LGA Corporate Peer Challenge – Progress Review: London Borough of Barnet

The council undertook an LGA corporate peer challenge (CPC) in June 2023 and promptly published the full report with an action plan. 

The progress review is an integral part of the corporate peer challenge process. Taking place approximately ten months after the CPC, it is designed to provide space for the council’s senior leadership to:

• Update peers on the early progress made and receive feedback on this including how the action plan aligns with the CPC’s recommendations.
• Consider peers’ reflections on any new opportunities or challenges that may have arisen since the peer team were ‘on-site’ including any further support needs.
• Discuss any early impact or learning from the progress made to date. 

The LGA would like to thank the London Borough of Barnet (LBB) for their commitment to sector-led improvement. This progress review was the next step in the ongoing, open, and close relationship the council has with LGA sector support.

The progress review was held on 23 February 2024, eight months after the corporate peer challenge. 

The progress review focussed on each of the recommendations from the corporate peer challenge, under the following theme headings: 

• Leadership and governance
  • Recommendation 1 – strategic responsibility
  • Recommendation 3 – support
  • Recommendation 5 – company governance
• Financial management and transformation
  • Recommendation 2 – financial planning
  • Recommendation 4 – transformation
• People services
  • Recommendation 6 – organisational development (OD) and equality, Diversity and inclusion (EDI) programmes
  • Recommendation 7 – capacity
• Place leadership
  • Recommendation 8 – economy and business
  • Recommendation 9 – voluntary and community sector (VCS)
  • Recommendation 10 – health

For this progress review, the peer team included the following members:

• Robin Tuddenham, chief executive, Calderdale Council
• Cllr Claire Holland, leader, London Borough of Lambeth
• Alex Thompson, director of finance and customer services (S151 officer), Cheshire East Council
• Jonathan Lloyd, director for strategy and change, London Borough of Waltham Forest
• Sadie East, director of transformation, London Borough of Brent
• Shadow peer- Katharine Goodger, regional adviser, LGA
• Peer challenge manager – Rebecca Ireland, senior regional adviser, LGA 

In the past year, Barnet Council has achieved several successes, including the opening of Brent Cross West station, the insourcing of Capita RE services and their integration into the council, the acquisition of 250 council homes, good progression towards Barnet zero targets, and an impactful partnership working with the police in Grahame Park to enhance community safety.

The relationships within the council continue to be strong. The peer team observed and heard feedback of the good member and officer relationships and the visible leadership of both the leader and chief executive.

At the time of the corporate peer challenge (CPC), Barnet Council had recently moved from a committee to a cabinet system. As of February 2024, the council had almost completed a full annual cycle under this new system. Work to embed the changes in the council following the move from the committee to a cabinet system in the middle of 2023 is continuing, with both members and officers reporting progress, but sustained focus is still needed to move the council to one that is member-led. 

In June 2023, Barnet Council had recently updated its corporate plan and has been implementing it since then. The council was also at the start of its transformation journey under the new administration. Since then the council reported encountering unprecedented financial challenges in the last year, with significant pressure to balance the budget. The council faced a £45 million in-year budget gap, due to extensive pressures and additional costs associated with temporary accommodation and social care; and they spent the last six months of the financial year working to address this budgetary shortfall. The council has acknowledged that work through this budget process consumed significant time and energy; as a result the council has identified ways to improve the financial processes and engagement with members at an earlier stage in the next budget round. 

In the council’s opening session at the progress review, the leader of the council expressed confidence in the council's progress since the last visit and its continued focus on the transformation agenda. He also praised the way in which staff and members had engaged and demonstrated pride in their work in the last year. The chief executive acknowledged the need to do more for officers to collectively support the cabinet in their roles as strategic and community leaders, emphasising that work has started with staff in this area and is continuing. 

Furthermore, the council emphasised its commitment to reducing poverty with work initiated in the last year and its progress in advancing equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) efforts, expressing pride in these accomplishments. 

