Bright lights in the city

Hello everybody

A bright end to the festival
Last Sunday saw the end of the Brighton Festival (sob). The finale was a free event on the seafront between the piers entitled 'Fleeting'. With lights and birds and fireworks, a crackling end was brought to the Festival. The Fringe continues this weekend.

Lanterns on the beach as part of 'Fleeting'

Brighton Festival finale fireworks

Thank you to Ali Smith, guest director, and Andrew Comben and the festival team for another fabulous May of culture. However in my view, the Sunday sky was also incredibly beautiful and impactful. You can compare the photos and make up your own mind as to which was the more fitting end.

Sunday's sunset sky

Bank Holiday
Bank Holiday Monday was better than forecast and up on the Downs hang gliders soared like enormous birds against a wonderful bright blue sky and puffy clouds. These machines are really quite magnificent and the take off is terrifyingly awesome.

Hang gliders taking off on the Downs

Hang glinders

Back to our new administration
So the start of the week was delayed by a day and on Tuesday we got down to work with the new administration. Foremost amongst their priority developments is the establishment of a Fairness Commission. Colleagues assisted in producing an early report which will go to Policy & Resources Committee in June to establish the commission and work up both its membership and terms of reference, led by the new Neighbourhood, Communities and Equalities Committee. On Wednesday, at our regular meeting of the Corporate Management Team, we reviewed the progress that our executive directors and assistant directors are making in establishing their working relationships with new chairs and committee members. It was encouraging to hear about the progress being made. The first new policy committee meeting of the new administration will be the Children’s Committee next week. I wish them well. You can have a look at the full list of committees and members on our website.

Stop Start Change
This week saw the publication on our intranet of some feedback for staff coming from their contributions to our 'Stop Start Change' initiative. Here we have asked staff to contribute ideas for activities we could stop, start or change that could have a positive impact on helping us reduce the budget, modernise the council, and deliver our Corporate Plan and the administration’s priorities.

An afternoon at The Grand
On Thursday I was pleased to have a constructive and fascinating meeting with Andrew Mosley, the General Manager at The Grand. The visit was an opportunity to hear the ambitious plans that Andrew and his team have for The Grand. It was also a chance to receive a ringing endorsement for the city’s ambitious economic agenda where priority is being given to ensure that the city remains one that visitors will want to come to in increasing numbers and local residents enjoy living and working in. Andrew is a member of the Economic Partnership within Brighton & Hove Connected and will continue to lend his weight to any initiatives which will help us to develop a sustainable seafront strategy, as well as capitalising on the planned developments of the i360 and the rest of the seafront. The fact that The Grand and other hotels in the city are flourishing and are ambitious to continue to renew themselves has got to be good for our economy and jobs.

With Andrew Mosley, General Manager at The Grand

Shaping our city
When I came into work today I was alerted to a feature in the Brighton & Hove Independent about the top 100 influential people in the city. Given the involvement of council members, local MPs, many of our key partners in all sectors and indeed a good number of my own team and their staff, I thought you might be interested in having a look.

Enjoy a good weekend – I leave you with the peace statue.

Penny

The peace statue

Active citizenship

Active kids

Active citizenship starts young and last Saturday’s Children’s Parade, kicking off the May Brighton Festival, was a fantastic example of this. The wonderful creations that schools, parents and children had made on the theme of 'taking flight' was a real inspiration.  The Festival director, Ali Smith, shared with me her wonder and delight at the spectacle  and the wide engagement that was on display on New Road. How wonderful to see children claiming the streets and Brighton & Hove revealing itself as a child and family friendly place to live, work and visit.  

Hove Museum

The theme of active citizenship continued into election day. After further preparations, training and anticipation, election morning brought me to Hove Museum to cast my vote and to meet the polling staff wearing my Returning Officer hat. 

Me at Hove Museum 

As an added bonus I met Sylvia and her dad. Sylvia was also casting her vote and I was delighted that she and her dad agreed to be photographed with her home-made ballot paper in front of one of the wonderful, magical machines currently on display in Hove Museum. 

Sylvia casting her vote

Hove Museum as a polling station must be one of the best polling stations in the UK. In order to cast your vote you had to pass by these wonderful Rowland Emett creations. Emett was the creator famously of the fabulous flying car in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and at the moment you can see other fantastic inventions. Sylvia was delighted to pose infront of her chosen one. It seems to me it can only be a good thing to start to introduce children to the notion of democracy and active citizenship and that’s what Sylvia’s dad was doing. I visited a number of other polling stations through the day and was struck by the enthusiasm of our polling staff and the seriousness with which they had taken up my challenge. It was that we must be the most voter friendly place encouraging everybody to be able to participate fairly and freely in both the national and local elections.

