The Public Performance Report of East Dunbartonshire Council

Introduction

If you would like the full pdf version of the Public Performance Report email Customerservices@eastdunbarton.gov.uk

You can also request that the document be provided in large print, Braille or in audio format and can be translated into other community languages including Gaelic.

The Council manages performance through our Strategic Planning and Performance Framework which seeks to ensure that we have a firm set of strategic priorities and a clear framework for the delivery of these priorities. It also ensures everything we do aligns to the Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP), which is the primary strategic plan for all the Community Planning Partners in East Dunbartonshire.

Performance management is about how we plan and manage improvements to our services. In simple terms, performance management enables decision makers, both elected members and officers, to take necessary action based on facts about our performance.

The Council is committed to continuously improving the performance of our services and being open and transparent about how well we are doing. Our aim is to be a sustainable, thriving and achieving organisation, which provides high- quality services for our local people and their communities.This Public Performance Report for 2021/22 forms part of our Strategic Planning and Performance Framework and provides a summary of how the Council has delivered services across the reporting year and the impact those services have had on the people and businesses of East Dunbartonshire.

COVID-19 continued to impact Council operations during 2021/22 and as the year progressed, service delivery was expanded, whilst ensuring protection measures were in place for both our workforce and service users. In support of business throughout the pandemic, over £7.8 million in grants to businesses were processed by the Council to support the local economy. The Revenues and Benefits team processed 2,600 claims for Self Isolation Support Grants, approving over 1,100 awards totalling over £550,000.

The Council’s COVID-19 response has, and will continue to, present a number of material business and financial challenges. As well as directly dealing with the impact of the virus, protecting communities, and the ongoing implementation of revised and enhanced services, the Council continued to deliver core services remotely, through revised command and control arrangements. The consequences of COVID-19 are significant and wide reaching in terms of scale, scope and cost.

Jump to section:

• Local Outcome 1
• Local Outcome 2
• Local Outcome 3
• Local Outcome 4
• Local Outcome 5
• Local Outcome 6
• Guiding Principles 1 - Best Value
• Guiding Principles 2 - Coproduction and Engagement
• Guiding Principles 3 - Evidence Based Planning
• Guiding Principles 4 - Fair and Equitable Services
• Guiding Principles 5 - Planning for Place
• Guiding Principles 6 - Prevention and Early Intervention
• Guiding Principles 7 - Sustainability

Local Outcome Improvement Plan

East Dunbartonshire’s Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP) is a shared strategic plan for our Community Planning Partnership. 

You can read more about this on the East Dunbartonshire Performance webpage [opens in a new window]

Local Outcome 1

East Dunbartonshire has a sustainable resilient economy with busy town and village centres, a growing base, and is an attractive place in which to visit and invest.

Land Planning & Development Service

Circular Economy Strategy

Production of a Circular Economy Strategy for East Dunbartonshire began in August 2021. The strategy will ensure that the Council can develop an evidenced approach to the Circular Economy both internally for Council Services and in supporting local businesses. A survey was carried out in October 2021 to find out what local businesses are already doing to become more sustainable, what their plans are for the future and how the Council and partners can support any circular ambitions.

An ambassador group, including representatives from the local business community has been set up to inform development of the draft strategy.

Work has been ongoing to deliver the Economic Recovery Plan, approved in March 2021.

Businesses

The table below shows business survival rates percentage for new start businesses 12 months after initial intervention. Given the difficulties faced by many new businesses as a result of the pandemic, this indicator was not monitored during the pandemic or during recovery in 2021/22, with priority given to support for continuation of business where possible. Although many businesses started in the last 12 months they have been significantly impacted or closed permanently.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Business survival rates percentage for new start businesses 12 months after initial intervention	92.17%	N/A	N/A

The number of new start business supported by local authority business support activities (including Business Gateway) and other Local Outcome Agreement (LOA) partners is shown in the table below. Although the target was exceeded in the second half of the year, it did not reach the annual target of 280 but did show recovery compared to 2020/21. Over the last quarter of 2021/22, as COVID-19 restrictions began to lift, positive engagement took place with start-up business.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Number of new start businesses supported by local authority business support activities (including Business Gateway) and other LOA partners	381	112	235

Business Gateway

Business Gateway has provided ongoing support to local businesses and support for new start businesses, business growth and sustainability, job creation and inward investment. Post COVID-19 and Brexit conditions affected business confidence leading to both a reduction in start-up and growth.

A focus on delivering COVID-19 business support remained throughout 2021/22 with a number of Scottish Government schemes requiring delivery. During the year, the Business Support team developed new business support products designed to help businesses having severe difficulties in recovery, sustainability, or diversification.

The number of Business Gateway start-ups per 10,000 population in East Dunbartonshire has increased from 9.66 in 2020/21 to 12.30 in 2021/22, as shown in the table below.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Number of business gateway start-ups per 10,000 population	14.73	9.66	12.30	14.41

During 2021/22, the Place and Business Development Service delivered on a range of regeneration activity relating to East Dunbartonshire’s town centres and regeneration locations, undertaking an important business support function through a range of activities including East Dunbartonshire’s Business Gateway contract.

Transport

The service leads on the delivery of the Local Transport and Active Travel Strategies as well as the development and delivery of key transportation infrastructure programmes, initiatives and projects. Over 2021/22 work included the installation of Real Time Passenger Information (RTPI) units across bus stops in Milngavie; progression of final designs for Canniesburn Toll; and design and feasibility work for path projects, including major links such as the Strathkelvin Railway footpath/cycle path route from Kirkintilloch to Lennoxtown.

Town Centres & Tourism

The Service also delivers and supports tourism activity and asset development in East Dunbartonshire. Projects progressed during 2021/22 included design work for Regent Gardens and Union Street in Kirkintilloch, a successful funding application for the Twechar Outdoor Pursuits and Training Centre and construction of the Milngavie Business Improvement District West Highland Way public realm project.

The table below shows that town centre footfall increased during 2021/22 compared to the previous year, however it continued to be impacted by COVID-19.

The percentage of town centre retail vacancies versus total number of town centre retail units has decreased compared to the previous year and is well below the Scottish average.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Number of business gateway start-ups per 10,000 population	14.73	9.66	12.30	14.41

The table below shows the investment in economic development and tourism per 1,000 population has increased between 2020/21 and 2021/22. The percentage of procurement spent on local small/medium enterprises has remained around 12%.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Investment in economic development and tourism per 1,000 population	£42,198	£40,473	£42,545	£119,388
% of procurement spent on local small/ medium enterprises	18.27%	12.23%	12.19%	29.88

City Deal

The City Deal Team are responsible for developing and implementing the multi-million pound programme of projects against the proposals identified within the Council’s approved City Deal Strategic Business Case. The team continues with a range of work to ensure the delivery of the Council’s City Deal project, including the preparation of the different stages of business cases which are required to unlock the funding.

The Major Assets team are leading on the delivery of the Westerhill Development Road. Expert technical services have been procured to support a range of work which has been well progressed in this period including: initial town centre public realm improvement feasibility and early design; business incubation space feasibility; initial transport modelling; and work to procure relevant expertise to design the Westerhill Development Road and undertake the Westerhill Masterplan.

Business Land Availability

The table below shows the immediately available employment land as a % of total land allocated for employment purposes in the local development plan

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Investment in economic development and tourism per 1,000 population	£42,198	£40,473	£42,545	£119,388
% of procurement spent on local small/ medium enterprises	18.27%	12.23%	12.19%	29.88

During 2021/22, the Place and Business Development Service delivered on a range of regeneration activity relating to East Dunbartonshire’s town centres and regeneration locations, undertaking an important business support function through a range of activities including East Dunbartonshire’s Business Gateway contract.

Read the Case Study - 10m Scotland Loves Local Fund [opens in a new window]

Local Outcome 2

Our people are equipped with knowledge and skills for learning, life and work

Employability

An Employer Recruitment Incentive has helped create over 30 jobs for young people and adults who were unemployed. A new redundancy support service was introduced although take up of this service is at the early stages.

Scottish Government employability funding has been secured to create 21 new six-month jobs within the Council and through the voluntary sector. A total of 16 jobs across different Council services have now been marketed to those who are identified as long-term unemployed through the Local Employability Partnership.

A new Employability Grants Programme was launched to enhance local delivery funded through Scottish Government’s ‘No One Left Behind’ and ‘Young Persons Guarantee’ funding. As part of this, a new youth volunteering programme linked to improving employability was developed in partnership with East Dunbartonshire Voluntary Action.

Two job fairs were also organised in Kirkintilloch, in partnership with the Department of Work and Pensions, with over 80 people and employers in attendance at each event.

The percentage of those supported by employability programmes into employment was 55% in 2020/21, an increase compared with the previous year. This has been supported by the Scottish Government funded Young Persons Guarantee, No One Left Behind programmes and COVID-19 grants.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Percentage of those supported by employability programmes into employment	60%	44%	55%

The table below shows the average quarterly percentage for those supported by an employability programme moving into and sustaining employment for six months. The figure for 2021/22 was 71% for those entering employment between July and September 2021.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Percentage of those supported by employability programme moving into and sustaining employment for 6 months	74%	67%	71%

The table below shows the percentage of unemployed people assisted into work from Council operated/funded employability programmes increased between 2020/21 and 2021/22 from 4.58% to 8%.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
% unemployed people assisted into work from Council operated/funded employability programmes	9.17%	4.58%	8.00%	19.57%

The average weekly earnings (gross) for full time workers living in East Dunbartonshire is £745.30 

The table below shows the proportion of employees who work in the East Dunbartonshire area who are earning less than the living wage. This indicator is based on those who work in the area regardless of where they live (by workplace) and not solely on those living in East Dunbartonshire (by residence). 

