Shades of dark and light

It’s getting to that time of year - my favourite, and it’s coming early; vines loaded and blessed; Discovery and Worchester Pearmain slipping nicely off branches into welcoming hands.  Of course some people, like Penny, are still on hols.  She asked me to cover for this her second week and to provide a few words and pics for her weekly blog.  To be honest I'm a little disappointed she didn't leave much in the way of Top Exec duties; co-signatory on a critical economic treaty - the Greater Portslade Initiative perhaps, or a major creative arts alliance with Newhaven.  Alas, nothing - I think she saw me coming.

Penny's blog is of course a sixpenny tour around her last seven days and the working lives of the people she meets along the way.  I confess I haven't got out so much this past fortnight, so I am afraid you are in for my usual ramblings.  Although, I did make it up to the Racehill Community Orchard where I met Neil and two other very nice volunteers, happily mulching young apple trees.  It's a neat setup with 80 trees planted and another 100 or so to come, courtesy of Brighton Permaculture.  There is a green gym, mindfulness, healthwalks, kids’ treasure hunts but sadly not as many punters as it merits.  I suppose like fruit trees, these things take time. There were a lot of dog walkers and it left me thinking ‘now there’s a healthy activity we should tap into more’.  I would certainly recommend a stroll around the place.  In fact, I spotted a few roadside apple trees en route so I may be back later for some furtive scrumping (it's a victimless crime and I, as director for Community Safety should know).

All manner of things can cross your path when standing in for Penny.  Local politics is always up there of course, but this week it was also Gaza.  You may have seen some press coverage around next month's proposed council debate on a boycott of certain goods and services.  International crisis it certainly is, though it prompted some thought on local themes. 

The role of the council for instance; something that Penny has mentioned in a previous blog and that is very much in our current thinking.  Not just the political role at home - or away - depending on your viewpoint, but also what we provide, commission, assure, lead or whatever in the face of an anticipated four years of cuts to our central budget. I know some of you are already feeding back ideas, but this conversation will – has to – reach all council staff, so expect it to be thematic for some time to come.

However, the council raison d’être does pale somewhat in the face of current dark events around the world; in Palestine certainly, but also in Syria, Iraq and a host of other countries.  A hopeful Arab spring plunged into bleakest winter.  You’ve probably seen the news of local youths caught up in some of it, all too tragically.  There is a lot of backroom work going on through teams in Community Safety, Children and Adult Safeguarding Services, with ‘Prevent’ and the police, and most crucially with local communities to try and avert further tragedy; the success of which will only be judged by non-events.  We’ve held two community ‘gatherings’ with some frank exchanges, but we do have a collective will to work together. One thing is certain; this situation that will be with us - on our watch - for some time.  Safeguarding is probably the toughest and most thankless role that sterling people within the city take on.  When it goes wrong – witness Rotherham – the results are shocking for communities, catastrophic for victims, as well as calamitous for those charged with their safety.

So I am looking forward to a little break of my own in September, although I’ve had a couple of long weekends already over the summer; one in Northern France and another in Scotland.  With the 100 year anniversary, we took the opportunity to visit the First World War graves and the very moving Somme Museum in Picardie.  Given the tone of this blog to date, I won’t dwell on that. 
 
Our trip to Scotland was more uplifting and we stayed with my brother Ted and his wife, Graça. I was heartened by the engagement - even in my split family - in the Independence Debate (it’s a tense time for us).  We saw some great Commonwealth Games as well as the Bridge of Allan Highland Games, which were equally excellent: running, dancing, wrestling, pipe bands, hammer throwing and of course caber tossing in a glorious setting straight out of Chariots of Fire, and all washed down with a sprinkling of Scottish showers. Because of the handicapping system with staggered starts, I watched a 75 year old man sprint –and he did – against a much younger field. It was a wonderful fusion of rivalry, competition and inclusion. I even saw Campbells and MacDonalds shake hands warmly.
 
There is always hope. 
Speak soon,

Tom
PS. I don’t have any local pics but here's a few holiday snaps of the Bridge of Allan games. Get yourself up there next year, the cabers come free. 

 

Never a dull moment

I’m covering for Penny this week in an allegedly quieter time of the year. 

 

Challenging work for a small team

So I found an all too rare opportunity to meet with a special team – the Traveller Liaison team. This small team has in my view some of the most challenging work in the council. For many, the romantic image of travelling communities is long gone and sadly too many times this nomadic lifestyle becomes the focus to community conflict and tension. 
 
