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Issue - meetings

2025/26 Quarterly Service Review Q1

 

 

Meeting: 10/09/2025 - Executive (Item 384)

384 Quarterly Service Review Q1 pdf icon PDF 92 KB

Purpose:

To provide details of the Council’s operational performance at the end of 2025-26 Quarter One (Q1).

 

Recommendation:

That the Executive Resolves to:

1.    Note the 2025/26 Q1 service performance report.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Andy Graham, Leader of the Council, introduced the item, the purpose of which was to provide details of the Council’s operational performance at the end of 2025-26 Quarter One (Q1).

 

Councillor Graham made the following points:

 

  • Service Performance in all areas had remained broadly positive.
  • Areas that were above target included: the percentage of Council Tax and Non-Domestic Rates collected; Leisure centre visits and gym memberships and number of affordable houses delivered.
  • Customer satisfaction was above target at 98.21%, however Councillor Graham reassured those present that, while this was positive, where there were issues the Council would respond and communicate quickly.
  • Service areas below target could be seen in section 3.3 of the report. It was noted that household waste recycling was below target but this reflected seasonal factors and a national trend. With regard to Planning Appeals Allowed, the granular detail revealed that this related to single figures of appeals.

 

Councillor Graham proposed accepting the recommendations of the report.

 

Councillor Duncan Enright, Deputy Leader, seconded the proposal and noted that West Oxfordshire had scored well in recent leagues tables on action for climate change and as a district to set up a business.

 

This was voted on and approved unanimously.

 

RESOLVED:

That the Executive:

1.    Noted the 2025/26 Q1 service performance report.

Meeting: 03/09/2025 - Overview and Scrutiny Committee (Item 38)

38 2025/26 Quarterly Service Review Q1 pdf icon PDF 93 KB

Purpose

Pre-decision scrutiny of an Executive report detailing the service performance of the Council in the first quarter of 2025/26.

 

Recommendation

That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee resolves to:

1.      Note the report and agree any recommendations it wishes to submit to the Executive.

 

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Andy Graham, Leader of the Council, introduced the item and was supported by Gemma Moreing, Business Information and Performance Lead. The Executive Member made the following points;

 

  • The Report was being taken to the Executive meeting on 10 September 2025, and comments from the Committee were welcome ahead of this.
  • The report was broadly positive. Section 2.1 contained a broad summary of performance, section 3.1 showed service areas with performance above target, of which there were a considerable number.
  • Section 3.3 contained detail of service performance that was below target. These were expanded on by the Officer making the following points:
    • Processing times for Council Tax Support Change Events and Housing Benefit Change of Circumstances were below target due to a planned one-month pause in uploading Universal Credit Applications. Since resuming such uploads, batch automation rates had consistently exceeded 90% and processing times had significantly improved which should address the issues.
    • The percentage of household waste recycling was below target which mirrored a national trend due to seasonal and structural factors. In particular, the unusually dry weather had led to a reduction in garden waste tonnages.

 

In discussion, members raised the following points:

 

  • The Committee sought an explanation as to how recycling was measured and calculated.
  • What steps could be taken to improve communication with the service users regarding recycling. There was a useful pdf document on the Council website, which could be presented differently.
  • Despite the Council being rated highly for recycling rates in benchmarking terms, the results were static. As this was the case could improvements be investigated?
  • It would be useful if measurements could be separated for garden and general waste in order to get a truer picture of performance trends.
  • With the falling garden waste rate had there been a noticeable increase in use of the local tip?
  • What was the verification process for plastic recycling.
  • The Committee discussed the merits of a separate Task and Finish Group for this area of Waste. It was noted that such work could be included in an expanded remit for the existing Waste Transformation Task and Finish Group. The Committee expressed a preference for expansion of the existing remit of the current Group.

 

The Chair thanked the Executive Member and Officers for their presentation to the Committee.

 

Resolved: That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee note the report.

 

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