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Percentage of employees who work in the East Dunbartonshire area who are earning less than the living wage.	25%	27.8%	32.6%	14.40%

The table shows the claimant count as a percentage of 16-24 population decreased compared to the previous year and is lower than the Scottish average

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Claimant Count as a percentage of 16-24 population	2.39	4.85	2.30	3.68

The table shows the claimant count as a percentage of working age population decreased compared to the previous year and is lower than the Scottish average

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Claimant count as a percentage of working age population	1.90%	3.90%	2.30%	3.70%

Employability and Adult Learners

Remote support has been provided to employability and adult learners. This has included support with job search and job applications, access to training and supporting vulnerable learners access other provision e.g. Citizens Advice, food banks and providing access to online learning. An online learning celebration was held in December.

Modern Apprenticeships / GRAD+

Since 2013, the Council’s Modern Apprenticeship Programme and Graduate+ Programme has been available to local young people, offering them a path into the career of their choice. To date, almost 120 young people have been part of these programmes where they are equipped with knowledge and skills for learning, life and work. Both programmes were paused as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic with no recruits in 2020.

All 14 apprentices taking part in the 2021 Modern Apprenticeship programme are progressing well. Recruitment for the 2021 Grad+ graduate positions was completed with seven graduates starting.

Community Learning and Development Plan 2021/24

Community Learning and Development (CLD) is a way of working with individuals and communities which empowers those individuals or groups to address issues of importance to them, promoting social or educational development. CLD takes place with young people, adult learners and community groups, and involves a range of partners. CLD focusses on those who need support the most and the CLD plan looks to overcome disadvantage.

The CLD Partnership developed a three-year plan for local learning opportunities and community capacity building for 2021/24. The plan includes objectives in relation to identified needs and priorities such as improving employability and digital skills, supporting volunteering, reducing social isolation and improving mental health and wellbeing.

A public consultation took place along with focus groups concerning the plan from November to March 2022, the themes and priorities of the plan were endorsed. Council approved the final plan in March 2022. The CLD plan is subject to ongoing review and further consultation is taking place to help shape services as we emerge from the pandemic and further community needs are identified.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Proportion of properties receiving superfast broadband	96.8%	97.0%	97.4%	94.1%

Read Case Study - Improving outcomes for young people through Council’s early careers programme

Local Outcome 3

Our children and young people are safe, healthy and ready to learn

The Education Service delivers learning and support for children in early years, primary, secondary and Additional Support Needs (ASN) schools. The Service also delivers employability support and youth work services.

Attainment

Performance and overall achievement rates among secondary school pupils continued to be high. Following confirmation of SQA results, work has taken place to enable schools to review and compare results with each other.

The Audit Scotland report, improving outcomes for young people through school education, published in March 2021, provides an overview of progress on closing the poverty related attainment gap between the most and least deprived school pupils across Scotland. The report highlights East Dunbartonshire had the smallest gap between least deprived (SIMD Quintile 5) and the most deprived (SIMD Quintile 1) pupils in percentage of school leavers achieving five or more awards at level 5 when compared to other councils.

Collection of Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) data resumed in primary schools during 2021 but was not a requirement in secondary schools given the need to focus on the Alternative Certification Model following cancellation of the SQA exams. As expected, there was a decrease in attainment across early, first and second levels in reading, writing, listening and talking, and numeracy. This decrease was expected but minimal due to the high quality of remote learning that was provided during periods of school closures and self-isolation. The Quality Improvement Service worked closely with all Head Teachers to identify areas of learning loss to ensure that planning enabled appropriate support to be put in place to address this.

The National Qualifications Support site was created last session and has been updated to keep East Dunbartonshire Council parents informed about changes regarding SQA and includes support materials for managing stress and anxiety associated with assessments.

Following a successful pilot, all schools were supported to engage with an online system for meeting with and reporting to parents/carers about their child/young person’s progress in learning. Feedback was extremely positive and almost all schools will now look to consider a blended model for reporting to parents. Work is underway to review and update guidance for all schools. 

S4 Pupils		2022 Percentage of S4 roll achieving	2021 Percentage of S4 roll achieving	2020 Percentage of S4 roll achieving
5+ Level 5	Examinations at National 5	69.3%	74.0%	76.2%

 

S5 Pupils		2022 Percentage of S4 roll achieving	2021 Percentage of S4 roll achieving	2020 Percentage of S4 roll achieving
1+ Level 6	Higher level and above	79.7%	84.7%	83.8%
3+ Level 6	Higher level and above	62.2%	71.7%	68.7%
5+ Level 6	Higher level and above	38.8%	47.1%	44.2%

 

S6 Pupils		2022 Percentage of S4 roll achieving	2021 Percentage of S4 roll achieving	2020 Percentage of S4 roll achieving
1+ Level 7	Advanced Higher level	39.6%	41.2%	40.6%
3+ Level 6	Higher level and above	33.4%	45.1%	44.6%

*The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the use of different approaches to assessment in the summers of 2020, 2021 and 2022. It is important that any interpretation of the above data is within that context

The table below shows the percentage of pupils achieving five or more awards at SCQF level 5 has increased by 1% compared to the previous year and is well above the Scottish average. The percentage of pupils achieving five or more awards at SCQF level 6 decreased by 3% between 2020/21 and 2021/22 but remains higher than the Scottish average of 40%.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
% of pupils achieving 5 or more awards at SCQF level 5	88.0%	87.0%	88.0%	69.0%
% of pupils achieving 5 or more awards at SCQF level 6	66.0%	69.0%	66.0%	40.0%

* The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the use of a different approach to assessment in the summers of 2020 and 2021. It is important that any interpretation of the above data is within that context.

The table below shows the percentage of pupils living in the 20% most deprived areas gaining five or more awards at level 5 increased by 7% compared to the previous year. The percentage of pupils living in the 20% most deprived areas gaining five or more awards at level 6 also increased between 2020/21 and 2021/22 and is well above the Scottish average 

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
% of pupils living in the 20% most deprived areas gaining 5 or more awards at level 5	74.0%	72.0%	79.0%	52.0%
% of pupils living in the 20% most deprived areas gaining 5 or more awards at level 6	43.0%	42.0%	47.0%	23.0%

* The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the use of a different approach to assessment in the summers of 2020 and 2021. It is important that any interpretation of the above data is within that context.

The table below shows the overall average total tariff score and the average total tariff in SIMD quintiles 1 – 5 are all above the Scottish average.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Overall average total tariff	1345	1392	1371	981
Average total tariff SIMD quintile 1	1013	1018	1064	702
Average total tariff SIMD quintile 2	1124	1129	1048	827
Average total tariff SIMD quintile 3	1240	1232	1168	965
Average total tariff SIMD quintile 4	1379	1434	1443	1113
Average total tariff SIMD quintile 5	1515	1561	1555	1316

Attendance Rates

Attendance rates for primary and secondary schools remain high at 91.1% and 94.9% respectively as shown in the table below. There has been a decrease compared to the previous year due to COVID-19 issues.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Attendance rates in primary schools (%)	95.0%	97.0%	91.1%
Attendance rates in secondary schools (%)	92.0%	95.6%	94.9%

Numeracy

The online Numeracy professional learning programme has been a success and continues to be evaluated highly by teachers. All teachers have access to a library of online, self-guided training modules covering all aspects of numeracy from early through to second level. Teachers are supported to complete a practitioner enquiry and evidence impact on teaching and learning, in line with the General Teaching Council Scotland professional learning model. In collaboration with the Educational Psychology team, the Numeracy research group is working closely with two primary schools to improve motivation for and retention of mathematical knowledge and skills. Three workshops have been undertaken focussing on data analysis to inform practice and measure effectiveness of interventions. Initial results are evidencing improvements in attainment for targeted children.

The Maths Champion network met online once a month to share good practice and support continuing improvements in teaching and learning. This year, there has been a focus on maths recovery to support pupils with identified learning loss, as well as improved pedagogical practices. Champions also developed resources for Maths Week Scotland - One world, to make links with climate change and COP26.

Gaelic Learning

Meadowburn Primary School was involved in collaborating with Bòrd na Gàidhlig (BnG) as part of their Teaching Campaign, aimed at encouraging people worldwide to consider a career in Gaelic education. This campaign #DèanDiofar highlights the benefits of a career in Gaelic Teaching. The video to promote this was launched in November and Meadowburn Primary School was one of the six schools involved.

One primary teacher undertook the training course in Gaelic Learning in the Primary School (GLPS) funded by Scottish Government and this will support them to deliver Gaelic as Language 3 as part of the 1+2 Languages Policy. In addition to this, a number of teachers have participated in a range of Gaelic CLPL courses. In response to the need to enable more collaborative working and look at how Gaelic can be further developed within East Dunbartonshire Council, a Gaelic Strategic Group has been established.

Learning for Sustainability Award

Turnbull High School won an Education Scotland, Learning for Sustainability award, in the Learning Community category. The awards recognise the amazing achievements of Scotland’s people and the settings, schools and communities that have demonstrated passion and commitment to building a socially-just, sustainable and equitable world. Milngavie Primary School was highly commended in the same category.

