South Hams District Council and West Devon Borough Council – Progress Review

The two councils of South Hams District Council (SHDC) and West Devon Borough Council (WDBC), who share a single workforce and benefit from fully integrated systems and processes, undertook an LGA Corporate Peer Challenge (CPC) in both councils in March 2024. The LGA wrote a CPC report for each council, with separate narrative and findings within, but with largely very similar recommendations. These reports were published by the councils in June 2024, having taken them through their governance arrangements and an overarching action plan was developed. 

The Progress Review is an integral part of the Corporate Peer Challenge process.  Taking place approximately a year after the CPC, it is designed to provide space for the council’s senior leadership to:

• Receive feedback from peers on the early progress made by the council against the CPC recommendations and the council’s RAG rated CPC action plan.
• 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 both councils for their commitment to sector led improvement. This Progress Review was the next step in an ongoing, open and close relationship that the councils have with LGA sector support.

The Progress Review at South Hams District Council and West Devon Borough Council took place (onsite) on 17-18 June 2025. 

The Progress Review focussed on each of the recommendations from the Corporate Peer Challenge, which were:  

• Have a relentless focus on delivery of the council plan
• Create opportunities for your senior leadership team to focus on the key challenges and opportunities ahead
• Agree your desired approach to community development and then create a structured approach to delivery
• Use the opportunity provided by the new council plan to revisit your stakeholder engagement
• Tell your story louder – which clearly articulates both your vision for place and the impact of your activity
• Build upon the foundations of your new organisational development plan over the next two to three years to ensure you can meet new and emerging challenges and opportunities
• Develop a four-year member development programme that maximises the input and engagement of your members.
• Review the role, function and purpose of advisory panels 

For this Progress Review, the following members of the original CPC team were involved: 

• Cllr Sam Chapman-Allen, Leader of Breckland District Council and Chair of the District Councils Network
• Arthur Charvonia, Chief Executive, Babergh and Mid Suffolk Councils
• Sarah Garner, Head of People and OD, Wealden District Council
• Lydia Rusling, Director of Place and Prosperity, Melton Borough Council
• Paul Clarke, Principal Advisor – LGA

Overall findings

Out of the CPC’s eight main recommendations, the council’s action plan reports that progress against all is complete, well developed or underway.

Overall, both councils embrace the concept of sector led improvement (SLI) and are open to learning and improvement, and it came as no surprise to the peer team that they had responded in the way they had. The action plan is regularly reviewed, updated and then mainstreamed to drive improvement across both councils. 

The political leadership at SH and WD welcomed the progress review and viewed it as a useful milestone for reflection as they lead their councils purposefully through the opportunities and challenges created by Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). They are purposeful in the sense that there is a clear delivery plan stretching out of the next three years which is underpinned by an equally clear financial plan.  The challenge the peer team left the councils is to stick to that plan, or if it needs to be reprioritised something will need to be taken out. The leadership of both councils recognised and embraced that challenge as they are determined to maintain two well performing councils up to LGR and a real legacy for whatever comes after them; this speaks volumes about the integrity of SH and WD. 

The officer leadership of the councils are equally focussed on improvement and, in tandem with their politicians, lead the councils well. That is reflected in many ways: the delivery of good services in both councils is now taken as read, both councils are regularly recognised regionally or nationally for their achievements e.g. through awards etc for the delivery of effective local government services. Importantly, although the senior officer group is clearly focussed on making SH and WD the best they can be, at the same time they look out and regularly engage in peer support elsewhere in other councils (through being part of LGA Peer Reviews), so ‘they know what good looks like’ and again that should not be underestimated.

The peer team felt there were very positive and proactive approaches that underpinned the way both councils went about their business. There was a clear ambition for place at both SH and WD, but this was matched with a recognition that delivery against that ambition was central. In that sense, the councils recognise the strength of collaboration, be it between themselves, with partners, and other stakeholders. That working with others, in turn strengthens the way the councils engage, lead and advocate for their communities. We encouraged both councils to recognise these SH and WD ‘ways of doing things’ and use them to guide, support and direct the councils’ work in the years ahead.

As well as these core values above, having strong and effective governance will be key as the councils approach LGR. From the original CPC it was clear that there was still work to be done in terms of some of the councils formal and informal meeting and governance arrangements, specifically in relation to member advisory groups. Typically, SH and WD embraced those recommendations and through the adoption of focussed member task and finish groups, as well as some core programme boards, they now use these vehicles to drive progress; this was very evident to the peer team. 

Equally the peer team saw good progress had been made with the recommendations from the CPC relating to organisational development and culture change. The ‘Taking the Lead’ programme we heard about is an impressive way to harness the ambition of the councils’ staff and managers to drive change, both in performance and practice and develop future leaders. Staff and managers are well engaged at SH and WD and the most recent staff survey results, which were ‘hot off the press’, when the peer team were with the councils, reflected that positive engagement and satisfaction. Furthermore, the work done on member development and support was also noteworthy, as is the clear strength of the joint working between members and officers. That joint working is clearly effective, respectful, but also positively challenging – such leadership serves both councils well.

The councils know that there is work still to do with the CPC recommendations and equally the changing landscape of LGR, and other factors will impact upon that. The progress with some of the EDI reflections from a year ago could be further developed and perhaps mainstreamed more, as the councils plan to support people through future changes.

Overall, the peer team found both councils to ‘be in very good health’. The progress review came at a good time to reflect on the real substance and strengths of both SH and WD, but also to encourage them now further in the two to three years ahead. 

