Outcome: One Council that listens and learns
Where we are now
As a Council we have an important part to play in addressing the challenges the people of Rotherham face and achieving better outcomes for them. Our vision is to work with communities to deliver responsive and modern services that are easily accessible for everyone. We seek to do this by listening to our residents and staff to learn and improve the ways in which we work and how we deliver services.
Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council serves the town well and is today an impressive organisation. Being named the ‘Most Improved Council’ in the country at the Local Government Chronicle (LGC) Award in 2022 provides ample evidence that it is now in a very good place. It is ambitious and has well-established and robust foundations, along with several notable and commendable practices that other councils can learn from.
Our focus remains on Rotherham residents, building relationships based on trust, and working with people and communities to solve problems and make the most of opportunities. Through the implementation of consistent standards, we have been working to improve how we interact with customers to help build trust and confidence.
Implemented a new set of customer service standards and reduced call waiting times to the customer contact centre to below 4 minutes on average to improve the quality of our customer contacts
Through our Consultation and Engagement Framework we strive to work with our communities and be responsive to their needs. We aim to listen, inform and work in partnership with service users and stakeholders, and wherever possible include their views in the shaping, commissioning and delivery of services. We conduct an equality analysis within every consultation and engagement to identify groups that may be affected by any changes to policy, procedure, function or service and mitigate any impacts.
We also collaborate with partners across the private, voluntary and wider public sectors through the Rotherham Together Partnership. The five themes of their work are: a place to be proud of, inclusive economy, climate and environment, health and wellbeing, and building stronger communities. The Rotherham Together Partnership is a prime example of our commitment to collaborating with other organisations in Rotherham to deliver better solutions for our residents in different ways.
The Rotherham Together Partnership is delivering the Rotherham Plan
Through the Health and Wellbeing Board the Council, NHS and other key partners work together to reduce health inequalities and ensure health services are effective and accessible. This will help us to reduce the significant gap in life expectancy across the borough. The board and partners are looking to ensure that all of Rotherham people can live longer and healthier lives.
Our neighbourhoods approach is grounded in strengths-based working, with local residents integral to identifying local priorities and shaping ward plans. This means recognising and building on the skills, resources, knowledge, experience and heritage within our communities and empowering residents to find creative solutions to the local issues that matter most to them. We encourage collaborative working between elected members, council services, police, parish councils, community groups, residents and other stakeholders within neighbourhoods. This helps to better tackle locally identified issues, bringing communities together through a range of enjoyable activities, cultural and social events, inspiring hope and pride in Rotherham.
Ward Priorities ensure we utilise strengths-based working to embed local solutions into service delivery
Though our Workforce Plan we have been developing capacity and skills across the Council and working to attract a talented workforce that serves the borough well. Work to promote the Council as an employer of choice has been underway to join up the ‘early careers’ offer, including work experience, placements, supported internships, apprenticeships and graduate roles. We have also been focused on workforce engagement and development and developing new ways of working, including relaunching and embedding our new staff values, which reflect who we are as an organisation and what we stand for.
Engaged with over 200 young people at schools and universities to better understand their views of the Council as a potential employer
In 2019, we declared a Climate Emergency alongside a plan of action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions generated by the Council and the wider borough. This was done in response to the impact of climate change being felt in Rotherham with devastating floods and heatwaves. Progress towards achieving our ambitions is managed through the delivery of annual Climate Change Action Plans, which set targets for our services and operations. This is driven by changes we make inside the council itself, but also in the amount of change we can influence across the rest of the borough.
Reducing our impact on the environment as we work to Net Zero
We have worked closely with a number of energy companies to promote and support the installation of more efficient boilers to homes across the borough. A total of 328 (CHECK) installations took place, funded by energy companies to a value of £2 million. This has supported some of the most vulnerable people in our communities in reducing their energy bills and as well as supporting our borough wide drive to decarbonisation.
We are testing the approach to more sustainable fuels in our refuse vehicles, using Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (HVO) in several vehicles in 2024 resulted in carbon reduction of 80 tonnes and less pollutants being released into the atmosphere. We will now look to roll this out wider, complementing our electric fleet with HVO vehicles.
In 2024, over 11,500 trees were planted, enhancing our woodlands, towns and villages across the borough. The planting of trees helps with removing harmful carbons and other pollutants from the air and supports with having more suitable woodland and urban greenspaces for all our communities.
We have carried out engagement sessions with residents, schools, colleges and businesses across the borough to provide advice, updates and guidance on several areas, including energy savings and management, skills and jobs in the decarbonisation sector and the benefits of renewable technology and how changing our behaviours can have a positive impact on our pockets as well as the climate.
Council Plan consultation headlines
- 24% of people asked in the short interactions said that the thing they liked the most about where they live is the community spirit.
- 17% of people asked in the online and postal survey said that their one wish for the future of Rotherham was an improved reputation.
- 14% of people asked in the online and postal survey said that the thing they liked the most about where they live is the people.
We need to promote civic mindedness – encourage people to feel that their voices are important
It is nice to see council officers interested in what people think