During the progress review, the peer team observed a productive working relationship between the CMT and the cabinet, based on mutual respect with open discussions. The peer team saw an increasingly confident administration, committed to delivering their agenda and priority actions.

As a result of the pressure to resolve the budget challenge, the council recognised that it has had less ‘bandwidth’ to develop certain areas of the peer challenge recommendations as thoroughly as they had hoped, both in terms of the time available to progress areas and the need to pivot and align the council’s priorities with the emerging financial context. The progress review took place eight months after the CPC, and the peer team reflected that by taking forward all of the CPC recommendations the council will be in a better place to manage and respond to both current and future challenges.

Leadership and governance

During the CPC, the peer team heard how highly regarded the senior leadership in the council was and observed mutual respect among council officers and members as they worked together towards a common goal. This was observed again during the progress review meetings. 

The CPC recommended greater support and development for cabinet members to enable them to fully undertake their strategic roles and alongside this recommended the council update processes around reports, meetings, and decision-making to reflect the new governance model. There has been some progress in this area, with a strengthening of relationships within the council, and a clear and dedicated explanation of the members’ roles and activity in the community in their place leadership role. The peer team heard of the work completed to support members in making strategic decisions and to foster a stronger understanding for the CMT and members, facilitating stronger collaboration to address complex issues. An LGA-facilitated away day in January provided an opportunity for the senior political and managerial leadership within the council to reflect on their collaborative work and explore new ways of working more effectively. Furthermore, since October 2023, weekly cabinet and CMT meetings have been held to deliberate on decisions and issues, contributing to improved forward-planning and a more collective team approach. 

However there is more work to do in this area, to ensure members are fully involved in shaping the strategic direction. Members report a slow shift towards operating with the right level of information, provided at the right time to enable them to carry out their strategic functions. Recognising that the change of the executive model is a significant shift, members should feel confident that they can lead and set the agenda, supported by their officers. As an example the process to evaluate and shape budget setting would benefit from earlier cabinet member involvement to enable greater strategic direction and prioritisation as options are developed.  The peer team appreciate that change – especially the scale seen in Barnet with new governance arrangements and systems, and a new political administration stepping up to leading and governing after a long time in opposition – takes time to bed in. It is positive that the culture and partnership working put in place have created a strong foundation for the council to achieve more and develop the roles.

The improvements made in the frequency and quality of the conversations between the CMT, and cabinet are important, but the peer team felt that the council must now ensure that these forums/meetings explore some of the more challenging areas and decisions for the council, where complexity and trade-offs need to be understood and addressed. It is important that senior leaders in the council ensure time is being spent on the right and most pressing things, especially given the fiscal context all councils are facing, with depleted resources and increasing complexity of need.

The CPC recommended that the resources in the leadership team and cabinet support be reviewed. The team recommended capacity to support the leader to undertake his role, which had not been actioned, and the peer team felt that the impact of not doing this was discernible, and it was now an important issue to resolve, to facilitate the leader deliver his strategic role. The peer team also felt that given the current pressing financial situation at the council, it would be prudent to consider having a dedicated financial lead, or finance cabinet member to oversee the financial position, and demarcate the leader and lead members role to ensure effective use of resources. 

The peer team also recommended that Barnet complete a review of company governance and loan arrangements, providing clarity and responsibility around the management of risk. Work against this recommendation has started with the council updating central records of companies, investments, loan arrangements and land held in trust. The council reports it plans to complete a management review of Barnet group during 2024. This will look at how services are delivered and include a review of the effectiveness and efficiency of services, seeking to identify opportunities for supporting the MTFS. The council has arrangements in place for monitoring loan arrangements and has established key responsibilities and requirements of loans.

The peer team observed that work against this recommendation is less developed than others and the council should reflect on the priority of this action, considering the position they are currently operating in with the companies.