Triple P Programme

During 2021/22, the supporting families service continued to see an increase in requests for assistance for parenting advice and support from primary schools and Early Years Centres and also self-referrals. All parents who have engaged with the service have stated they feel less stressed and more confident as a parent.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Number of parents participating in the Triple P programme	118	66	258

Annual Participation Measure Report

 

Annual Participation Measure Report 2021
	Participating in Education, Training or Employment	Not Participating (those unemployed seeking employment and others unemployed and not seeking employment)	Unconfirmed Status
East Dunbartonshire	96.7%	0.8%	2.5%
Scotland	92.2%	3.2%	4.6%

Developing the Young Workforce

The Senior Phase Vocational Programme Prospectus was updated and made available to all young people through the Opps4all website. There are over 50 courses covering a range of options in the following key labour market areas: Care, Health and Sports Industries; Creative and Digital Industries; Business and Service Industries; and Science, Engineering, Design and Manufacture. In addition, there are courses available for young people with additional support needs.

Applications for all courses opened at the start of February.

The Education Service has developed a tool that enables schools and the local authority to interrogate Skills Development Scotland’s 16+ Data Hub (positive destinations up to 24 years of age). By sharing information among key partners, schools are providing tailored support to young people when they leave school to help them find positive, sustained destinations after their secondary school education.

Early Years

Training was provided to Early Years and Primary 1 teachers in early reading, writing, talking and listening. All who attended indicated that it was extremely relevant to them and noted an increase in understanding in at least one of the key areas of focus. Professional learning opportunities have all been positively evaluated, with almost all participants acknowledging an increase in confidence and skills around the topics covered.

Primary and Early Years Literacy Champions continued to meet with a focus on sharing practice, engaging in professional dialogue and reflecting on their own literacy pedagogy. Feedback from these sessions indicates that almost all attendees highly value the opportunity to participate and feel more confident in sharing what they have learned with colleagues within their own establishments.

Following the very positive thematic visit from Education Scotland to Gartconner Early Years Centre (EYC), there was a joint professional learning session on the Early Years Curriculum. The session was attended by 75 practitioners and rated by most attending as either 4 or 5 out of 5. This will support practitioners in curriculum delivery as well as observing, planning and tracking. It is hoped that by building capacity in this way children will ultimately experience a more progressive and coherent curriculum within early years settings.

The Council shared its good practice approaches to Outdoor Learning and Professional Learning. Two Snack Time chats (bite-sized podcasts on topical early learning and childcare issues) were recorded and shared on the Improvement Service website. This has been a worthwhile opportunity to promote good practice within the Council to a national audience.

The percentage of early years provision graded good/better through Care Inspectorate Inspections has remained consistent at 95% and is above the Scottish average of 89%.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
% funded early years provision which is graded good/better	100%	95.24%	95.12%

Active Schools

The Active Schools team continued to work with Primary, Secondary and ASN schools to support access for children and young people to sport and physical activity opportunities, adapting to the change of restrictions throughout the academic year. This included work with identified vulnerable pupils within the school day.

The reintroduction of extra-curricular sport and physical activity clubs was allowed in October 2021, however this happened at differing times and to differing levels depending on the circumstances of each school. A challenge faced across East Dunbartonshire has been identifying volunteers to deliver activities and tackling this issue has been a focus throughout the year.

School Meals

A reduced lunchtime menu was in place during quarter 1 with limited menu choices available during the lunchtime service. The full menu was reinstated from August 2021. The revised nutritional regulations became effective from April 2021 and significant work was undertaken, including the sourcing of alternative food products, to ensure the school lunch menu complied with the revised regulations and met all nutritional standards.

The expansion of free school meals to Primary 4 pupils in August 2021 and Primary 5 pupils from January 2022 was successfully implemented. The service undertook significant planning to ensure the required catering resources, equipment and food supplies were in place to deliver this.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
% of children taking up free school meals	75.2%	n/a	72.13%

The uptake of paid and free school meals was significantly impacted during 2021/22 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This has resulted in dramatically reduced income and target figures not achieved. The uptake of free and paid meals improved during quarter 3 and 4 and work will continue to improve the uptake of school meals, focusing on lower performing schools.

Child Protection

There has been an increase in the number of Looked After and Accommodated placements across East Dunbartonshire throughout 2021/22. This has resulted in a change in the balance of care for these children with more being looked after in a residential setting. This has resulted in 83% of children being looked after and accommodated within a family home setting against a target of 89%. Work is ongoing to redress the balance of care by reviewing out of authority placements and continuing the foster carer recruitment campaign.

The percentage of first Child Protection review case conferences taking place within three months of registration was 100% for 2021/22 as shown in the table below. The percentage of Looked After & Accommodated reviews taking place within four weeks of the child being accommodated remained at 100%,

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
% of first Child Protection review case conference taking place within 3 months of registration	89%	91%	100%
% of first Looked After & Accommodated reviews taking place within 4 weeks of the child being accommodated	100%	100%	100%

The table below shows the attendance levels of Looked After Children attending all Council schools

This data is based on 88 Looked After Children and young people, comprising 37 primary, 43 secondary and 8 special school pupils. This number relates to children who have been looked after at home or away from home continuously since 1st August 2021.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Attendance levels of Looked After Children attending all Council schools	90%	88.6%	86%

The cost per primary school pupil, cost per secondary school pupil and cost per pre-school education registration is summarised in the table below.

Ferndale Children’s Services

The Care Inspectorate evaluated Ferndale Children’s Services as “excellent” (the highest grade) for the quality of care and support planning. They found performance to be innovate, sector leading, and sustainable. The inspectors found that the quality of assessments, care planning and record keeping in place for each young person was excellent and gave clear accounts of the young person.

Records noted young people’s strengths, their potential, and clear accounts of their views. They were colourful and child friendly using bold fonts, photographs and age-appropriate language. The plans were child centred and the child’s voice was heard throughout. Inspectors found that young people’s views were taken seriously and were implemented where possible. This included decisions to refurbish the snug into a pamper room, decorating bedrooms, trying new activities or hobbies, choices around meals, and young person’s views on their own care plans were actively supported.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Attendance levels of Looked After Children attending all Council schools	90%	88.6%	86%

 

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Attendance levels of Looked After Children attending all Council schools	90%	88.6%	86%

Scottish Youth Parliament

Elections took place in November for the Scottish Youth Parliament and three new MSYP’s were elected. The six unsuccessful candidates were invited to join the East Dunbartonshire Youth Council. Over 2,000 young people voted. Young people have formed a COP26 Champions group and have successfully obtained a £3000 grant. They plan to use this funding to improve recycling in schools.

Read the Case Study - Learning Lessons in Mental Health [opens in a new window]

Local Outcome 4

East Dunbartonshire is a safe place in which to live, work and visit

Community Protection

The Community Protection Service delivers a wide range of functions which corporately support the work of the Council and which contribute to the effective delivery of the local priority outcomes in the LOIP. The Service delivers on a broad statutory remit, with delivery measures centred on protecting public health and safety, wellbeing and consumer protection.

During the course of 2021/22 service delivery activity was largely driven by the need to provide an extensive and on- going public health response in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. The work undertaken by the service in relation to COVID-19 continued to evolve during the course of the year with responses being shaped at all times by the latest public health advice, and included the following:

• Delivery of a leading role in the public health response across the local authority in relation to case/outbreak management of COVID-19, working closely with partners at Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS Board, Public Health Protection Unit.
• Provision of an effective response to Test and Protect issues of relevance in our communities and within our businesses, with investigation by officers through remote means and also site visits to premises to ensure compliance (including physical distancing, hygiene, and all of the detail provided in the legislation and appropriate sector guidance).
• Enforcement of the emergency health protection regulations made in response to the serious and imminent threat to public health posed by the incidence and spread of COVID-19 in Scotland. Locally, Environmental Health assumed responsibility for enforcement in relation to the food and drink business community and Trading Standards assumed responsibility for enforcement in relation to the non-food and drink sectors.
• Provision of tailored advice and guidance to the whole of our business community on the emergency health protection legislation and Scottish Government guidance was given (evolving in line with the latest public health guidance at any point in time) throughout the course of the pandemic.

The Community Protection Service and Police Scotland jointly deliver co-production initiatives. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic normal service delivery in this area was suspended, while some essential joint work around bogus caller activity and joint work under the emergency health protection regulations relating to COVID-19 was undertaken.

Trading Standards

The Trading Standards team enforces a wide range of consumer protection legislation and provides advice to businesses and to the public on matters including fair trading, product safety, weights & measures, petroleum and consumer rights.

Planned inspections at local businesses have resumed, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in an increased workload throughout 2021/22 in areas such as providing consumer advice, scam prevention, and product safety and fair-trading enforcement.

Officers delivered consumer advice services to local residents dealing with contractual disputes and performance issues that have often arisen as a result of the pandemic, and provided effective casework in relation to increased numbers

of travel, scam and home improvement related complaints. Joint enforcement work by Trading Standards and Police Scotland on scam and doorstep crime issues continued via Operation Skipjack, with a focus on the protection of our vulnerable and elderly populations from financial harm.

The table below shows the total number of interventions by officers from the Trading Standards and Environmental Health team under emergency health protection regulations (COVID-19 regulations). The figure includes all business advice requests, complaints, pro-active interventions and follow-ups.