The team has to tread the careful path of working with different communities – some increasingly desperate to find a place to stop and ensure their children are educated, others angry and upset with incursions on to environmentally sensitive sites. With much hard work, the team has had a terrific year keeping councillors and residents  informed and responding to their concerns; building a productive working relationship with our police colleagues; and, most recently opening up a far more practical and open dialogue with our neighbouring authorities in Greater Brighton.
 


Horsdean Traveller Transit site

 

Planning ahead

A frenzy of forward planning was in hand for the Staff Roadshows scheduled to take place this Autumn.  I took part in my department working group think through how we might engage, entertain and inspire you. It was really interesting to hear from different people at all levels of the organisation discuss with some passion what they would like to do. Obviously the content will remain a closely guarded secret until the first roadshow.
 

Colleagues planning the Environment, Development & Housing roadshows

 

Testing times

After recent floods and lightning strikes of biblical proportions which knocked out computers, phones and fire alarms in King’s House, a new fire alarm system was put to the test on Thursday. Thankfully in very pleasant weather, the system and evacuation worked well. Congratulations to all the team who have been working to install the new system and all the staff who work as wardens and keep us safe.
 

Lee Beckham, facilities and security manager, and colleagues during the test

 

Final set of results

School may be out for summer but this week saw many young people in the city getting their GCSE results. From the initial results it looks like our students, teachers and our schools have exceeded the national average in achieving A-C in English and Maths, and some schools are reporting their best ever haul of A and A* grades.
 

Samantha and Jamie opening their results at Patcham High

 

Ernest with his results at Patcham High

 

Maisie and Holly with their results at Patcham High

 

There are also some very encouraging results for pupils in receipt of free school meals – a recognised indicator of deprivation. Closing the gap in achievement between those in receipt of free school meals and those who aren’t is our secondary school partnership’s top priority, so this is great news. We’ve yet to establish the impact the wider impact of the huge changes nationally in GCSEs this year, but there is no doubt that educational success remains an important factor in the reputation of our city. The personal anxiety as pupil or parent can be quite something and I’m glad I’m through it!
 

Have a good weekend
 
Geoff  
Executive Director Environment, Development & Housing

Passion and commitment for doing a good job

I have never believed that August is a quiet month and my diary this week has confirmed it is indeed very busy. In amongst one to ones, meetings with HR, trade unions, probation colleagues, the Mayor, internal comms and the Leader, I have found time for two important and contrasting service visits.

Seafront services
On Tuesday afternoon I visited our Seafront services office after having taken a tour on some of the important sites on the seafront. At Madeira Terraces, I saw the investigative work underway to test the feasibility and cost of restoring these structures. The work to address just two arches in the terraces is expensive and complicated enough and it will be the Autumn before we learn the full scale of what needs to be done. I am pleased we have had a seafront scrutiny exercise underway to calmly consider the best way of ensuring a vibrant sustainable seafront for the future and I look forward to reading the report considering its recommendations.
I was hosted on my visit by Toni Manuel, the seafront development manager and her manager Ian Shurrock. At the office it was good to meet again with Graham and David, both experienced seafront officers.

Seafront officers Graham Buckley and David Wheeler

While I was talking with them, Ashley Guest, one of our seafront co-ordinators who was off duty, arrived in his swimming gear to have a swim in the fairly rough (but not prohibited) sea.



Toni Manuel and Ashley Guest

Our discussions also included other members of the team and we all gathered on the beach to pose for a photo and enjoy the exploits of Ashley and other off duty staff who were demonstrating their considerable swimming strengths.

Mark, Shaun, David, Sean, Toni, Chris, and Penny

This team undertakes a huge and challenging job on behalf of us all, and the weather on Tuesday which was bright, sunny and very windy with big waves, provided the exact conditions for lifeguards to be paying careful attention. Later in the afternoon I walked along Hove seafront and met Edward Sansom on King Alfred beach and he told me that his day had been challenging. He had to tell a number of families about the dangers of going in the sea despite the presence of a red flag which should have warned them. He was also challenged by a resident who wanted to take her dog on a non-dog friendly beach. These sorts of exchanges are an everyday sort of occurrence and I was struck by the good nature and enthusiasm of all of the seafront services team that I met. They demonstrate collaboration and respect as they undertake their customer services duties.



