Leading Planning Departments Workshop by Richard Crawley
Workshop conducted by Programme Manager Richard Crawley on leadership essentials in January 2016, focusing on challenges, strategic thinking, and confidence-building for planning departments. Tasks included understanding the role and benefits of planning departments, analyzing a case study, and discussing the leadership role of councillors. Various topics such as sustainable development, functions of planning departments, and management policies were covered.
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Leading planning departments workshop Richard Crawley, Programme Manager Leadership Essentials January 2016 www.pas.gov.uk
120 Minute workshop This will be tricky for many of you. You will have been strategic not detail Remember the mix of experience in the room It s OK not to know it all! My goal is to make you more confident to challenge and direct
120 Minute workshop Task 1 : What do planning departments do? Who benefits ? Task 2 : Using a detailed case study, work out a savings target, and reflect on what councillors should do to lead this Bonus task: Fixing a broken service Share & compare. I ll offer my view also.
Task 1 : What do planning departments do ? And why ? The purpose of the planning system is to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development. [ ] There are three dimensions to sustainable development: economic, social and environmental. NPPF 6-7
Task 1 : What do planning departments do ? And why? What jobs do they do ? What benefits are there? Short and long-term To councils ? To applicant/owner/operator ? To other people ? Some of the detail might be new to you Give it a go ! (as a table) 3 functions, 20 minutes in total
Task 1 : What do planning departments do ? Feedback Development Management Planning policy Compliance and enforcement Share and compare
Task 1 : What do planning departments do ? Hand-outs Challenge ?
Task 2: A case study A case study about a real (ish) service Dive into the detail But then reflect on a councillor s role as leader. What can you say / do / ask to help officers do the right thing ? You have another hand-out
How to read this budget Costs are positive Income is negative 310 - Pre- application (paid) 82 -5131
Task 2 : Make a savings target You have a hand-out Costs and incomes Service snapshot If you want to know anything else, ask Your task Four things to do, that will deliver budget target Each one should follow an outline What is it ? How much ? How simple ? Prepare to shout them out
Some advice Yes, the obvious stuff Reduce costs Increase income But you are free to think big, creative thoughts You are in a spot ! It s a good time to go for it Think: inside, outside [the department, the council] Use the budget. Don t sweat the small stuff
Task 2 : How do you balance the books ? Share Anyone gone any further ? Blue sky thinking ? Notice what was missing from mgmt accounts? So what ?
Task 2 : What officers said Taking an average across four teams 1. Planning policy saving 300k 2. Pre-app income 150k 3. Process saving 140k 4. Committee saving 50k
Task 2 : Political Leadership How does this translate into a councillor s role ? How can you place limits, boundaries on options ? How can you encourage creative and new approaches ?
My thoughts Task 2 Transfer cost to applicants & agents Pre-app (committee !) Premium services (speed those applications which are in accordance with the nppf ) or even onsite (eg trees) Reduce cost of service by establishing trust and confidence in staff to do only what is needed Plan-making as a region (County ?) Officers say you are the barrier
Thoughts ? Reflections ? Councillors role ?
Bonus Task : How to do it Goals and targets are the easy bit The difficult part is how How to deliver budget reductions How to improve failing services Bonus task = how to fix a broken service What is the role of a politician ?
Bonus Task Situation Service is not going so well Validation backlog (many cases > 30 days) Pre-applications on back-burner Corporate complaints (and councillor complaints) going up and up Designation ? ICT system change overdue. Should have been in 2014 Staff low. Inward looking. Getting worse
Bonus task situation contd Leaders What do you do? What conversations do you need ? Four things, in order, from your table 20 minutes
Bonus task 2 how to do it Share Anyone disagree ?
My thoughts Bonus task One service one response. Extra (new) resources are rarely the answer. Get people to give more. Can you explain why they should ? Focus on comms (eg queue) Start today. Do only what is required. Ask only when needed. Risk-based approach.