Performance Indicator	2020/21	2021/22
Number of interventions by Environmental Health and Trading Standards under the emergency health protection regulations in response to coronavirus	3,371	1,230

The Council’s Trading Standards team carries out advisory and enforcement work to ensure that the Scottish Government’s Enhanced Tobacco Sales Enforcement Programme (ETSEP) is delivered. During 2021/22, Trading Standards ETSEP activity was still suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will recommence as soon as is feasible.

The table below shows the cost of Trading Standards, Money Advice and Citizens Advice per 1,000 has increased slightly compared to the previous year.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Cost of trading standards, Money Advice & Citizens Advice per 1,000 population (£)	8,091	7,520	7,757	6,084

Environmental Health

The Environmental Health team enforces a wide range of legislation and provides advice to businesses and to the public on matters including food safety, occupational health and safety, animal welfare, noise pollution, air quality and public health.

The team were key players in the COVID-19 response across Council services and in the delivery of the Care for People work stream to the community. They worked jointly with Greater Glasgow & Clyde NHS Board Public Protection Unit and with Scottish Government partners on a range of public health matters to protect the people of East Dunbartonshire.

Local activity in relation to official food controls fully resumed in October 2021 in line with a nationally agreed recovery process. The team has also delivered a programme of activity to meet all statutory obligations in relation to environmental regulation.

The figures below show that 95% of food premises rated as a ‘Pass’ in the Food Hygiene Information Scheme in 2021/22. The Food Hygiene Information Scheme was introduced in 2014 across the whole of East Dunbartonshire. It has resulted in an improvement in food hygiene standards across the area. Information can be found online at the Food Standards Agency's website [opens in a new window]. 

Percentage of Food Premises Rated as a ‘pass’ in the Food Hygiene Information Scheme:

2020/21 - 92%
2021/22 - 95%

Compared with a target of 70%

The Environmental Health service also receive and investigate a number of complaints about matters that affect the public health of people. Amongst others, these included complaints about noise issues, odour issues and complaints relating to water supply and drainage issues.

The table below shows the cost of Environmental Health per 1,000 population has increased between 2020/21 and 2021/22 but is below the Scottish average. The cost of Trading Standards and Environmental Health per 1,000 population increased slightly compared to the previous year and is also below the Scottish average.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Cost of Environmental Health per 1,000 population (£)	£11,983	£12,400	£12,955	£15,019
Cost of Trading Standards and Environmental Health per 1,000 population	£19,503	£20,158	£20,470	£20,947

Community Safety

The Community Safety team delivered a broad range of frontline work to protect local communities throughout the course of 2021/22.

Officers delivered services in relation to antisocial behaviour, youth disorder, neighbour disputes, environmental incivilities, dog control, decriminalised parking enforcement, fly-tipping, mediation and pest control. The COVID-19 pandemic impacted a number of community safety issues, with demand for certain services continuing to spike during the course of 2021/22. The team continued to work closely with a range of colleagues and key partners to successfully deliver appropriate interventions and to make our local communities safer.

Number Of Targeted Decriminalised Parking Enforcement Initiatives and Patrols (including Schools And Residential Areas) In Response To Complaints, Service Requests And Intelligence Received

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Number Of Targeted Decriminalised Parking Enforcement Initiatives and Patrols (including Schools And Residential Areas) In Response To Complaints, Service Requests And Intelligence Received	140	151	312

The figures below show 97% of environmental incivilities were reported with initial officer response within two days during 2021/22, well above the target of 80%.

Percentage of environmental incivilities reported with initial officer response within 2 days:

2020/21 - 98%
2021/22 - 97%

Compared with a target of 80%

Emergency Response Centre

The Emergency Response Centre monitors and records images from public space CCTV cameras. During 2021/22, agents logged 179 public space CCTV incidents across the authority. Crimes are immediately reported to Police Scotland locally and all CCTV images are recorded and can be downloaded for use in police investigations and criminal proceedings.

Criminal Justice Service

Community Justice Scotland (CJS) was launched in 2016 by the Scottish Government supported by a national strategy, national outcomes and a performance and improvement framework. The East Dunbartonshire Community Justice Partnership (CJP) has a wide representation from the full range of statutory, independent and third sector partners. An overarching focus of the CJP is how early intervention and prevention can help to reduce the cycle of re-offending and build safer communities.

The table below shows the percentage of Criminal Justice Social Work Reports submitted to Court by due date for 2021/22 was 98%. The percentage of individuals beginning a work placement within seven working days of receiving a Community Payback Order in 2021/22 was 83%, higher than 2020/21, which was only 3% due to work placement suspension due to COVID-19.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
% of Criminal Justice Social Work Reports submitted to Court by due date	100%	98%	98%

The % of individuals beginning a work placement within 7 working days of receiving a Community Payback Order

 

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
The % of individuals beginning a work placement within 7 working days of receiving a Community Payback Order	87%	3%	83%

Read the Case Study - Doorstep crime campaign launched [opens in a new window]

Read the Case Study - Licensing guidance helps to lead the way on safety [opens in a new window]

Local Outcome 5

Our people experience good physical and mental health and wellbeing with access to a quality built and natural environment in which to lead healthier and more active lifestyles

Mugdock Country Park

Mugdock Country Park is located 10 miles north of Glasgow close to Milngavie and Strathblane. It was designated a Country Park in 1987 and combines woodland, heathland, marshland and moor along with formal walking routes, a loch, castles and gun site remaining from WWII.

Despite COVID-19 related restrictions continuing into 2021/22, the Park was able to remain open to visitors and continued to see footfall increase from an annual average of over 600,000 visitors to over 800,000 visitors. The park worked on a number of activities which included the following:

• Forest school sessions undertaken with Milngavie Primary, Lennoxtown Primary, Balfron High, Mosshead Primary, Meadowburn Primary and Balmuildy Primary. They participated in shelter building, tree identification, whittling, minibeast hunting, nature walks, orienteering, natural craft and fire building.
• Countryside Ranger events for local community/uniformed groups. 35 young people attended sessions on nature games and storytelling.
• Events programme restarted with 30 events and seasonal trails from Oct 2021 – Feb 2022 attended by 786 visitors to the park. In addition, 1,690 visitors and 20 schools saw the annual Pantomime.
• A Wellbeing Week took place in February 2022 and included taster sessions for Yoga, Qigong, Pilates, Forest bathing and Mindfulness.
• Development projects include replacing the BBQs, improving the Walled Garden, renovating the Theatre, relocating the Visitor Centre & Gift Shop and completing the Campsie Room for hire.

The table below shows the cost of parks and open spaces per 1,000 population.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
The cost of parks and open spaces per 1,000 population	25,954	29,529	28,260	20,298

Mental Health Services

The Health and Social Care Partnership’s (HSCP) Community Mental Health team worked intensively during 2021/22 to become a Trauma Informed Practice. The main aim of trauma informed practice is to prevent re-traumatisation in therapeutic and medical settings. Staff training needs were identified to ensure that all clinical staff will complete the NHS Education for Scotland Trauma Module and will be supported by trauma specific clinical supervision.

The Community Mental Health team have improved communication and engagement with patients and carers, including the development of a discharge survey and updated complaints handling procedures.

Primary Care Mental Health Team

Just before the COVID-19 pandemic, the HSCP’s Primary Care Mental Health Team had prepared the way for a new virtual approach to supporting people remotely. This was in response to a recognition that for some people with mental health issues, having access to support from home was more comfortable for them. This early preparation was extremely fortuitous, as the new digital approach could be rolled out very quickly in the spring of 2020, so the service was able to continue to operate. Patient feedback has been very positive, with a desire for this way of delivering support to continue as an option for people who prefer it.

Perinatal Mental Health Services

The HSCP recognised the need for improved mental health support in the postnatal period during pregnancy and the first postnatal year. In response to this need, a multi-disciplinary group (Health Visitors and Community Mental Health) established a new rolling programme of support. The ‘Enjoy your Baby’ group is an evidence-based programme for the management of stress, anxiety and depression for mothers experiencing mild to moderate mental health challenges during this period.

The programme promotes an early intervention, reducing the risk of deterioration using a recovery-based model of person-centred care, taking account of the women’s needs and that of her infant, partner and family. As a further development of this work, the team has invested in a training programme to better identify and meet the needs of fathers and partners.

Alcohol and Drug Recovery Services

The HSCP’s Alcohol and Drug Recovery Service (ADRS) have established significant practice development during 2021/22. The ADRS team developed a new Pabrinex Clinic. Long term alcohol users suffer from vitamin deficiencies which can adversely affect the brain and cognitive abilities (resulting in alcohol related brain damage). Pabrinex is a multivitamin given by injection to reverse cognitive damage and protect the brain.

The team also set up two new physical health clinics offering health screens, urine and blood screens and ECGs (electrocardiograms) to check heart rhythm. This has been highlighted within alcohol and drug deaths reviews as a priority need due to the poor physical health of many people attending ADRS.

The below shows the number of alcohol brief interventions delivered by the HSCP during 2021/22 was 117, this is an increase compared to the previous year. The service has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery planning is underway.

Number of alcohol brief interventions delivered

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Number of alcohol brief interventions delivered	610	34	117

Roads

The Roads Network Operations team are responsible for all road, footway and lighting maintenance. The team progressed the annual routine maintenance programme, successfully reacting to reports of ad-hoc road infrastructure defects, cleaning of carriageway drainage systems and maintenance of the street lighting network.

During 2021/22, the service completed resurfacing projects totalling approximately 7,700m2 of carriageways in quarter one, 20,800m2 in quarter two, 19,020m2 in quarter three and 18,945m2 in quarter four.