Edward Sansom on King Alfred beach

This morning I learnt that Chaz from seafront services dealt with a dead body on the beach as he came into work at 6am this morning. This really underlines the demands faced by our colleagues in seafront services. As well as life guarding the beach, Toni’s team manages the rentals of our properties on the seafront, the maintenance of the infrastructure and, with the police and housing services, the serious issues arising from rough sleepers which congregate along the seafront.

Hove Town Hall Customer Services Centre
This morning I made a visit to another of our customer service teams at Hove Town Hall.

Trish Andrew and Helena McNeilly (Customer Service advisers)

Here I met people with an equal passion and commitment to doing a good job. Trish and Helena, greet customers as they come into Hove Town Hall and navigate them to be seen as soon as possible. Christine Milla and Carol Dorey, team leader both shared with me their thoughts about quality of services and their determination to provide a good and efficient customer services experience. We agreed that some targeted training for front line staff in responding to challenging customers would be useful and I know that Carol will take this forward.

Carol Dorey (Customer Services team leader) and Grant Shaw (Parking Services manager)

I then met with Grant Shaw, parking services manager and some of his staff - both in the back office and dealing with customers. In particular I met Alice Gowland, Daryl Marks and Jenny Rollings.




Alice Gowland, Darryl Marks, and Jenny Rollings (Parking Customer Service advisers)

There was a fair size queue and a real sense of busyness in the parking office. I guess many residents like me are having visitors to stay at the moment and requiring extra permits. I am pleased to say that the print run is now complete and there is no longer a rationing of visitor permits as there has been recently.

While at the customer services desk I met one of our residents who I found out is a foster carer, Kieran Brennan. It was an unexpected pleasure to meet Kieran and to hear of the success that he and his partner Christopher have had with their foster child who this week had achieved a distinction in a BTec and will be going onto Varndean college to take 3 A levels.



Keiran Brennan

The unsung job that foster carers do is really worth mentioning, it is such a valuable role and Kieran was full of praise for the support that he gets from children services which was a particular delight for me to hear. For more information on fostering go to our web pages.

Well done to all
Yesterday’s A-level results provided real encouragement for the city. Our schools and colleges have bucked the national trend and, for the third year running, we saw an improvement in results. As well as congratulating all the students who achieve their results, I think it is worth remembering the unstinting work of the teachers, support staff and the heads in schools and colleges, as well the support of families, friends and carers. We have no room for complacency. We are a fantastic city which should be a shining beacon of educational achievement and so we won’t rest on our laurels when we take time to say 'well done' to all those students who now move onto work, university or a gap year.



BHASVIC A level students receive their results

Finally as I sign off for two weeks holiday I will leave the blog in the capable hands of Geoff Raw in the first week and Tom Scanlon in the second.

I am pleased to say that the fire alarm will be working fully in Kings House from Monday so expect a drill anytime soon.

Enjoy the rest of August.

Better together – the value of collaboration

Much has been said on social media and in the press about fabulous Pride last weekend. Let me just add my two pennies worth.

Celebrating Pride

The day was a really fine example of the city coming together and attracting people from all over the country to celebrate openness, acceptance, and happiness. It was a delight to meet our staff on the LGBT Workers' Forum bus. And it was special to talk with Miss Trans International, Dee Burger, who later told me that the bottle of water I gave her prevented her from wilting! 

LGBT Workers' Forum Pride float

 

Miss Trans International - Dee Burger

Having waved all of the floats off, I was able to follow the parade in an open top bus with my colleagues Paula, Martin and Richard. There we met Joy who had travelled up from Devon for a week in Brighton. Her happiness, the exuberance of the crowds along the way, (20 to 30 deep at some points) and then the bustle at the park were quite awe-inspiring. I am sure Paul Kemp who organises Pride must have felt very proud if a little exhausted. This event gets bigger every year and the feedback that I have received tells me that the organisation this year was excellent. The work to ticket and manage the St James’s Street party in the evening was a success too. So thanks to all involved who made this annual event so spectacular and heart-warming.

A fantastic event

 

First World War Memorial Service

Monday began with a more sombre event when we marked the joining of the First World War by this country.

Poppies in our city

A short commemorative service at the Royal Sussex Regiment war memorial was attended by Roger French, Deputy Lieutenant, the Sheriff of East Sussex, and a number of councillors, senior officers, local MP Caroline Lucas and members of the public. However the event became lively as Father John blessed a commemorative World War One heritage bus and it was launched on to our roads carrying us to the Mayor’s Parlour.
 

