Corporate plan

Welcome to Lincolnshire County Council’s Corporate Plan, which sets out what we want to achieve for local residents and communities.

Our ambitions go far beyond what we can deliver on our own, so you will find detailed here how we will work with public and private organisations to bring greater and lasting benefits to our county.

The Corporate Plan underpins our ‘One Council’ approach, which ensures all services are working towards shared goals and will help different areas of the council work together more effectively.

In 2019/20, the total cost of services Lincolnshire County Council provides will amount to £1,303m, inclusive of schools. The current capital programme encompasses planned spend of £119m in 2019/20 and a further £146m in future years.

We want to be a council that continues to offer our residents the services they need and the lifestyle they deserve, but that also shows strong leadership and speaks up proudly for Lincolnshire.

We are identifying key priorities for this council and for Lincolnshire. We are determined that in the coming years people and communities will have:

1. High aspirations

2. The opportunity to enjoy life to the full

3. Thriving environments

4. Good-value council services

The local government sector is under unprecedented pressure particularly in large rural counties such as Lincolnshire, which is the fourth largest county in England and covers 5,921 square miles.

More than 50,000 people in Lincolnshire live in an area recognised as being in the 10% most deprived in the country. Four of the seven districts in the county are classed as either mainly or largely rural and the sparsity makes services more difficult and costly to deliver.

The current population in Lincolnshire is 751,200, but this figure is predicted to grow by 10% by 2041, with 30% of the population expected to be over 65. Over the past eight years our main Government grant has fallen by 90%, from £211m to £20m.

There is also much uncertainty over future government funding of local authorities and we are awaiting a national funding system that is fit for purpose.

However, despite the challenges, there have been great achievements:

• An expanding visitor economy that generated £1.5bn in 2017, attracting 20 million visitors. This can be attributed mainly to county heritage sites such as Lincoln Castle
• In 2018/19, the council spent £61m on maintaining and improving more than 5,470 miles of the county’s roads. We also improved the protection from flood risk for 33,084 homes, with £106m being invested in flood risk management
• More than 80% of pupils in Lincolnshire are in a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ school as determined by Ofsted, while, at 12.9%, Lincolnshire has a higher number of pupils with SEND support than the England average

The county council has achieved a considerable amount in many areas despite the challenges faced and this includes:

• Children’s Services being rated as outstanding and widely regarded as one of the best in the country
• Delivering innovative property projects that have made efficiency savings and benefited partnership working
• Being recognised as one of the highest-achieving highways authorities in the country
• Leading on the delivery of superfast broadband to 97% of residents

More widely, Lincolnshire has a strong mixed economy worth £16bn per year, with key sectors including agrifood, tourism and manufacturing. We recognise key challenges from:

• A huge increase in demand for social care, which is only predicted to grow
• Dealing with waste as national recycling targets rise and recycling markets remain volatile
• Current economic uncertainties requiring residents of all ages to be equipped with the skills of the future
• The scale of change required over the next 30 years to maintain our consistent and evidence-led approach to climate change and leave a positive environmental legacy
• The need for effective digital connectivity and technology across our rural county

We are working towards making Lincolnshire a place where everyone has high aspirations for their lives and their communities.

We know that we have to work with others to help create the environment for this to happen. Our role in supporting our businesses to succeed is essential, enabling them to provide high-quality jobs, skills and development opportunities for residents of all ages and to attract people into our county.

We want Lincolnshire to be a place where our young people achieve their full potential, which will only be possible if Lincolnshire is seen as a great place for starting and building a career.

This means that we:

• Help neighbourhoods flourish
• Support businesses to succeed
• Help our young people achieve
• Offer additional learning options to all
• Establish high-quality jobs, skills and development opportunities
• Protect the environment for the future

Success for Lincolnshire means:

• More people have the skills and attributes for work, enabling them to make a positive contribution to their community
• More people are in higher-paid and skilled jobs
• Increased economic productivity, driven by a flexible well-trained workforce
• Local employers have the skills they need in a diverse and successful environment
• More people leave education with better qualifications and skills
• Improved use and protection of our natural and built resources

We will lead the way with others to:

• Enhance the skills of our communities to meet the needs of our businesses and the economy
• Grow the workforce by retaining and attracting more highly-skilled 18-40 year olds
• Promote healthy, inclusive and accessible employment and learning opportunities
• Champion educational excellence so every child/young person has a high-quality education to succeed in life
• Deliver economic growth to create and sustain vibrant communities
• Manage the risks to our environment from climate change to protect our natural and built resources for future generations

We want Lincolnshire to be a place where everyone has the opportunity to live their lives to the full, with independence and access to the right support at the right time.

We want children to have the best possible start in life and we know that having a safe and loving home and good-quality housing is essential. Collaborating and working with partners across the county, we want everyone in Lincolnshire to be given the opportunities that enable them to have a fulfilling life.

We have an important role in ensuring that carers are supported, helping all those who look after others, and that the county’s health and care services are accessible and responsive.