One of Rowland Emett's creations

About Rowland Emett

Another of Rowland Emett's creations

Promoting the Festival at Hove Museum

Parliamentary elections count

After a rehearsal at the Brighton Centre on Thursday afternoon my trustee count supervisory team went off to get a little rest in preparation for a very long night into morning.

Our count supervisory team

Abraham, Paula and me dressed for the evening

At the start of the evening

We assembled at the count mid evening and then began, for me, a whirl of press discussion and oversight of the complicated arrangements that achieve the delivery of a safe, credible election result. This year our Elections and Communications teams prepared a really helpful leaflet on the election process and we held to our value of openness in making sure that everybody at the count was aware of the stages of the process that we were engaged in.  

Busy counting

On stage at the Brighton Centre

Announcing Brighton Kemptown results

Announcing Hove results

Announcing Brighton Pavilion results

Just some of the media pack at the Brighton Centre

In the end, the exercise that involves checking and verifying postal votes and the overall voting numbers was not complete until past 3am.  Some counting of votes had begun by 2am, but the first result I was able to announce was Brighton Kemptown result at 6.50am this morning. This was followed fairly closely by first the Hove constituency and then Brighton Pavilion. As you will know we now have a Conservative, a Labour and a Green MP representing our three constituencies. The average turn out for the election was over 70%. There were no requested recounts and all candidates declared themselves confident in the results and complimented all of our count staff and elections team on the committed and effective work they had done. 

I would like to lend my profound thanks to everybody who worked so tirelessly to bring the Parliamentary Election to a safe conclusion. In particular, I would like a mention for my Executive Leadership Team and colleagues from the Corporate Management Team who became count supervisors and added so much to the effective running of the night and morning. I must also acknowledge the fantastic work of our Communications team who again worked all through the night and ensured that the huge press pack who were with us were properly informed and supported throughout the event.  

Local elections count

It all starts again tomorrow morning with the count for the Local Government elections and I’ll update you when that is done. Clearly I am the most politically restricted person in the city. My first and only focus is on ensuring a free and fair election and the certainty that everyone is able to exercise their right to vote, which was so hard fought for. So back to active citizenship starting young; I hope that Sylvia will be inspired to take an interest in local and national democracy and to properly cast her ballot when the time comes. Until then I know that George, her stuffed rabbit, will have been delighted to have been her chosen vote!  

The end of the Ofsted inspection

Finally for all of those not involved in the elections, thank you for keeping our services going and to all of those in Children’s Services both in the council, and in our partner agencies thank you for keeping going through the gruelling four weeks that Ofsted have been inspecting us.  Today marks the end of that inspection and I very much hope that we’ve done ourselves justice and revealed ourselves to be committed to further learning and improving ensuring a good life for all our children and young people.

Thank you and all the best
Penny

Tuesday 12 May update:

After a long day counting on Saturday we have now announced the results of the local election. Thank you to all the staff who helped again at the Saturday count, may of whom had also worked on Thursday night. I am proud to say that we delivered a safe election for the city.

I will now meet the three group leaders on Wednesday to discuss the new administration. 

New year blog

Hello everybody and a very happy new year!

The last sunrise of 2014

Like so many I have spent some time this week reflecting on the year just passed looking to find some highlights and delights, and some learning for planning the year ahead. 

Looking back at the year online

In March 2014 I took my weekly blog online. The thinking behind this was I wanted to be truly accessible to everyone who works for the council and indeed available to those interested in public services, locally and further afield. That first public blog marked the setting of the budget, the agreement to the i360 project and also saw me recounting details of lovemaking turtles whilst I spoke at the opening ceremony for the Brighton Festival Fringe!

Artist's impression of the i360

The following week saw the sign off of our City Deal and the birth of the Greater Brighton Economic Board involving Adur and Worthing, Lewes, Mid Sussex and more recently West Sussex. At the end of March we hosted one of the first gay marriages at a minute past midnight on the 29th of the month. Since then Brighton has become one of the most sought after places in which gay people want to marry and what a wonderful backdrop the city can provide to these heart warming events.

Neil and Andrew were the first same sex couple to get married, at the Royal Pavilion on 29 March 2014

At the beginning of May it was a joy to bear witness to the children’s parade marking the start of the Brighton Festival. Here my photo taking for the blog really took off!

June saw the launch of our internal management development programme focusing on equipping managers to get the best out of themselves, their teams and their services. This developmental programme is rolling out for all managers across the council and provides a really valuable opportunity to improve our management capability and our learning and collaboration across the organisation. Members of ELT and CMT are now sponsoring the individual cohorts and I am pleased to be sponsoring two of them myself. June also saw the annual Chattri service and a service for the commemoration of the D-Day landings in a year that is full of remembrance for those who lost their lives in the service of their country. 