Further feedback covering the progress made against recommendations from the CPC

The remaining feedback summarises some of the key progress and peer reflections in relation to the CPC recommendations.

1. Relentless focus on delivery of the council plan

The Councils have made impressive progress, delivering 90 per cent of their first-year objectives and successfully transitioning to a three-year delivery plan. This demonstrates a strong commitment to strategic delivery and adaptability. The use of tools like Power BI has enhanced performance tracking and provided a clearer link between delivery plans and outcomes.

Where ambitions and objectives are aligned in council plans, they should continue to align their delivery to streamline efforts and reduce duplication and we know this is their goal. Maintaining the ‘one in, one out’ approach to manage capacity again is something the councils’ leadership is acutely aware of as LGR looms. 

Finally, they should also continue to strengthen the connection between performance data and service impact to reinforce accountability and celebrate success. Performance and delivery are at the heart of both councils.

2. Create opportunities for SLT to focus on key challenges

The senior leadership team (SLT) has shown commendable leadership during a period of significant change. The provision of bespoke support and strengths-based conversations for heads of service is a positive step in building resilience and strategic thinking.

They might wish to consider exploring additional strengths-based tools to support leadership development, as well as encourage cross-organisational dialogue to share insights and foster a unified leadership approach across both councils.

3. Structured approach to community development

There is strong evidence of impactful community development work, particularly through the integration with the economy and place team and the use of UK Shared Prosperity Funding. The advisory groups have been reframed to help shape the approach to community development and a clear commitment to local engagement.

There is a potential opportunity to develop further a framework for community development with elements that spans both councils, ensuring shared learning is at the heart of this for the benefit of both.

Equally, they could also build on the success of the Devon Communities Together Village Halls audit by embedding its findings into long-term planning.

We have seen the work that is alive and well in terms of the voluntary sector and the councils should continue that path, particularly in South Hams (following the closure of its VCSE support organisation), by fostering partnerships and collaborative funding bids.

4. Revisit stakeholder engagement

Stakeholder engagement has been a standout strength, with inclusive and adaptive approaches that have reached a wide range of community groups, including young people. The economic development team’s work has empowered communities to shape their own visions through town plans.

The peer teams view was that the above and some of the other impressive work in this area should be celebrated more and the councils should share the success of stakeholder engagement internally to inspire other service areas.

Furthermore, the council plans and revised delivery plans are an ideal platform to refresh and expand engagement strategies, ensuring alignment with LGR priorities. Alongside this there is a great opportunity now to capture and disseminate organisational learning from engagement activities to build institutional memory and inform future practice.

5. Tell your story louder

The council has made significant strides in external communications, adopting a storytelling approach and leveraging video and social media effectively. Launch events and thematic messaging have improved public resonance.

We encourage the councils to continue empowering the strategic communications team with creative freedom while ensuring alignment with strategic goals. Equally, there are some passionate staff members seeking to drive internal communications, that work will be helped by co-designing content with staff to ensure it reflects their interests and experiences.

Given the LGR and delivery plan timeframe, the councils can create a sustainable communications strategy that balances campaign delivery with day-to-day messaging, ensuring resilience over the next three years.

6. Build on organisational development foundations

The councils have laid strong foundations through initiatives like the “Taking the Lead” programme and a renewed focus on wellbeing, mentoring, and performance management. Staff engagement is high, and there is a clear appetite for development. The latest staff survey results and the amount of engagement are reflective of high performing councils. They are also reflective of councils that put the well-being of their staff group front and centre.

There is an opportunity to embed values and behaviours into performance management systems and continue to reinforce a positive organisational culture-the councils have a good story here that others could learn from. As part of this they might want to think about building on the positive, but semi flexible mentoring and coaching arrangements in place and look to ensure consistency and equity of experience.

Furthermore, there is a great opportunity to use digital tools and champions to support continuous learning and adaptability, especially in preparation for LGR.

7. Develop a four-year member development programme

There is a strong culture of learning among members, with comprehensive induction, regular briefings, and active participation in external training. Task and finish groups have provided valuable experience and insight.

We found well engaged and well supported members. These same members had very good and respectful relationships with officers. The strength of such good relationships through change should not be underestimated. 

There is an opportunity to build upon the above by designing a structured development programme that includes mentoring, peer learning, and feedback mechanisms. Equally, members who attend external training should share insights with the wider group, fostering a culture of shared learning.

8. Review advisory panels and working groups

The restructured approach to advisory groups has improved transparency and engagement, with good attendance and positive feedback. Task and finish groups have been effective in areas like the Freeport, where the engagement and understanding of members has clearly grown for the benefit of all and such examples can create a template for further engagement. 

In working through the three years ahead it will be important that the councils continually review working groups to ensure clarity of purpose, alignment with strategic goals, and effective use of member and officer time. As part of that the peer team suggest establishing clear criteria for establishing Task and Finish groups, including expected outcomes and reporting mechanisms.

We saw that the councils have both strengthened their audit and risk functions and that is commendable. Reinforcing this alongside the importance of effective scrutiny is a positive message through change.

The LGA would like to thank South Hams District Council and West Devon Borough Council for undertaking this LGA CPC Progress Review. 

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

Under the umbrella of LGA sector-led improvement, there is an on-going 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. 

Paul Clarke (Principal Adviser) is the main point of contact between the authority and the Local Government Association (LGA) [email protected]