaking the range of tasks it sets out.

Objective 3: Continuing to deliver a range of high quality, customer-focused services

A – Responding effectively to our customers. B – Sustaining current high performance and improving quality of delivery of Revenues and Benefits, Development Control and other key services. C – Maximising community benefit by using licensing and other regulations. D – High quality cost effective leisure provision. E – Improved working together and reduced costs for key voluntary sector agencies through shared accommodation.

Objective 4: Pursuing effectiveness and efficiency in all we do

A – Providing out customers with their choice of accessing Council services by enhancing our channels of communication. B – Valuing our staff and promoting best practice to motivate and train an effective staff team in support of excellent service delivery and customer service. C – An ongoing commitment to maintaining the high standards of corporate governance. D – An ongoing commitment to equality. E – Promoting a culture of savings, value and continuous improvement in providing services, investment and partnerships. F – Reconciling community concerns on Council Tax levels with requirements for maintenance, and even extended range, of services. G – Making the best use of the Council’s assets.

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1.3 Chiltern Community Plan

The Local Government Act 2000 placed a duty on councils to prepare a community plan in consultation with local residents to promote the economic, environmental and social well-being of their area. Building on existing partnership working, Chiltern District Council set up the Chiltern Local Strategic Partnership – known as The Chiltern Community Partnership.

Partners include Buckinghamshire County Council, the town and parish councils, Thames Valley Police, Chiltern and South Bucks Primary Care Trust and voluntary organisations. The Partnership has welcomed a number of new members in the past year, particularly from the voluntary and private sectors.

The Partnership‟s broad aim is to improve the quality of life for everyone who lives or works in Chiltern and make it a place where people, communities and businesses can flourish. Over the last 12 months the Partnership have been working to develop a Vision for Chiltern to 2020, this document sets out where we hope to be, our aspirations for the future and the challenges we face. The following sets out our aspirations, and further detail on the Vision can be found on the Partnership‟s website http://www.chiltern.gov.uk/uploads/documents/CCP_TheVisionChiltern_Final.pdf.

. A place with integrated, supportive and capable communities that promote active citizenship.

. A place where high quality services and facilities help people from all sections of the community, particularly the young, elderly and disadvantaged, to live independent and fulfilling lives.

. A place where we can lead safe lives free from the fear of crime and anti social behaviour.

. A place with attractive and vibrant town and village centres and an outstanding countryside.

. A place that promotes equality of opportunity and ensures fair access to services.

. A place that encourages local employers and small businesses so we can protect the area‟s economy for the future and achieve a better balance between the jobs available and the people to fill them.

. A place where people have the skills, knowledge and ability to make effective decisions and healthy lifestyle choices.

. A place with enough affordable housing to meet local needs and maintain our services and communities.

. A place with effective and targeted transport solutions, including a well maintained transport infrastructure.

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. A place where high quality education and lifelong learning improves peoples lives, enabling them to make well-informed decisions and play their full part in the community.

. A place with a wide range of accessible leisure opportunities.

. A place with a clean and green environment where recycling and waste minimisation is an established part of everyday life.

The Chiltern Community Partnership is now working to establish a performance management framework so it can show how far is has got towards achieving its Vision, and developing an action plan to help us get there.

The Chiltern Community Plan is due to be reviewed and updated during the coming 12 months by the Partnership to incorporate this work.

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1.4 Buckinghamshire Local Public Service Agreement

The Council is also a member of the Buckinghamshire Local Public Service Agreement (LPSA) with Buckinghamshire County Council, Buckinghamshire‟s three other District Councils, Thames Valley Police and Buckinghamshire‟s NHS organisations. The LPSA is a Government initiative designed to improve the quality of public services at a local level.

The Buckinghamshire LPSA covers the period from 1 January 2002 to 31 March 2005. It commits the Council and its partners to working together to achieve 13 targets in seven specified areas which would be difficult to achieve without the agreement. Progress against achieving each of the targets can be found in Appendix ??, which starts on page ??.

The Council, its partners and the Government are in the process of developing targets for the second Buckinghamshire LPSA, which will run from 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2008. A list of targets for the LPSA 2 can also be found in Appendix ??.