Despite impacts to the service, core operations continued to be delivered throughout the pandemic with an emphasis on essential/emergency works. The return to business as usual was in line with Scottish Government, Council H&S and industry guidance.

The table below shows the percentage of responsive road repairs completed within timescales has decreased between 2020/21 and 2021/22.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Percentage of responsive road repairs completed within timescales	84.2%	82.5%	50.97%

The cost of roads per kilometre is shown in the table below.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Cost of roads per kilometre (£)	£15,440	£10,005	£14,198	£10,946

The table below shows the percentage of A class, B class, C class and unclassified roads that should be considered for maintenance treatment.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Percentage of A class roads that should be considered for maintenance treatment	28.21%	29.40%	28.34%	27.60%
Percentage of B class roads that should be considered for maintenance treatment	28.32%	28.90%	25.28%	33.61%
Percentage of C class roads that should be considered for maintenance treatment	29.10%	31.80%	28.89%	33.24%
Percentage of unclassified roads that should be considered for maintenance treatment	34.96%	34.70%	34.69%	36.65%

The Street Lighting team successfully installed the Christmas lights across the area with the reintroduction of some public ‘switch on’ events organised by Community Groups supported by the technical and operational teams. In addition, the installation of Mobile CCTV cameras to assist Police Scotland was completed as requested.

 The table below shows the percentage of all street light repairs completed within 7 days in 2021/22 was 71.6%.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Percentage of all street light repairs completed within 7 days in 2021/22 was 71.6%.	95%	74.6%	71.6%

The table below shows the percentage of traffic light repairs completed within 48 hours remained at 100%.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Percentage of traffic light repairs completed within 48 hours	100%	100%	100%

The Roads Technical & Engineering Services team lead on structures improvement work including retaining wall strengthening, minor bridge strengthening, parapet upgrading and construction of new bridges.

All principal inspections and general inspections of the local authority bridges programmed for the period were completed. Works for the year included:

• Emergency repairs to Bridge No.1 Glasgow Road, Milngavie, which were carried out in partnership with Scottish Water, necessitated the closure of Glasgow Road. These works were to protect the mains water supply to Glasgow and repair the structure holding up Glasgow Road, which had been undermined.
• Torrance Bridge, emergency repairs to expansion joints and abutments.

Traffic Officers are responsible for all aspects of road safety and work with Police Scotland on accident sites, investigate and implement traffic calming proposals, manage our network of traffic signals, instruct remedial road signs and markings and prepare traffic orders and notices for works on the public road. Work carried out during 2021/22 included:

• Implementation of the first average speed camera system within East Dunbartonshire at Auchinairn Road, Bishopbriggs.
• Installation of traffic calming on Newdyke Road Kirkintilloch.
• Procurement of a traffic survey contract to continue the monitoring of traffic volumes/speed on Council roads. This data also informs the traffic management database for future traffic calming projects.
• Procurement of a new system to host, interrogate and report on road crash data within the Council area. This data also informs the traffic management database for future traffic calming projects.

Property Maintenance

The Property Maintenance service undertakes repairs and maintenance across the Council’s property estate, which includes around 3,700 housing properties in addition to all operational and non-operational assets. Operationally this involves reactive repairs, void management, gas servicing, fixed electrical testing and portable appliance testing. The service also undertakes a range of capital works on behalf of both Housing and other Council service areas.

The table below shows that performance significantly improved in the delivery of gas servicing with 99.97% of properties having a gas safety check carried out within the anniversary date, an increase of 10% from the previous year and represents only one property failure in quarter one with the remaining quarters at 100%.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
% of properties that require a gas safety record which had a gas safety check and record completed by the anniversary date	99.85%	89.60%	99.97

The percentage of voids returned within timescales in 2021/22 was 88.0%, an 21% increase compared to the previous year as shown in the table below.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
% Voids returned within timescales	79.75%	67.0%	88.0%

The Property Maintenance service achieved its target of visiting all housing properties across the estate to install smoke and heat alarms in line with current legislation and Government targets. Funding has been secured for Care and Repair Scotland to support the installation of smoke and heat alarms to those residents in East Dunbartonshire eligible to use the service, and officers are scheduling the installation of alarms for those who qualify.

The table below shows the number of appointments kept has remained consistent during 2021/22 at 99.7%.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
% of repairs appointments kept	98.95%	99.4%	99.7%

The average number of days taken to complete non-emergency repairs in 2021/22 was 12.02 a slight increase compared to the previous year.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Average number of days taken to complete non-emergency repairs	14.25	11.09	12.02	9.19

Development Applications

The Development Applications Service processes and determines over 900 planning applications and over 1,200 building warrant applications a year. This can range from small-scale householder applications to major residential and commercial projects.

The table below shows the percentage of householder developments decided in less than two months was 83.5%.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Percentage of householder developments decided in less than two month	77.9%	60.4%	83.5%

The table below shows the percentage of non-householder local developments decided in less than two months was 75%.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
% of non-householder local developments decided in less than 2 months	56.4%	50.0%	75.0%

The table below shows the cost per planning application decreased in 2021/22 compared to the previous year and is below the Scottish average.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Cost of planning and building standards per planning application (£)	4,041	3,938	3,121	4,337

Although the average time per business and industry planning application (weeks) increased between 2020/21 and 2021/22 it is below the Scottish average.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Average time per business and industry planning application (weeks)	8.43	8.71	10.19	10.32

East Dunbartonshire Leisure and Culture Trust

East Dunbartonshire Leisure and Culture Trust (EDLC Trust) is a charitable company established by East Dunbartonshire Council. It was incorporated on 25 November 2010 and commenced trading on 1 April 2011. Services are delivered from three leisure centres (including pavilions), eight libraries, a museum, an art gallery, a town hall, community sports hub and an arts centre.

The key service areas of EDLC Trust have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In line with Scottish Government guidance, leisure centres, museums and libraries, which had been closed since March 2020, began to reopen on a phased basis between April and June 2021. Some restrictions remained in place, which limited the numbers that could attend facilities and had an impact on income across the services.

Mass vaccination centres were set up at the Allander and Kirkintilloch Leisure Centres at short notice and were in operation from 1 February 2021. EDLC staff at both sites volunteered to work at the vaccination centres and feedback from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and those attending the clinics was positive. The mass vaccination sites at Allander and Kirkintilloch Leisure Centres ceased operating on 16 September 2021. They were a great success and this has been recognised by NHS and Council partners. With the centres now operating without the Mass Vaccination programme it has had a positive impact on use of dryside activities such as Badminton, Sports Clubs and additional fitness classes at Kirkintilloch Leisure Centre.

Although it was a challenging year for EDLC Trust, staff continued to work hard on a phased recovery programme, which included measures to enable customer and employee confidence in the restoration of existing services or the introduction of new services. As a result, the direct debit membership figure recovered to over 80% of pre-pandemic levels.

Library Services

The library service re-branded its digital services as Your Digital Library and online usage continued to increase throughout the year, with no significant drop off as branches re-opened. This suggests that many new users discovered the wide range of online resources that the service offers, and these users have been retained. New digital services were introduced during the year, including a full programme of virtual author events during Book Week Scotland in November 2021. To improve use of digital devices in libraries a new online booking system was introduced, making it quicker and easier to book sessions and guaranteeing availability of devices for the customers’ visit.

Funding of £34,178 was secured to develop storytelling and book related activities for children in communities with significant challenges, known as The Wee Green Library. Activity sessions began in schools and community settings during February and March. The funding supported the purchase of new books and resources and an electric van will facilitate the delivery of activities and resources, initially to the Council’s Place Priority areas.

The table below shows the number of visits to libraries during 2021/22, libraries were closed for three months during 2021/22 but despite this, use has improved.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Number of visits to Libraries	721,357	580,217	711,193

Note: The ‘number of visits to libraries’ includes digital access, which increased during 2021/22. Visits in person for 2020/21 was 2,098, compared with 456,033 in 2019/20.

Reading Groups began meeting in those libraries that had appropriate spaces and there are now 16 groups operating out of the eight branches. In branches, staff used display spaces to provide a varied series of exhibitions and information designed to attract and retain users.

Targeted activities also resumed, including the Visually Impaired Reading Group, who use audio books for their discussions. A new group supporting neurodiverse adults was established in the William Patrick Library in collaboration with social work colleagues. The MAGSS group is a discussion group for fans of manga, anime, gaming and sci fi.

The table below shows the cost per library visit decreased from £4.45 in 2020/21 to £3.13 in 2021/22.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Cost Per Library Visit	£3.06	£4.45	£3.13	£2.89

Heritage and Arts

An award of £50k from the Museums Galleries Scotland ‘Summer of Play 2021’ grant scheme, provided the opportunity for 44 children and young people to create their own film and produce their own play over a two week period of the school summer holidays. The final pieces of work were screened and performed to a restricted audience of 93 parents, carers and close family members.

The table below shows the number of visits to Council funded or part funded museums. Although museums were closed for three months in 2021/22, usage figures are closer to pre-pandemic levels.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Number of visits to Council funded or part funded museums	38,611	815	38,342

The table below shows the cost of museums per visit has returned to a similar cost as in 2019/20 following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions.

Year	2019/20	2020/21*	2021/22	Scottish Average
Cost per visit to museums and galleries	£6.17	£357.63	£6.65	£4.75

*high cost per visit in 2020/21 due to museums and galleries being closed for long periods as part of COVID-19 restrictions

Leisure Centres

The Leisure Centres performance during 2021/22 continued to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in respect of the second lockdown extending into April, continuing mitigations thereafter restricting capacity numbers, and in addition the repurposing of two of the sites into dual operation mass vaccination clinics and leisure centres.

