A programme of improvement within the Combined Authority has been recognised by Government which has not renewed its Best Value Notice on the organisation.
The decision not to reissue the notice was made by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) after the Combined Authority demonstrated how it had responded to concerns set out by the previous Government in the Best Value Notice issued in January 2024.
In a letter today (September 9) to Mayor Dr Nik Johnson, Minister of State at MHCLG, Jim McMahon, said the department recognised the progress made by the Combined Authority and its commitment to continuous improvement. The Combined Authority’s better partnership working with authorities across the region was also recognised. The Minister added that MHCLG would continue to work with the Combined Authority more informally while momentum on embedding improvements continued.
The letter can be read here.
The Combined Authority has worked with its Independent Improvement Board to tackle matters raised in the Best Value Notice. Priorities have included changing the culture of the organisation, better partnership working, better processes and governance and embedding continuous improvement. Best Value Notices are issued where authorities need to improve delivery and value for money in the places they serve.
When the Government issued the revised notice in January it recognised “the Authority’s progress in delivering its agreed improvement plan” since the first Best Value Notice was issued a year earlier.
Separately, the Government’s Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government also wrote to the Combined Authority in August to say it recognised the efforts which had been put into addressing the concerns, its evidence of progress, and how it had been delivering on commitments to improve. In the letter it agreed to lift £3.85 million of funding previously withheld, which is due to be paid to the Combined Authority this month. It noted the Combined Authority’s Independent Improvement Board view that progress was encouraging, including around partnership working and said it was critical that progress was embedded in the long term.
Significant achievements linked to improvement include getting an approved Local Transport and Connectivity Plan in place and the ongoing development of a Shared Ambition for Cambridgeshire & Peterborough.
The Combined Authority has also driven a successful ‘Team Cambridgeshire and Peterborough’ appearance at UKREiiF, the country’s biggest trade and investment conference, being the first Combined Authority to adopt a single assurance framework, adopting a new member officer protocol, the transformation of the procurement function, and making permanent appointments to the senior leadership team. The Combined Authority was also a finalist in the Local Government Chronicle Awards in the Partnership category, alongside Peterborough City Council and Anglia Ruskin University, for the delivery of ARU Peterborough, the city’s new university.
Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Dr Nik Johnson, said: “The expiry of the Best Value Notice is a fantastic endorsement of all the hard work of everyone who has contributed to the transformation of the Combined Authority.
“With the new Government committed to the role Mayors and devolution will play in powering growth, this Combined Authority is now even better placed to work in partnership with them and our local partners to deliver the investment our region needs for a better future.”
Chief Executive of the Combined Authority, Rob Bridge, said: “I want to first thank our staff for their incredible dedication and hard work, our Board, Committee and Business Board members for their support, our Independent Improvement Board for their valuable guidance, and the support of our constituent councils and our partners in transforming the Combined Authority. Since arriving at the Combined Authority in June last year I have been so impressed by everyone’s determination to ensure we can succeed together for our residents and businesses and the lifting of the notice is testament to everyone.
“While work to deliver for the region has never stopped, we are now in much better shape to work collaboratively and effectively to bring sustainable growth and opportunity to the region.”
The Combined Authority set up an Independent Improvement Board in autumn 2022 to guide its transformation and has been in regular contact with Government on progress with improvement.