The formal opening of The Level in June was another moment to mark the great developments that are taking place in our city to make it a fantastic place to live, work and visit.

At the opening of The Level in June

An inspirational morning was spent in July with our Senior Managers Forum being addressed by the writer and business woman Margaret Heffernan, whose books on wilful blindness and collaboration have certainly given me excellent food for thought. Margaret’s message very much reinforced the values we are seeking to live in the city council and the passion we feel for ensuring we provide excellent leadership to the city and are at the heart of sound public services.

With Margaret Heffernan at the Senior managers forum in July

At the beginning of August I blogged about Trans Pride and Pride, and then about the shock floods that we were struck by which meant that we had to evacuate Kings House. All that seems so long ago, sitting now in the crisp bright days of the final week of the year.

Our LGBT Workers' Forum float at Pride in August

September was disappointingly disrupted by industrial action from Refuse & Recycling drivers and a return to the disruption which has such a direct effect on residents with an accompanying negative impact on the council’s reputation. I truly hope that we can avoid a return to this as we co-produce a service redesign with business-like sustainability at its core.

In October I highlighted our corporate membership of the College of Social Work and we were delighted to have its Chief Executive, Annie Hudson, come and address social workers gathered up at the racecourse. In the same month we learnt that we had been successful in our bid to the Arts Council for essential works as part of our ambitious plans for a reimagined Dome and Pavilion estate. At the end of the year our delight was enormous when the Heritage Lottery Fund also provided funding to ensure that this project can happen breathing new life into the heart of our city. 

With Erin on Takeover Day in November

In November I was very pleased to be accompanied on Takeover Day by Erin from Dorothy Stringer and she joined me in a fascinating tour of our housing provision across the city.

December saw me presenting on our budget to colleagues from the business community organised by the Economic Partnership. On a  lighter and more uplifting note, I attended the annual schools Christmas concert, it was an utter joy to hear the children from schools across the city come together to sing and celebrate the beginning of Christmas festivities.

Primary Schools concert at the Brighton Centre in December

During the year I have made a significant number of service visits, presented Big Difference awards, met wonderful teachers and young people in some of our schools and celebrated the opening of the Holland Road building which is now part of Hove Juniors.

Hove Juniors building at Holland Road

Along the way I have been touched by the commitment, enthusiasm and creativity of our staff and managers, citizens and partner organisations in public, private and community and voluntary services. Despite the pressure on revenue budgets and the requirement to continue to make significant savings we have, as a city, continued to grow and develop with a number of significant schemes being announced or started through the year. Perhaps the most significant of these will turn out to be the Waterfront project which got the go ahead in a Special Policy & Resources Committee at the end of December.

Looking ahead to 2015

So looking to 2015, where will I be putting my efforts?

Well it will continue to be on providing visible open leadership to the council’s managers and staff. I will also seek to continue to work closely and well with all our politicians on the council as they provide governance to the plans we are implementing and as they agree a budget and a corporate plan for the next year. The planning is also well underway for my Returning Officer duties on the 7 May and that will be a busy weekend when I hope a number of you will apply to work on the election, either at polling stations or at the counts; assisting me in ensuring free, fair elections take place in the city providing us with our Members of Parliament for the next five years and our councillors for the next four. I mustn’t forget the Rottingdean Parish Council election as well.

Over the next year I anticipate that the work of the City Management Board involving our leading police, health, fire service, university and college executives will continue to work together on ensuring the city continues to thrive and function well despite the impact of austerity. I expect that the Health and Wellbeing Board will become an increasingly significant force in its leadership of the health and social care system from cradle to grave. I trust that schools will continue to respond to the challenge of ensuring the best possible education for our children with improvements being made particularly in the secondary offer.
 

All of this will be done against a backcloth of implementing our challenging budget and corporate plan making the council a smaller organisation focused on doing less directly whilst at the same time being evermore open and ever a better partner to citizens and other organisations we work with. So this is going to be another year of challenge and change with the prize being the health and wellbeing of our city, its environment, economy and its citizens, especially the most vulnerable.

Beach huts in front of Kings House

And finally, the last sunset of 2014

Once again I wish you a happy and successful 2015 and look forward to working with you in a spirit of learning and collaboration.

Best wishes

Penny

Care and collaboration

Last Sunday was a wonderfully warm day and I interrupted a walk with my elderly father to meet Kevin Watts, jet washer and graffiti remover who was cleaning one of our beach shelters. I was caring for my Dad and Kevin was caring for our wonderful city and keeping it bright and clean.