Despite these operational challenges, usage grew slowly but steadily at all sites from the end of April 2021 when customers were able to return, initially on a pre-bookable basis thereafter on a walk-in basis later in the year.

Membership exceeded projections as strong corporate messaging around safety and COVID-19 mitigations supported growing customer confidence.

By the end of the calendar year membership levels had reached around 70 percent of pre-pandemic levels and 80 percent at the end of the financial year. EDLC Trust is working to close that final financial gap, which is proving challenging for all operators across the country as people’s exercise habits have changed over the last two years and residual reticence among some in relation to indoor activities.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Attendances at leisure centres	970,019	33,572	556,414

Outdoor sports facilities managed by EDLC Trust performed well during the year. Capital improvements were also made including a new overspill car park at Huntershill Community Sports Hub to cope with increased visits to the venue, and a new permanent fence was erected around the grass pitch at Merkland Outdoor Recreation Centre to protect it from unauthorised use.

The table below shows the cost per attendance at Sports facilities was £4.48 in 2021/22 and is well below the Scottish average.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Cost per attendance at Sports facilities	£2.57	£88.83*	£4.48	£6.43

*high cost per visit in 2020/21 due to sports facilities being closed for long periods as part of COVID-19 restrictions

Sports Development

Sports Development began the year with a reduced programme following the return from COVID-19 restrictions. During this period, staff were trained on the new class management system (OnCourse) along with the new booking and Direct Debit process, which was then implemented for the return to classes after the Summer holidays.

Football numbers have not returned to pre-Covid levels, however this is largely due to the loss of the busiest centre with the closure of the sportsdrome at the Allander. This has reduced the football numbers to 38% compared to March 2020 and will continue around this level until the replacement facility opens in 2023. Schools’ programmes (football and rugby) are now operating and numbers have increased.

The table shows attendances for Sports Development has increased slightly in 2021/22 compared to the previous year.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Attendances for Sports Development	70,970	10,030	10,109

The Learn to Swim programme is now following the Scottish Swimming framework and all children were mapped over to the new levels in September 2021. The Adult & Child programme was also re-started with classes filling up in January 2022. Overall numbers have increased with current levels at 65% compared to March 2020, with adults and disability classes being reintroduced from May 2022.

In partnership with UEFA, the Scottish FA and Disney, Football Development ran the first ever Disney Playmakers Programme in Scotland. This unique programme was designed by leading academics to help facilitate football and sport amongst young girls aged five to eight, which used the Disney brand to break down barriers. Courses were offered in Kirkintilloch Leisure Centre and the Leisuredrome, Bishopbriggs with 30 girls attending each centre for 10 weeks. Each session was designed around a chapter of Disney’s Incredibles movie. The girls were involved in the design of these sessions where the coach would then help facilitate their delivery.

Read the Case Study - Affordable Homes [opens in a new window]

Local Outcome 6

Our older population and more vulnerable citizens are supported to maintain their independence and enjoy a high quality of life, and they, their families and carers benefit from effective care and support services

The pressure on delivering health and social care has continued to be intense throughout 2021/22, due to the continuing impact of the pandemic. With fluctuating emergency response arrangements and the impact on services and staffing levels, the Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) has had to continue to adapt to a fast pace of change and respond quickly to frequently changing circumstances and regulations. The HSCP continued to work to support the most vulnerable people in our community and promote social justice, equality and safety.

Care Homes Support

The Care Home Support Team (CHST) was formally and fully established by the HSCP in August 2021, although its origins stem from before the COVID-19 pandemic. The team is an integrated multi-disciplinary team that consists of Social Workers, Care Home Liaison Nurses (Adult and Mental Health), a Pharmacy Technician and Dietitian. The team has strong links with Commissioning and the newly established Care About Physical Activity Team (CAPA) which sits within the Community Rehab team. The CHST works in partnership with residents, relatives, care home staff and wider health and care services.

The purpose of the team is to provide specialist support, promote best practice and empower care homes to provide high quality care to the residents. The team also has a duty of care to ensure the safety and welfare of care home residents within East Dunbartonshire. Over the past year the team has been working hard to support care homes with some of the ongoing challenges associated with COVID-19 and its excellent work has resulted in being nominated for a Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) award.

Home and Residential Care

The table below shows that home care costs per hour for people aged 65 and over increased between 2020/21 and 2021/22.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Home care costs per hour for people aged 65 and over	£23.69	£28.62	£32.17	£28.57

Residential costs per week per resident for people aged 65 and over decreased over the same time period.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Residential costs per week per resident for people aged 65 and over	£417	£523	£491	£649

 

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
% of people aged 65 and over with long term care needs who receive personal care at home	61.24%	60.93%	62.69%	62.34%

Review of Social Support for Older People

The HSCP has undertaken a strategic review of informal and formal social supports for older people with a view to the enhancement of community led support. This is designed to support older people earlier in their ageing journey, with a view to earlier intervention and improved preventative solutions.

The HSCP has developed an in-house directory of good practice examples that demonstrate innovative, creative and personalised support packages. This approach has been to encourage social work practitioners to consider alternative ways of supporting individuals out with traditional forms of social care support.

In partnership with older people and their families, the HSCP (including Third Sector partners), have developed a local peer support group on a constituted basis for older people from ethnic minorities, which is able to access grant funding. The group have also been linked to other supports including the Tesco Community Champion and the Health Improvement team for input and support.

Care at Home

The new HSCP Care at Home service model and structure, arising from the 2019/20 strategic service review, is now fully in place. Further capacity and service development is being implemented via the Winter System Pressures Funding, which includes the expansion of reablement and overnight wrap around support at home. These developments allow for preventative work to maintain people’s skills and independence for as long as possible in the community, and to avoid unscheduled hospital admission.

Care about Physical Activity

To support delivery of the Scottish Government Care about Physical Activity (CAPA) programme within Care Homes, the HSCP is funding Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy resources to work with Care Homes in the area. This programme looks to introduce meaningful activities for individual residents with resultant improvement in physical and mental health wellbeing.

House Project

East Dunbartonshire House Project was established in February 2020. It aims to contribute to the scaffolding and support required to provide young people leaving care with the opportunity to live in a place of their own. It is designed to make them feel valued and reduce feelings of uncertainty and lack of control over their future, whilst building communities of support.

Since February 2021, East Dunbartonshire House Project has supported 14 care experienced young people into their own homes and a further six care experienced young people are currently working towards the same. Over the last year, there have been opportunities for our young people such as being part of the care leavers’ national movement, taking part in a peer evaluation of other House Projects and presenting a pitch in-house for funding to support activities promoting mental health and wellbeing. Our young people have also held a virtual networking event, prepared and shared over 40 meals together and created an animated film about their Local House Project journey.

The House Project programme includes monthly consultation sessions with a Clinical Psychologist to ensure the Project remains trauma informed. The Project also has direct input from the local Housing Department and has links with Who Cares? Scotland.

Older People and Disability Social Work Locality Teams

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the pre-existing Adult Intake, Physical Disability and Older People Social Work teams merged functions and split into localities. Specialists attended virtual team meetings to enhance knowledge and to extend professional networks. Peer support and supervision was facilitated with the use of formal and informal online tools, to ensure that the teams were supported operationally and personally to deliver frontline social work service to the most vulnerable customers across the localities. Already, the feedback from service users demonstrates the benefits to the new locality approach.

With the changes to the intake service, new and repeat referrals are assigned much more swiftly and customers receive better continuity in terms of an allocated worker who is usually the same person screening the referral from first contact through assessment and provision of service.

Telecare

In 2021/22, 610 new community alarms were installed by the HSCP whilst adhering to social distancing protocols. This was an increase compared to the previous year where 506 new alarms were installed and may be a reflection on customers now being less anxious about having people in their homes.

In addition, a number of intensive technology assisted care packages were commissioned, which safely increases levels of independence. These models have been very successful and will provide a model for future community-based support.

Emergency Response Centre

The Emergency Response Centre (ERC) provides a 24/7 service throughout the year. Working across three shifts, the team responds to community alarms, monitors both public space and Council’s own security CCTV cameras and responds to emergency out of hours phone calls from customers and from partners and first responders.

The community alarm service is a lifeline service that supports vulnerable people to remain in their own homes. The ERC monitors alarm activations 24 hours a day, responding to customers and arranging for appropriate assistance. The ERC delivers a service to customers across the East and West Dunbartonshire areas, including tenants in Cordale and Hanover sheltered housing schemes.

In the period from 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022, a total of 243,396 alarm calls were handled in the ERC, 192,118 of these were incoming alarm activations and 51,278 were outgoing calls from the ERC through the alarm technology to the customer. This is an increase in alarm calls of 10,532 or 4.5% compared to 2020/21 when 232,864 alarm calls were handled.

When the Council is closed for normal business, the ERC handles all incoming phone calls. Customers are informed that the council is closed but that if they have an emergency they should hold and their call will be answered. During 2021/22 the ERC answered 6,412 out of hours emergency calls, with an average response time of 29 seconds which reflects the very low volume of calls in comparison to calls made to the 0300 21234510 number in office hours. This was almost an 8% increase in the number of calls answered in 2020/21, when the 5,943 out of hours calls were answered in a similar average call response time.