Financial management and transformation 

It is critical that the cabinet, the wider member group, staff and the community understand the current and projected financial position of the council and the part that plays in the council’s ability to plan and manage services and deliver against corporate plan priorities. Acute pressure is requiring councils across the country to assess whether current service provision is sustainable for them.  

A balanced budget position for 2024/25 has been achieved in Barnet with no use of reserves. This was following extensive work across services. £40.590m pressures have been built into the budget for 2024/25 and £50.146m across the MTFS. Savings have been identified as £39.008m in 2024/25 and £69.743m across the MTFS. These are challenging targets and require close management and scrutiny over the MTFS period (2024-30).

A core financial pressure for the council is demand-led services including adult social care. The CPC recognised the good practice in adult social care and found a good understanding in the council’s senior leadership of the challenges facing the council in terms of meeting demand now and in the future. The council’s leadership team highlighted the challenging demographics of the borough, the pressures of an ageing population alongside emerging and increasing care costs for young adults/ children requiring significant care, and the complex needs of people requiring care. Workforce challenges in the sector exacerbate the issues. These issues are pertinent to nearly all councils with social care responsibilities and performance data indicates a trend on spend for adult social care in Barnet above comparator authorities. The leadership team will need collective focus on transformation and value for money to mitigate the risks that arise from these trends for the council. 

The CPC recommended that the council ensure the MTFS aligns with cabinet priorities. During the progress review, it was felt by the peer team that there is a good level of understanding of the pressures the council faces, although the degree to which this featured in conversations during the progress review varied. Given the scale of the challenge the peer team had expected this to have greater prominence in conversations with key staff and political leaders. The peer team would strongly encourage the council to develop a clear narrative about the financial challenge that conveys a sense of urgency and a plan to address these pressures.

Delivering the savings required will involve the council exploring transformation in adult services, children’s services, digital and housing, growth, and development at pace, building on and in some cases superseding existing transformation plans. The peer team commented that the transformation programme lacked a degree of clarity, which might be a result of the re-prioritisation required as part of the recent MTFS work and could be remedied by closing off old transformation programmes and relaunching /recommunicating of those that now align with the MTFS and the cabinet priorities. This would also be the time to consider if the transformation goes deep enough into the organisation in terms of scope and communication, and whether the difficult conversations and extremely challenging options are all on the table and up for consideration. Attention should also be given on ensuring a more robust process exists for oversight and assurance of the transformation and change programmes. Whilst there is a clear track record of delivering change underpinned by trust and accountability, the level of upcoming change requires a shift towards increased tracking, oversight and scrutiny. 

Within this context, consideration should also be given to how demand and risk can be managed, where growth forecasts could be tested against different scenarios. This is particularly relevant in the adult social care budget, developing an evidence base for the strength-based work, and cost reduction and avoidance to deliver financial savings. It is appreciated that delivering savings safely in such services takes time and requires careful planning.

The peer team reflected that there had been limited time as part of the progress review to explore action taken to further the council’s digital agenda in detail, although they were aware that work is progressing with the council’s digital ambitions, including the work done with TVI. The digital agenda is key to all councils in their journey to managing demand, and as such the peer team would encourage the council to drive this work forward. 

People Services

The council has completed a review of OD building blocks, which is aimed at ensuring the organisational development (OD) agenda continues to support the aims and priorities of Barnet’s transformation programme and the current priorities of the council. 

The peer team received an early version of the council’s draft people plan, that aims to ensure stronger coherence and prioritisation of workforce wellbeing, OD, and EDI programmes. The peer team heard from staff and members about the improvements made around EDI across the organisation and the strong work on the staff networks in supporting staff individually and collectively.

The peer team observed high levels of motivation, professionalism, and high staff morale in the organisation. The peer team reflected that this will be in part due to the strength in the leadership at the organisation to ensure staff are kept informed, and the very human and compassionate leadership style that has been adopted by the administration and senior leaders in the organisation. 