World War One heritage bus

You will see it running routes across Brighton & Hove throughout the four years of commemoration of the First World War. The work undertaken by the bus company, the council and The Keep combines together to produce a travelling memorial and history exhibition; a really creative idea.

The lively Emporium

On Tuesday, I had a number of meetings including with Richard Bradley, the new head of City Clean, who I wish very well in his new and vital role. I also visited London Road and the Open Market. We were there to meet the new Minister for High Streets and Seafronts, Penny Mordaunt MP. We waited for her in the Emporium on London Road, a lovely café and theatre bar run by Chris Gull, who is also vice Chair of the Rainbow Fund.

Chris Gull at the Emporium

There I talked with Greg Hadfield of Brighton & Hove Independent and councillors Geoffrey Bowden and Ian Davey, Joe Nichols the London Road City manager, Ann Townsend, chair of the Portas pilot and local business man Trevor Freeman. 

With Rev Philip Wells

All of these colleagues had been brought together by Rob Dawson from our economic development team. They have been supporting the Portas pilot on London Road and have been very successful. It was encouraging to know that Ann, Trevor and other local business people are hoping to form a community interest company in the area to continue their work. The Emporium was a lively place on Tuesday afternoon and it was a joy to meet two buskers Dani and Shani, who study at Brighton Institute of Modern Music.

Buskers Dani and Shani

While in the Open Market, I met Paul Reynolds a local florist and Philip Wells who chairs the London Road Local Action team (LAT). We were also able to meet the town centre liaison officers, Nick and Spencer, who while working 16 hours a week, over the last year have managed to reduce thefts in the area. Thefts from Maplins have reduced by a staggering 70%. The Minister was impressed with what she saw and the people she met and I hope there will be some transitional funding to further support the development of the area.

A busy Wednesday 

Wednesday is meetings day and as usual the executive leadership team met and we also had a meeting of the Modernisation Delivery Board. This board is overseeing our council modernisation programme, a key part of our budget strategy. The delivery board is attended by all of ELT and the heads of human resources, communications, and performance and programmes. Wednesday was a busy day; not only did we have a press announcement from the police, I was also being shadowed by Andy Hollingsworth, a senior officer from SOLACE (Society of Local Authority of Chief Executives). I hope he found it useful and informative.

In the afternoon Andy joined me and other council officers at a summit that I was chairing to discuss with a wide range of stake holders how we can make the Royal Pavilion Gardens a safer place for citizens and visitors. These gardens surrounding the peoples palace that is the Royal Pavilion are the heart and lungs of the city. Yet sometimes they can feel intimidating and unpleasant due directly to the behaviour of a small and visible minority of people of who misuse the area with their anti-social drinking, littering, defecating and occasionally violent behaviour. The summit was well attended and came up with a short list of action to pursue, including reviewing the cleaning and security arrangements and looking into the possibility of volunteer schemes and some cutting back of vegetation.

Wednesday underlined to me the importance of our values, including respect and collaboration, ensuring that we listen and take seriously concerns raised by people whether publicly or confidentially. I hope all staff and citizens are noticing that ours is an open and listening culture. I do not want there to be an organisational silence when there are issues that should be raised and addressed.

Ladies Day at Brighton Racecourse

With Joy

Yesterday I was able to accept an invitation to lunch at Ladies Day at the racecourse. This was my first visit to Brighton Racecourse and sadly because of the pressure of work I could only see one race. However it was good to meet Joy again who had been on the pride bus on Saturday. And I valued a business discussion with Tony Kelly, Manager Director of ARC racing and leisure group who runs Brighton Racecourse who has a  commitment to the city and its continued vibrancy.

Head of Communications

Corinna Allen

Finally, following a substantial interview process I am pleased to announce that Corinna Allen has been appointed as Head of Communications here. Corinna’s passion for the role, sound analysis of what needs to be done and her skills and experience are exactly what the local authority and partners need, and I wish her every success.

That is by no means everything for this week but I am sure it is quite enough! Enjoy your weekend and I hope the storm avoids us.

