Over the last four years many services provided by the City of Edinburgh Council have improved, its finances have been well-managed and ambitious strategies to improve the lives of local people and the economy have been agreed.
In a report published today the Accounts Commission says, however, that since 2016 there has been mixed progress at a strategic level, across community engagement and continuous improvement.
The council must now put in place a long-term financial strategy and a more effective workforce plan.
Both are essential for the council to address the additional pressures the impact of Covid-19 has placed on the council, and support how it will fund and manage its vision for the future. Strong leadership and clear, collaborative working with local partners are vital to realise these ambitions.
Across Scotland, Covid-19 has exacerbated existing inequalities, an issue of significant concern to the Accounts Commission.
Whilst Edinburgh is, overall, a prosperous city, the Commission urge the council to continue to lead and progress its commitment to reducing poverty and inequality across the city.
The council should also do more to embed community empowerment throughout the council’s culture, enabling local people to improve public services and their communities.
Elma Murray, Interim Chair of the Accounts Commission said, “The City of Edinburgh Council can do more to maximise its potential to improve the city and the lives of local people.
“Whilst the ambition of the council and its partners is impressive, the detail of how it will deliver, monitor and report on its key strategic goals must be in one accessible and coherent plan. It is the responsibility of all local councillors, working together, to ensure the city and its services continue to improve.
“It is important for the council to focus on continuous improvement and the creation of long-term financial and workforce plans. I expect the council to act swiftly on our report. Doing so will support the council’s ambitions to improve the lives of its residents.”
Responding to the report, Council Leader Adam McVey said: “We welcome the Accounts Commission’s constructive feedback in response to the Best Value Assurance Report carried out by the Controller of Audit and we are pleased to note their positive comments about the levels of ambition we have shown in addressing our key priorities of poverty, sustainability and wellbeing.
“The Controller of Audit acknowledged the improving picture of our core services, while our bold strategies to put people at the heart of how we design public space, our proven ability to take difficult decisions like taking trams to Newhaven, and extensive consultations with residents and stakeholders to put communities at the heart of our decision-making are all cited as strengths.
“Of course, we’re always striving to improve wherever we can so that we deliver the best possible services and achieve what we’ve set out to achieve on behalf of the people of Edinburgh. We are now carefully reviewing the full report and will work hard to address areas in need of our attention going forward.”
Depute Leader, Labour’s Cammy Day said: “The Council delivers more than 700 services for Scotland’s Capital, from care for the most vulnerable in our communities and maintaining several hundred miles of roads and pavements to educating our children and putting roofs over people’s heads, and much more besides.
“Our frontline colleagues continue to pull out all the stops to keep vital services going during hugely challenging circumstances right now and I want to thank each and every one of them for their hard work and dedication.
“These are especially testing times for all local authorities given the ongoing global pandemic and straitened public finances so it’s vital we are equipped with as much information as possible when making decisions affecting our communities.
“What we’re doing now is reviewing the Best Value Assurance report and the Accounts Commission’s findings in full with elected members. We’ll then draw up our detailed response setting out how we plan to use the findings in the best interests of the whole city.”
The Best Value Assurance Audit report and Accounts Commission findings will be considered and scrutinised by the Policy and Sustainability Committee on 1 December, by the Governance, Risk and Best Value Committee on 8 December and by Full Council on 10 December.
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