Kevin Watts

The theme of caring was very present when I visited the Child Development and Disability Service on Monday morning and met a range of health, education and social care staff and two of the parents whose children they work with. Reza Ataie and Debbie Collins both powerfully told their stories of coming to terms with children with profound disabilities and needing to turn to specialist services to support and help them provide a quality of life for their children and their families. 

Reza could not speak too highly of the care that his family is now receiving from their social work resource officer, Matthew Howson, from Downs View School and the services based at Seaside View, our Child Development and Disability Service. He spoke of ‘good services, friendly advice’ and gave this recommendation to others who need to turn for help: ask politely, know what you want, don’t take no for an answer. Turning to Matthew he told me: “this young chap has been instrumental in our family turning the corner”. What a fantastic testimony.  

Reza Ataie and Matthew Howson

Equally Debbie spoke so positively of Seaside View and the support which she received. In particular she mentioned the voluntary organisation Extra Time, who she described as brilliant. She said: “what made the difference was the overnight break away from home, where my daughter received amazing care. This has transformed our lives” Debbie told me.  

Debbie Collins

At the end of our morning we all heard about the disability review which is being launched to look at both improving services to families and also making value for money savings. The review is ambitious in its scope and everyone in the room was enthusiastic about making further improvements, engaging young people and families. The review gets underway in June and is expected to report in December of this year.  

From hearing and being inspired by this caring and collaboration I went straight over to Sussex County Cricket Club to participate in the signing of an agreement to work together between Brighton University and the cricket club. 

Sussex Sharks mascot and Pete the Panter, Brighton University's mascot

Mascots with vice chancellor of Brighton Univeristy, Julian Crampton
and SCCC chief executive, Zac Toumazi

Tuesday saw the inaugural meeting of the Greater Brighton Economic Board which has been formed to deliver the aspirations of our City Deal and economic development projects across the Greater Brighton area. The meeting was held against the backdrop of Brighton & Hove Albion football stadium.  Once again Brighton University was round the table, with leaders from Adur, Worthing, Lewes, Mid Sussex District and of course Brighton & Hove City Council.  Our leader, Jason Kitcat, chaired the meeting.  This ambitious board is going to oversee the delivery of millions of pounds of projects across the Greater Brighton area. It has a forward plan which will look at the visitor economy, the economic outlook, travel to work and travel to learn, training our people, learning from key cities, inward investment and other topics.

That night I returned to caring responsibilities and met my sons in London.  I thought you would enjoy the glorious views of South Bank from the Golden Jubilee bridge.

In case you weren’t aware this week is Carers Week and I was privileged to go and meet some carers and professionals at the carers event at Brighthelm centre on Wednesday. The new Mayor was also there. I heard from carers about their appreciation for the Carers Centre and carers services which support them to maintain loved ones at home, even when in very difficult circumstances.  For this event all sorts of professionals were taking an hour or two out of their busy working days to just go and listen to the stories of carers. Those I spoke to found it a moving and valuable learning experience to be the listeners. The carers I spoke to very much appreciated being listened to, being valued and having somewhere to turn to. 

New mayor Brian Fitch with a resident

On Wednesday evening Sajid Javid MP, Minister for Culture Media and Sports, came to visit Brighton Festival and the Pavilion and I was asked to come and be part of the walk around.

Andrew Comben, Sajid Javid with our guides

The Minister took a real interest in the Royal Pavilion and benefited from a very informative tour from one of the resident guides.  The journalist Polly Toynbee, who is chair of the Brighton Festival & Dome, Andrew Comben, its chief executive, and I were able to tell the Minister about our vision for a reunited Royal Pavilion, Dome and gardens providing the beating heart at the centre of our fabulous city. Once again the themes of collaboration and caring shone through this visit.  

As this is also European elections week, I am writing this while the ballot boxes are being returned to Hove Town Hall for safe storage. We will verify the number of votes cast on Friday morning before counting the votes on Sunday afternoon. This evening I visited some of our polling stations and was universally greeted by enthusiastic polling staff who reported that they had been kept quite busy through the day. The team at Hove Library were happy to be photographed and you see here Sue Coleman, presiding officer and Claire Penfold, polling clerk.  

Claire Penfold and Sue Coleman

Clare Wardle, electoral services manager

At St Philip’s church hall I met a mother with her young daughter. The mother was telling her daughter about the suffragettes  and how women had won the vote and the importance of using the opportunity to vote. I couldn’t agree more.

Finally then, just a word of thanks to those of you who responded to my call for suggestions on improving recycling. I can assure you that the service is already discussing your ideas and I am particularly grateful to one of our street cleaners who sent me a long and very constructive email which I really appreciated and have followed up on. 

All the best
Penny