Chief Executive Blog - December 2014
Dear Colleagues,
November was a busy month one way and another and I am only sorry that I missed the second of the employee conferences at Forres following a late invitation to Edinburgh to give evidence at a meeting of the Scottish Parliament’s local government and regeneration committee.
My thanks to Mark Palmer for standing in for me at the conference which I gather went very well, just as the first one had at Keith a few weeks earlier.
The invitation to appear before the committee presented me with the opportunity to give a rural authority perspective on the funding of local councils by the Scottish Government.
It was my third trip to Edinburgh in a week, having attended a COSLA meeting just the previous Friday which was preceded by the annual general meeting of the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives at which I was appointed honorary secretary for the year ahead.
Two days before that I was one of the speakers at a conference in the capital entitled Channel Shift in the Public Sector which focused on the rollout of broadband across Scotland – an area where Moray has been very much in the vanguard.
Other journeys outwith Moray have included attendance at the Scottish Leaders Forum in Clydebank just last Friday. It is a forum of chief executive-level leaders from public bodies across Scotland who meet to discuss and collaborate on current issues.
All of these engagements have enabled Moray Council to share a stage with the big hitters in the Scottish public sector and have given a useful insight into how we are performing compared with our fellow councils and the challenges that lie ahead.
However, the highlight of the month for me – as it would have been for most people – was being presented to Her Majesty the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh on their arrival in Elgin of their way to visit RAF Lossiemouth and the Kinloss Barracks. It was a great honour and a privilege and one that will stay with me for a long time.
Later this month I will have the pleasure of attending the staff recognition awards which honour those individuals and teams across the council who have demonstrated an outstanding level of commitment in the course of their duties. Last year’s inaugural scheme was very successful, with awards going to a variety of worthy winners and I am sure the latest awards will also reflect the excellent work that our staff do on a daily basis.
With Christmas fast approaching, many of you will be making arrangements for family get-togethers and looking forward to a well-earned break and some relaxation. However, I am conscious that not everyone will be off work for the duration and that some services will continue to operate over the holiday period and that some of you on the front line will be on standby and ready to respond if your services are required. Rest assured that your efforts are much appreciated.
I hope that each and every one of you has a happy Christmas and a healthy and prosperous New Year and I look forward to seeing you again in 2015.