The council conducted a vacancy analysis at the end of 2023 to identify any long-term skills and talent changes, with a commitment to link this work with the MFTS work ensuring the council is investing in the right areas. 

Overall, progress against these recommendations has been made. The peer team reflected back in the verbal feedback that what it had not heard as part of the conversations was a response to how the council will make sure it has the leadership and skills it needs for the uncertain future it faces financially. Should the position deteriorate further it may require staff and members to embrace radical new ways of working, perhaps incorporating a digital shift and the emerging use of new technologies in meeting council demand. The council therefore needs to consider whether those skills are available in the workforce and if not how to develop these skillsets. It’s important the council has these conversations and sets them out in its’ strategy regarding the workforce the council will need, and should have, during the MTFS period. 

Place leadership

Barnet’s corporate plan set in 2023 saw a renewed commitment to community participation, greater partnership working, and a neighbourhood working approach. The desire to set a new relationship between Barnet Council and its citizens is exciting and the peer team observed good progress in this area. 

The CPC noted untapped potential in the voluntary and community sector (VCS), with some partners feeling that the relationship was stymied by a sense of a prevailing client/contractor relationship, and that routes into the council and opportunities to work with them were mainly funnelled through commissioners and procurement. Work has been done on strengthening the relationships, for example the work the leader has done with domestic abuse charities and partners over recent months. There is a real sense that members are excited about their renewed relationships with the community and community groups, and the feedback heard by the peer team is that the energy invested by members is appreciated. 

Building on the relationships forged during Covid-19, the peer team suggested more could be done to harness the opportunities the VCS presents for the borough. Work on increased levels of co-production and renewing the commitment to the Barnet Together (BT) manifesto has created opportunities to meet residents’ needs more frequently. The BT annual community event was held in October bringing partners together, and the recent crisis in the Middle East has prompted new work and connections with faith sector leaders in the area, with the leader hopeful that this will bring opportunities to support residents together more efficiently. There have been challenges, including a need to make budget savings against BT; however, the council notes they will continue to foster collaborative relationships for the benefit of residents.  

In June 2023, the council committed to refreshing and strengthening their narrative on Barnet’s economy, business and skills in line with the administration’s priorities, particularly around net zero and community wealth building. The peer team observed on the last visit that the council’s approach to business engagement was underdeveloped and lacked a clear strategic narrative. The progress review found that the council had started to develop this area of work, for example reestablishing the business breakfasts, and the peer team heard business partners and stakeholders praise the enhanced engagement and involvement of the leader with local businesses over the last six months. 

During the progress review the peer team noted that the council had made a great deal of progress working strongly across the sub-region. The council has also reviewed it’s thinking about economy development across Barnet and the opportunities there to be realised — considering individual economies within the borough and not just as a part of London.

The peer team recommended further work with health partners utilising the councils’ senior leadership role, suggesting that more could be done with the enhanced input of senior leaders to help further Barnet’s aims around reducing health inequality and addressing the social care challenges. The council is clearly engaging with the ICB and advocating for local needs where possible and appropriate. Maintaining and developing the relationship with NHS partners to agree on funding models for services in Barnet will be important given the constrained NHS budget position. 

The council continues to lobby for its effective ‘fair share’ of resources through discussions distinguishing between health or social care costs, for example negotiating an improved deal as part of the better care fund. It is positive to see Barnet’s improved leadership role in health and the plan they have in place to extend that further. 

The LGA would like to thank LBB for undertaking an LGA CPC progress review. 

We appreciate that senior managerial and political leadership will want to reflect on these findings and suggestions in order to determine how the organisation wishes to take things forward. 

Under the umbrella of LGA sector-led improvement, there is an ongoing offer of support to councils. The LGA is well placed to provide additional support, advice and guidance on a number of the areas identified for development and improvement and we would be happy to discuss this. 

Kate Herbert, principal adviser for London, is the main contact between your authority and the Local Government Association. Kate is available to discuss any further support the council requires — [email protected]