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What’s important to people in Nottingham? However you ask the question the answer’s usually the same;
• Cutting crime,
• Keeping the City clean,
• Tackling anti-social behaviour,
• Improving our schools,
• Sorting out public transport.
Those are the basics that people expect from their Council and over the last 4 years that’s what Nottingham councillors have got involved in. We’ve given a lead through Respect for Nottingham in tackling anti-social behaviour, begging and street prostitution, agreed investment in street cleaning, built a close partnership with the police to bring crime down, prioritised education, supported primary and secondary re-organisation and successfully argued for Nottingham’s tram system.
And in the coverage given to the Council’s recent inspection report (CPA) the Nottingham Evening Post, helpfully listed what it said “Nottingham is doing right” including;
• Crime has reduced overall in the City,
• Street cleanliness has improved, with public satisfaction up 10% in the past 3 years,
• People consider anti-social behaviour as less of a problem than 3 years ago,
• Educational attainment is improving. Better results at all ages was one of the highest in the Country in 2006,
• Young people over 16 are increasingly taking up training, education or employment,
• There has been an 8% increase in the use of public transport over the last 3 years,
• CO2 emissions have reduced by 30,000 tons in the last 5 years,
• Homelessness in the City has reduced by 46%,
The Evening Post also spelt out the challenges including;
• The lack of a culture of performance management and too many service plans,
• Staff and buildings have not had sufficient investment. IT systems are weak, sickness levels high and training and development has not been made a priority,
• The City’s ambition is limited by a lack of long-term strategic thinking
• An unsustainable level of member involvement,
• Resident dissatisfaction is a “major concern” in relation to housing,
• And little progress in tackling worklessness.
However many of these challenges are about the Council as an organisation. And while they must be tackled if we are to build on the improvements we have made, its important not to loose sight of the fact that on many of the issues that most concern people, the City is doing better than it was 5 years ago.
Perhaps that’s why, the percentage of residents who MORI found were satisfied with “how the council runs things” has increased by 5% over the past few years and is now above the national average. It might also explain why Labour in Nottingham gained seats at the local elections while loosing seats in many other parts of the country.
But we can’t be complacent. That’s why at the last election Nottingham Labour said it would continue to be a priority to reduce crime, tackle anti-social behaviour, make our City cleaner, improve our schools and invest in our neighbourhoods.
But we also need a clear vision of what kind of City we want Nottingham to become over the next 20 years. Because whilst the last 4 years has been about beginning to get the basics right, the future must be about creating the kind of City we want Nottingham to be. And to create it we must be able to describe it too.
So, helping to build that vision’s going to be a big part of my job over the coming months. And because any vision must be about the Nottingham that people live and work in, about our neighbourhoods and our communities as well as the City Centre, we’ll need to ensure that everyone gets the chance to have their say.
Nottingham’s a great City and one I’m proud to lead. But my job is always to encourage the Council to do more, to tackle the problems we face and to take every opportunity to make Nottingham the best place it can be for everyone who lives and works here.
Jon Collins, Leader
Nottingham City Council