Out in the open

Last sunny Saturday saw the second Trans Pride and first ever Trans* Pride parade held in Brighton and attended and enjoyed by many. I am delighted that the work we have been doing over the past year with the trans community is being recognised near and far, and I look forward to a meeting with the new Chief Executive of Stonewall, Ruth Hunt, to talk particularly about trans issues early in the autumn. 

Spectators watching the Trans* Pride photo Sharon@alonglines

Stormy Weather

As we all know, the weekend’s glorious, hot, bright weather gave way to the most extraordinary local storm early on Monday morning. Kings House was struck by lightning and the basement was flooded.  





Phil Slydel



Mike De Freitas



Erdvilius Latvaitis

The water came within millimetres of putting out all our electrics. As it was, our fire alarm system is completely kaput and we have put in a temporary solution whilst replacement parts are sourced. 

 

As ever, in a crisis colleagues rallied brilliantly well and with effective leadership and the support of our Civil Contingencies team we managed to sustain services and temporarily rehome Kings House staff. Thanks to everybody who responded so magnificently. When I went down to the basement to inspect the damage and witness the clear up I met Phil Slydel and Mike De Freitas, both electricians in our facilities team, supported by Erdbilius Latvaitis. They and their pumps prevented the damage being much worse and I am grateful to them and Martin Hedgecock for their quick and effective action in unpleasant circumstances.

Opening the Seafront Arches

By Tuesday, the weather had taken a turn for the brilliant and therefore our celebration of the opening of the seafront arches and the start of the building of the i360 was a blisteringly sunny event.  

Mayor, Councillor Brian Fitch opening the arches

 



Project Manager Leon Bellis

The seafront arches have been restored to a very high standard and it was a pleasure to meet the project manager, Leon Bellis at the opening undertaken by the Mayor, Councillor Brian Fitch. An enthusiastic gathering of local people as well as those directly involved in these two major regeneration projects shared the sunshine and optimism on the day and we all look forward to seeing the i360 take shape over the coming couple of years and the next phase of arches restoration get underway.

Our happiness

On Tuesday evening the Health and Wellbeing Board met and appproved two important documents. Firstly, Happiness: Brighton & Hove Mental Health Wellbeing Strategy and secondly the Director of Public Health's annual report. The Happiness strategy is a direct result of last year’s annual public health report and focuses on the importance of improving resilience and mental wellbeing and preventing mental ill health as well as ensuring responsive and high quality services. It builds on the national “Five Ways to Wellbeing: Connect, Be Active, Take Notice, Keep Learning, Give.” It introduces champions for mental health and wellbeing and an action plan. 

 

Tom Scanlon’s annual report, this year entitled 2024 is focused on taking available data and research and painting a picture of where Brighton & Hove may be by 2024.

 

The purpose of this is to engage us all in activities that might address the key public health issues over the next 10 years and prevent the worst aspects of them coming to fruition.  This creative approach to focusing on public health follows in a good tradition of creative and effective public health reports and again I hope that you will take time to look at it.

Storm recovery

On Wednesday we realised that the thunder and lightning on Monday had actually caused a good deal of damage to our IT equipment and capability in the council and particularly in Kings House. I am sorry for this and can only commend the hard work of the ICT team in working to restore connectivity and reliability of service. Please be patient with them. 

Open budget

Also this week we have published and updated budget briefing explaining the cost of services provided by Brighton & Hove City Council this year, where the money comes from, the size of our budget challenge over the next five years and answering a number of questions about the approach we’re taking to addressing the budget challenge. More information will be coming out over the next weeks and months and we look forward to engaging with staff and trade unions about the opportunities and well as the challenges of doing better and differently with less.

Open council

This week we have received the report from the CorporatePeer Challenge that was undertaken in June. Again, the report is being published in full and is a helpful and fair document which acknowledges the energy we are committing to making progress, it also pulls no punches in highlighting the scale of our challenges. These include ICT infrastructure and the budget, both of which have already been mentioned. I hope that everybody will read the review and I can assure you that it is contributing to our thinking and planning for the Corporate Plan and budget.

Open CEO

 

Finally, as they prepare for their 40^th birthday celebrations, Brighton Women’s Centre invited me to participate in a photo project they’re running. Here is my photo contribution, describing why I’m proud to be a woman today. I wish them well for their celebrations, I thank them for their contribution to Brighton & Hove and look forward to working with them over the coming years. 

I sign off looking forward to a weekend of Pride and hoping that the weather holds and that we all enjoy ourselves out in the open.

Best wishes,

Penny