Chief Executive Blog - February 2013
Dear Colleagues,
Well, as it’s now February it’s noticeable how much more light there is in the morning and at night as I walk to and from work each day. Hopefully we will start seeing plants and flowers growing that will indicate that spring is on its way!
As most of you will have guessed, the issue which I have been most focused on over the past few weeks has been planning the Council’s budget for 2013/14 and the budget for the three to four years beyond 2014/16. Even though we have all been well aware of the need to make significant savings in the next three to four years, it’s always difficult to make the final choices. The Administration Group and senior officers have been working hard together to agree proposals that will achieve the savings in the timescales required. We have managed to do that, at least for the 2013/14 budget.
There’s no doubt that having to make decisions that will ultimately impact on people’s jobs is difficult and I know that for those concerned, the possibility of losing your job is devastating. I wish I could find a solution that did not entail anyone having to leave the Council, but this simply is not possible. What I can do is try my best to make sure that anyone affected is given all the help and support that they might need to guide them through the difficult weeks ahead.
Part of that involves monitoring all vacancies to ensure that no unnecessary jobs are being created or advertised that could spare a current employee from having to leave, ensuring that all possible redeployment opportunities are fully maximised. For the longer term budget savings this also means working hard on the Area Based Reviews that are set out in the budget proposals. The Area Based Reviews involve reviewing how services are currently provided and looking at how, if we had a blank sheet of paper, the Council would choose to start set out the provision of its services. We currently have services that have historically been in certain locations, but if we were starting from scratch, based on current requirements, where would we choose to place our services now? As you will imagine there is some urgency to get this work completed and I’ll keep you updated on our progress.
Along with the budget work I have attended meetings of CoSLA and Chief Executives’ in Edinburgh, attended the Highlands and Islands Conveners’ Group in Edinburgh and met the new Chief Constable for Scotland, Stephen House in Aberdeen. These meetings are very useful, particularly to keep up-to-date with what is happening nationally and to ensure those at the top are aware of Moray’s needs and aspirations.
Despite the difficult budget work of the past few weeks, there have been one or two highlights that I would like to share with you. One particular highlight was the Service Learning Visit to the staff within the Finance Section as part of the Employee Engagement Programme. It was good to see everyone, put some names to some familiar faces and to have the opportunity to talk about things that are affecting them in their day to day jobs. I know Moray is well regarded for the prudent way it handles its finances eg the way it consistently completes its accounts on time. This is a tribute to the hard work and professionalism of the many staff in Finance whom I met during my visit.
My biggest challenge for the next couple of weeks is continuing to focus on the budget for the next three to four years beyond 2014, progress the work of the Area Based reviews, complete the Community Plan submission to the Scottish Government at the beginning of April and to progress a review of the Council’s management and supervision arrangements.
Other items of business that I am looking forward to is meeting with the a number of major companies operating in Moray keen to work with the Council to provide jobs for our young people.
My final thought as I sign off for this month is on a slightly lighter note – Pancake Day has passed and Lent has started! I wonder how many of us are going to give something up - I have rather unoriginally felt like giving up chocolate. The feeling passed and I decided to take up running instead – the target is the Great Scottish Run in Glasgow in October! I’ll let you know how I’m getting on next month!!