Adult Support and Protection

The Adult Protection Committee reviewed its triennial business improvement plan in light of the pandemic impacts and emerging issues and risks. It identified priority workstreams, which could be progressed given workforce capacity pressures and agreed a new Adult Participation strategy.

The annual multi-agency audit was convened in October 2021 and the Adult Protection Committee agreed a short action plan to address the findings. Social Work’s existing inquiry and investigation templates were consolidated into one form to improve the efficiency and accuracy of recording.

The table below shows the percentage of adult protection cases, where the required timescales have been met, has remained consistent at 92% and is on target.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
% of adult protection cases where the required timescales have been met	92.8%	92.3%	92%

Self-Directed Support

East Dunbartonshire Health and Social Care Partnership’s Self-Directed Support (SDS) Plan 2021-24 was implemented on 1 April 2021 and will be the main driver for ensuring the continued implementation of SDS in East Dunbartonshire.

There are four options contained within the Self-Directed Support (SDS) legislation:

• Option 1 – Direct Payment
• Option 2 – Individual Service Fund
• Option 3 – Council Arranged Services
• Option 4 – Combination of Options

Through dedicated awareness raising and individual assessment and reviews, the number of service users being supported to make a decision about the right level of choice and control for them has increased in 2021/22 by 14.2% compared to the previous year. The majority of service users continue to choose to use SDS option 3.

The table below shows the SDS spend on adults 18+ as a percentage of total social work spend on adults 18+.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
SDS (direct payments + managed personalised budgets) spend on adults 18+ as a % of total social work spend on adults 18+	5.82%	6.02%	5.87%	8.16%

User Satisfaction

The national Health & Care Experience Survey asks about people’s experiences of aspects of care and support provided by local authorities and other organisations. The survey runs every two years. The most recent survey was delayed for a year due to the pandemic, so was carried out in 2021/22 and reported in May 2022. It is important to note the limitations of the survey due to small numbers (2,425 residents responded nationally), which introduces a margin of error at a local level. Comparison of ‘performance’ using this data should therefore be seen as an approximation.

In the 2021/22 biennial Health and Social Care Experience Survey, 69% of 159 respondents in East Dunbartonshire rated the quality of help, care or support services as positive. This compares with 62% of 10,899 respondents nationally. Using locally derived satisfaction data, during 148 reviews of social care support in 2021/22, 91% of service users expressed satisfaction with the quality of care provided.

During reviews of social care support in 2021/22 involving 233 service users, 98% expressed satisfaction with their involvement in the design of their care. This is a slight reduction from 2020/21 when 149 service users expressed 100% satisfaction, but still represents exceptionally high levels of satisfaction and is above the target of 95%. It also represents a 3% increase in satisfaction compared to levels in 2018/19.

The Council’s satisfaction indicator shown in the table below is based on 159 reviews and shows the percentage of those aged 65+ indicating satisfaction with their social interaction opportunities. The figure for 2021/22 was 91%, which reflects the restrictive impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on people being able to participate in social interactions.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Percentage of 65+ indicating satisfaction with their social interaction opportunities	94.0%	95.0%	91.0%

The table below shows the percentage of adults supported at home who agree that their services and support had an impact in improving or maintaining their quality of life decreased compared to the previous year. The percentage of adults supported at home who agree that they are supported to live as independently as possible increased by 10% between 2020/21 and 2021/22.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Percentage of adults supported at home who agree that their services and support had an impact in improving or maintaining their quality of life	83.23%	85.79%	76.96%	78.12%

The table below shows the percentage of care services graded good or better by the Care Inspectorate in their inspection programme.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Proportion of care services graded good (4) or better in Care Inspectorate inspections	90.30%	89.70%	85.15%	75.80%

Carers

In the 2022 biennial Health and Social Care Experience Survey, 30% of 334 respondents in East Dunbartonshire who were carers agreed that they felt supported to continue to be carers. This compares with 30% of 18,910 respondents nationally. These results indicate that there is still a lot of work to do in order to ensure that informal carers feel supported.

The Local Government Benchmarking indicator below shows the percentage of carers who feel supported to continue in their caring role has decreased over the past few years.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Percentage of carers who feel supported to continue in their caring role	41.32%	37.57%	30.21%	29.69%

However, a rolling survey undertaken by the HSCP reflects a more positive picture, where out of 228 reviews of social care support in 2021/22, 96% of carers indicated that they felt supported to continue in their caring role, which was a slight decrease from 2020/21 where the performance reported was 98% of 148 reviews undertaken.

Care and Repair Service

During 2021/22, 709 small repairs and 134 aids and adaptations were carried out within Council properties and a further 24 adaptations carried out on private properties by the Care and Repair service. These activity levels are significantly lower than pre-pandemic numbers, as most customers were classified as being in the vulnerable category, so contact was restricted. The expectation is that services activity will increase next year as restrictions are lifted and customer confidence grows.

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Guiding Principle 1 - Best Value

We will endeavour to maintain an appropriate balance between the quality of the performance of our functions, the cost of that performance, and the cost to people of any service provided. In maintaining that balance, the Partnership shall have regard to safety, efficiency, effectiveness and economy

Tracking the Public Pound

COVID-19 continued to impact Council operations during 2021/22 and as the year progressed, service delivery was expanded whilst ensuring protection measures were in place for both our workforce and service users. In support of business throughout the pandemic, over £7.8 million in grants to businesses was processed by the Council to support the local economy. Council teams and facilities were also instrumental in delivering the vaccination programme and community testing programme locally, including facilitation of vaccination clinics, fixed testing sites and a community testing bus.

• The Council also welcomed a Best Value Audit report in November 2021, which recognised strong leadership at the Council and good services being delivered and recognition of the efforts of the workforce, particularly during the pandemic
• Significant projects and developments completed and progressed during 2021/22 and key achievements for the Council include the following:
• Completion and opening of three new state of the art Early Years Centres – in Milngavie, Kirkintilloch and Bearsden - providing exceptional facilities to our youngest residents and supporting our commitment to 1140 hours.
• The flagship Tom Johnston House site development in Kirkintilloch was completed, delivering 82 new Council houses, with new tenants all now in place.
• Significant progress on the building of the new £34.9 million Additional Support Needs School in Kirkintilloch, which will deliver first class facilities for young people in the area and sporting facilities for the community.
• Great progress on building the new £42.5 million Allander Leisure Centre, incorporating fantastic new adult day care facilities for the area.
• Construction of the new £40.9 million Boclair Academy progressed very well – the new two storey building will deliver a state-of-the-art learning environment for 1,050 pupils which will feature a large entrance atrium, flexible learning zones, performance spaces and dining areas. The new school opened on 19 August 2022.

Service Revenue Accounts

The table below shows the Service Revenue Accounts for 2021/22

Issue	Gross Expenditure 2021/22	Gross Income 2021/22	Net Expenditure or (income) 2021/22
	£000	£000	£000
1 Assets & Facilities	43,742	(2,926)	40,816
2 Roads & Transportation	15,482	(1,259)	14,223
3 Neighbourhood Services	15,297	(817)	14,480
4 Land, Planning & Development	2,380	(921)	1,459
5 Place & Community Planning	5,667	(1,121)	4,546
6 Education	160,657	(18,138)	142,519
7 Finance, Audit & Performance	18,332	(14,071)	4,261
8 Legal & Democratic Services	4,008	(551)	3,457
9 Organisational Transformation	5,495	(129)	5,366
10 Customer & Digital Services	11,136	(704)	10,432
11 Social Work	153,262	(84,976)	68,286
12 Other Services (includes Joint Boards, Housing Revenue Account, Leisure Trust)	37,594	(18,584)	19,010
Net Cost of Services	473,052	144,197	328,855

 

The principal sources of finance for the Council are the General Revenue Grant, Council Tax income and Non Domestic Rates.

Principal Source of Finance	2021/22 £000
General Revenue Grant	203,048
Council Tax	67,373
Non-Domestic Rates	13,355
Recognised Capital Grant and Contributions	19,628
Total	303,404

The table below shows the total useable reserves as a % of Council annual budgeted revenue.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Total useable reserves as a % of Council annual budgeted revenue	14.95%	17.92%	15.74%	24.44%

The table below shows uncommitted General Fund Balance as a % of Council annual budgeted net revenue and ratio of financing costs.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Uncommitted General Fund Balance as a % of Council annual budgeted net revenue	2.09	1.86	1.94	3.48
Ratio of Financing Costs to Net Revenue Stream – General Fund	7.90	7.40	7.38	5.89
Ratio of Financing Costs to Net Revenue Stream – Housing Revenue Account	12.00	19.80	21.00	22.12
Actual outturn as a percentage of budgeted expenditure	97.92	92.92	95.68	98.25

Remaining Connected and Productive

The ICT service continued to support the ongoing pandemic situation and support employees to enable them to work from home through provision of laptops, monitors and configuration of systems in preparation for the move to Microsoft 365. The team also supported the implementation of the Mavis Valley booking system and the expansion/upgrade of Cashless Catering in all schools.

Registration Services

Registration services were delivered throughout the year and in line with Government and National Records of Scotland guidance with death registrations continuing to be carried out remotely (with the team based in Kirkintilloch Community Hub). Birth registrations were carried out in two stages, with an initial telephone appointment followed by a final face to face appointment to complete the signing of the register. There was an increase in the number of marriages registered in 2021/22 and the number of ceremonies being booked. During 2021/22 all face-to-face customer services were reintroduced to all four community hubs, with an appointment only service being in place.