1.5 Buckinghamshire Community Plan

The LPSA forms the basis of the Buckinghamshire Community Plan, which has been drawn up by the Buckinghamshire Strategic Partnership. Its members are the LPSA partners and a number of other local and regional organisations. They include: Age Concern; Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes Fire and Rescue Service; Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College; Milton Keynes, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Learning and Skills Council; the National Probation Service; and the Environment Agency.

Following consultation with the public and stakeholders seven key themes were agreed:

. Creating safer communities.

. Improving the health of Buckinghamshire.

. Maintaining a dynamic economy.

. Safeguarding and improving the environment.

. Supporting local communities.

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There are also three cross cutting areas of work, these are –

. Young people.

. Older people.

. Sense of place.

The Partnership‟s work complements the work of the Chiltern Community Partnership, and the local Partnership has a role in helping to deliver the Bucks-wide themes in Chiltern and vice versa.

Further information on the Bucks Strategic Partnership can be found on their website - http://www.bucksonline.gov.uk/BSP/index.htm. The Bucks Community Plan is currently being reviewed and updated.

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1.6 National Shared Priorities

The Government relies on local authorities to work with local partners, such as the police and the Primary Care Trust, to deliver seven national objectives. These are known as “shared priorities”, and we must make progress on these as well as our own local priorities. The list of shared priorities and the contribution the Council and other local partners are making towards them can be seen below:

Promoting healthier communities and narrowing health inequalities

. Housing and Community Service Plan led by Chiltern District Council.

. Housing Strategy led by Chiltern District Council.

. Buckinghamshire Health Improvement Programme led by the Chiltern and South Bucks Primary Care Trust.

. Southern Buckinghamshire “Health for All” initiative led by the Chiltern and South Bucks Primary Care Trust.

. The “Better Homes, Better Health” initiative led by the Chiltern and South Bucks Primary Care Trust.

. Supporting People work being done on a county-wide basis.

Promoting the economic vitality of localities

. Chiltern Community Plan led by the Chiltern Partnership.

. Community Development and Revitalisation Action Plan 2003-05 led by Chiltern District Council.

. The work of the Buckinghamshire Strategic Partnership under the Local Public Service Agreements.

. Progressing the review of the Local Plan led by Chiltern District Council.

. Reviewed participation in the Bucks Economic Partnership with a view to joining in 2005-06 following representation from the Chiltern Business Group.

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Meeting local transport needs more effectively

. Chiltern Community Plan led by the Chiltern Partnership.

. Local Transport Plan led by Buckinghamshire County Council.

. Central Chilterns Area Traffic Management Project led by the Shadow Chiltern Conservation Board and the Countryside Agency.

. Rural Transport Partnership led by Bucks Community Action.

Creating safer and stronger communities

. Community Development and Revitalisation Action Plan 2003-05 led by Chiltern District Council, including the development of Community Appraisals initiated by Chiltern District Council and led by Town and Parish Councils/Revitalisation Groups and facilitated and supported by Buckinghamshire Community Action and Chiltern District Council.

. Community Safety Strategy led by the Chiltern Community Safety Partnership.

. Help the Aged Handy Van and Senior Link projects led by Chiltern District Council, supported by the CDRPs in Chiltern, South Bucks and Wycombe and delivered by Help the Aged to provide security and assistance to older people on low income.

. The “Southern Buckinghamshire Safer Homes” and “Better Homes Better Health” projects led by Chiltern District Council with the support of a range of partners including Wycombe and South Bucks District Councils, Wycombe/Chiltern and South Bucks Primary Care Trusts, Buckinghamshire County Council, Police, Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue and Chiltern Hundreds Housing Association. These projects support the delivery of our Private Sector Renewal Strategy.

Improving the quality of life for older people and of children, young people and families at risk

. Community Development and Revitalisation Action Plan 2003-05 led by Chiltern District Council.

. The Council is an active member of the Children and Young People Strategic Partnership for Bucks.

. The work of the Buckinghamshire Strategic Partnership under the Local Public Service Agreements, with Chiltern District Council playing a key role including leading the work on young people.

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. Children‟s and Young People‟s Preventative Strategy led by Buckinghamshire County Council.

. The Council played a full role in the Youth Strategy for Buckinghamshire and has prepared a local action plan for Chiltern.

Raising standards across our schools

. The work of the Buck