This means that we:

Promote safe and secure homes

• Help those who look after others
• Aspire for all children to have a caring home
• Give children the best possible start
• Provide opportunities for a fulfilling life

Success for Lincolnshire means:

• More people are able to live independently and positively contribute to their local community
• More opportunities for people to choose healthy lives
• Thriving communities, supporting people to enjoy life to the full
• Everyone enjoys a safe and secure home and is protected from harm
• Children thrive in their early years and are well prepared to start school
• Good-quality, accessible services, including for those in need and their carers, that make a real and lasting difference
• Thriving voluntary community groups that drive collaboration and innovation

We will lead the way with others to:

• Create accommodation options for greater independence and wellbeing
• Intervene effectively to keep vulnerable people safe, making sure children in care and care leavers get the best opportunities
• Design an accessible and responsive health and care system within local communities, protecting people and promoting wellbeing
• Deliver quality children’s centres, which are at the heart of our communities supporting families so their children thrive
• Promote and enable better mental health for all
• Promote the support offer to our communities to enable them to be self-sufficient and thriving

Lincolnshire is a thriving county and we want communities to feel empowered to continually improve all aspects of their environment.

We want to build on our ambition of high aspirations and enhance Lincolnshire’s strengths, to sustain and develop a prosperous future.

We will work with others to enable the county to exceed its potential, making it an even better place to visit, live, relax, work and do business. A thriving county means making sure families can live safely and have access to great choice and high-quality education.

We want to enable everyone to have opportunities to enjoy their free time, which will mean improving our infrastructure across the county and looking after our places in a sustainable way.

We have an important role in advocating for Lincolnshire and in generating collective pride in our wonderful county.

This means that we:

• Look after our places in a sustainable way
• Develop our county for a prosperous future
• Assist everyone to live safely
• Provide great choice and high-quality education
• Enable opportunities to enjoy free time

Success for Lincolnshire means:

• All communities are benefitting from ‘clean’ economic and social growth
• Better digital infrastructure, providing improved connectivity
• More businesses are at the forefront of technology, research and development
• More people visit and enjoy Lincolnshire’s leisure, tourism and cultural experiences
• Lincolnshire secures more investment for a prosperous future
• Roads and transport infrastructure continue to improve, with better maintenance and connectivity
• Communities have accessible and high-quality public services
• Safer, healthier, connected and resilient communities and businesses, working together to improve our neighbourhoods

We will lead the way with others to:

• Advocate for investment in our transport and energy infrastructure, digital connectivity and schools, championing active, sustainable travel
• Deliver ‘clean’ growth in the right place and at the right time
• Champion Lincolnshire as a destination of choice to visit, live, relax, work and do business
• Plan growth to benefit the whole community through connecting people, housing, employment, businesses and the natural environment
• Provide sufficient, high-quality and inclusive education places locally
• Improve the safety of local communities

Residents of Lincolnshire should be able to benefit from good-value council services and we are constantly working to make sure that is the norm.

We have maintained low council tax levels whilst continuing to deliver effective services and we intend to continue this approach. How we operate as an organisation must continually improve and be more customer-focused.

We want to focus on encouraging collaboration and innovation. This will help us make the best use of all our resources, particularly our buildings and funding.

This means that we:

• Support community spaces and travel
• Encourage innovation and are innovative ourselves
• Make the best use of buildings and funding
• Support those who need extra help, especially older residents
• Provide support during key life events

Success for Lincolnshire means:

• Understanding our communities and customers
• Innovative services making best use of technology to meet the needs of our customers
• Effective and efficient partnerships operate across Lincolnshire and are responsive to emerging opportunities
• People’s needs are met in a timely, responsive and efficient way
• Public sector buildings are used flexibly to benefit communities
• Communities have a strong voice and are empowered to make a difference
• High-quality public services are delivered in a cost effective way

We will lead the way with others to:

• Design our processes and services to meet customers’ needs
• Shout loud and proud for Lincolnshire to achieve our ambitions
• Engage, listen and respond to our communities
• Maximise opportunities to work with others and improve service delivery
• Nurture and celebrate a forward-looking, high performing, skilled and empowered workforce
• Continue to innovate and make best use of our assets
• Get the most out of our shared public estate, to provide more community opportunities, housing, employment and accessible services
• Put our customers first, so we respond with one voice, working effectively across teams
• Be there when communities need us most, responding collaboratively to emergencies

To make sure we continue to provide good services but also work towards meeting the wider needs of Lincolnshire. We are committed to:

• Being customer-focused – understanding the key issues for Lincolnshire’s people and places, to help shape services
• Working collaboratively – recognising our challenges and developing plans to deliver improvements, together with communities and partners
• Connecting our communities – using infrastructure to connect people and places, including digital communications, rail and road networks
• Advocating for Lincolnshire – working with our partners to passionately advocate for Lincolnshire, attracting additional investment to strengthen our communities
• Making your money go further – providing cost-effective, high-quality services
• Working creatively – tackling our challenges and making the most of all opportunities and innovation