Election

Planning for the Scottish Parliament Election on 6th May 2021 began in September 2020. Longer time for planning was required to ensure a ‘COVID-lens’ was applied to conventional election workstreams on a local and national basis. The work plan for this included a review of the layout of all polling places and the arrangements for counting votes. A small multi service team was established to progress detailed planning. Contingency plans were prepared which anticipated a resurgence in COVID-19 and measures put in place to secure the availability of the core election team. All aspects of the process and arrangements were subject to robust risk assessments in order to protect employees, voters and candidates.

Procurement

The Corporate Procurement team continued to drive Procurement Governance and Compliance across Council services whilst supporting COVID-19, capital projects and priority contract workstreams.

During 2021/22, the team focused on Transformation Projects, Capital Programme, City Deal, PPE Supplies, Key IT Systems, the Scottish Parliament Election, Provision of Free School Meal Payments, Business Grant Payments and our response to COVID-19. All delivery being aligned to the Council’s Procurement Governance arrangements and organisational priorities, providing guidance, advice, training and skills development to ensure an embedded procurement governance approach.

The Annual Procurement Strategy for 2022-2023 was published which sets out the objectives of the Corporate Procurement team for 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023, as required by the guidance under the Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014, and in support of national and organisational priorities.

Sickness Absence

The table below shows sickness absence days per employee (non-teacher) has increased compared to the previous year. Sickness absence days per teacher has also increased between 2020/21 and 2021/22. It should be noted that COVID-19 related absences are not included in these figures.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Sickness Absence days per Teacher	5.34	3.29	5.36	5.84
Sickness Absence days per non-teacher	11.46	8.58	12.02	12.43

Strategic Commissioning

The Strategic Commissioning team supports the Health and Social Care Partnership to develop and deliver its Strategic Plan, priorities and Transformation Agenda. The team continued to pro-actively lead and manage the commissioned market, guiding and supporting providers through the final stages of COVID recovery, re-mobilisation, minimising service disruption, protecting service continuity, ensuring services remain safe and secure whilst ensuring ongoing and future sustainability.

Council Tax

The Revenues and Benefits team processed over 1,200 claims for council tax reductions and processed almost 19,000 changes. The table below shows the average days to fully process new claims.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/21
Council Tax Reduction - Average Days to fully process new claims	25	25	26

The table below shows the average days to process change events for council tax.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Council Tax Reduction - Average days to process change events	8	7	4

The table below shows the cost per dwelling of collecting council tax decreased from £10.24 in 2020/21 to £8.93 in 2021/22. The percentage of income due from council tax received by the end of the year increased compared to the previous year. Although the cost of collecting council tax is higher than the national average, the higher percentage rate of collection offsets the extra spend in terms of cost.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
The cost per dwelling of collecting council tax	£6.83	£10.24	£8.93	£6.59
Percentage of income due from council tax received by the end of the year	97.02%	96.69%	97.45%	95.73%

Revenues and Benefits

The Revenues & Benefits team continued to deliver the service effectively throughout a challenging service demand period in 2021/22 including supporting the continued pandemic response. Key achievements included:

• Annual billing completed and 47,500 bills issued, and the response to these handled efficiently and effectively.
• Processed 2,600 claims for Self Isolation Support Grant, approving over 1,100 awards totalling over £550K.

Development and Investment

The Development and Investment service seeks to ensure effective stewardship and development of the Council’s assets in order that they contribute to the Council and its partners’ overarching vision and intended outcomes, maximising their effectiveness and supporting sustainable economic growth and place making.

Good progress continued to be made in the delivery of strategic capital projects during 2021/22. On-going restrictions to the access of tenanted properties during the year led to a continuing pause of all non-emergency capital works, including kitchen and bathroom replacement.

Volatility in the construction sector, characterised by rising inflation, supply chain/material shortages and labour availability has posed considerable challenges to the delivery of capital projects during 2021/22 and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future, impacting both cost and programme certainty across the service.

Estates

Estates Maintenance ensure the Council remain compliant against legislative requirements across the Operational Estate, including ensuring that all gas and oil boilers are serviced annually. All other plant within the operational estate is subject to annual inspections. Estates Management manage all aspects of the non-operational estate including the leasing and day-to-day management of the Council’s investment property portfolio; acquisitions and disposals; non- domestic rates appeals, applications for wayleaves and/or servitudes and provision of cartographic services.

Operational Buildings

The table below shows the percentage of operational buildings that are suitable for their current use and the percentage of internal floor area of operational buildings in satisfactory condition.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Percentage of operational buildings that are suitable for their current use	83.18%	83.64%	84.40%	85.26%
Percentage of internal floor area of operational buildings in satisfactory condition	92.49%	92.58%	92.58%	90.12%

Invoice Payments

The table below shows that support services as a percentage of total gross expenditure increased slightly compared to the previous year.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Support services as a % of total gross expenditure	4.24%	3.74%	3.82%	4.07%

The table below shows the percentage of invoices sampled that were paid within 30 days remained around 93%.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
% of invoices sampled that were paid within 30 days	94.27%	94.44%	93.44%	92.20%

Corporate Fraud

Throughout 2021/2022, the Corporate Fraud Team continued to provide a counter fraud service to the Council. The main fraud focus was Business Rates cases, school placing requests and the investigation of potential issues relating to the various Coronavirus Business Support Grant scheme applications. Work continued on Whistleblowing cases, liaising closely with HR where appropriate, providing advice on the design of forms, such as Business Grants and Housing Applications, to minimise fraud risk.

Guiding Principle 2 - Coproduction and Engagement

We will continuously strive to understand the different needs of our communities, supporting them to strengthen their own communities and involving them in the design and delivery of services

Community engagement is a purposeful process which develops a working relationship between communities, community organisations and public and private bodies to help them to identify and act on community needs and ambitions.

Your Voice Matters

Your Voice Matters was a public consultation on the Council Budget and Council Priorities, carried out in Summer 2021. It was a comprehensive consultation exercise and was undertaken across the area with digital content including videos, overview documents and online survey, supported by printed documents and surveys available through leisure centres, libraries, Community Hubs and halls. The analysis of the responses to the consultation informed the budget setting process for 2022/23.

Active Travel

The Active Travel Discussion closed on 28 September 2021. The engagement activities included an Ideas Map to capture residents’ ideas for walking and cycling improvements across the area, a video featuring Lee Craigie, Active Nation Commissioner for Scotland. A series of local videos were produced, promoting the Active Travel Discussion and local tourism efforts, have been successful with significant online viewing. Significant social media and press activity also took place. The engagement gathered 2,997 responses across the ideas map, schools and early years survey, online sessions and emails.

Draft Parking Management

A period of consultation took place during October and November 2021 on the Council’s Parking Management Plan. A total of 274 responses were received and a consultation report was produced. The consultation reflected broad support for the principle of traffic-free schools and temporary road restrictions around schools at busy times, to encourage active travel as a means of getting to and from school by making streets safer for all. Following the approval of the Parking Management Plan, several locations for pilot traffic- free school schemes will be selected.

Tenant Participation

The COVID-19 pandemic affected normal tenant participation activities. The Tenant Participation Working Group meetings moved online along with a consultation on rent levels carried out and a COVID-19 financial survey being issued.

Tenant Satisfaction Survey

The tenant satisfaction survey measures tenants’ satisfaction against a range of housing and property maintenance services in line with the requirements of the Scottish Social Housing Charter (SSHC). It assesses how the Council performs as a landlord and identifies areas where services can be improved. Interviews were carried out between 10 March and 7 April 2022. A total of 511 tenants responded to the survey.

Tenants were asked how satisfied or dissatisfied they were with the overall service provided by the Council as their landlord. In all, 76% were very or fairly satisfied which was a decrease from 79% in 2021.

Tenants who had a repair carried out in the last 12 months were asked how satisfied they were with aspects of the repair service provided. Satisfaction was high, ranging from 87% for the quality of repair to 95% for attitude of tradesmen involved.

Customer satisfaction information, collected directly by Property Maintenance at the time repairs are completed, also shows a high level of satisfaction. Of the 1,592 tenants asked how satisfied they were with repairs carried out, 88.8% of tenants indicated they were satisfied with the service. The number of tenants expressing dissatisfaction was incredibly low with only two tenants out of 1,592 indicating they were dissatisfied (0.1%).

The majority of respondents (79%) were very or fairly satisfied with the quality of their home. Overall satisfaction with the quality of the home has marginally decreased since 2021, when it was 82%.

Just under eight in ten tenants (79%) were of the opinion that the rent for their property represents very or fairly good value for money. This figure has decreased marginally from 81% in 2021. Of those tenants who pay either full or partial rent, 57% felt their rent was affordable compared to 37% who find their rent just about affordable and 6% who find their rent difficult to pay.

88.8% of tenants were satisfied with the property maintenance service.

Customer Services

The Customer Service team provide frontline customer services for the Council through a single contact number and a commitment to provide a ‘first time fix’ for all enquiries or, where not possible, to effectively liaise with Council services to appropriately respond.

At the start of 2021/22, the majority of customer service agents continued to work from home to deliver the telephone, digital and back-office functions of the service. The exceptions to this were Registration delivery, which operated from Kirkintilloch Community Hub, and Licensing which was delivered principally online and then through an appointment- based system at Bearsden Community Hub. Community Hubs reopened in summer 2021 and service delivery was by appointment to manage both customer service team resources and the numbers of people in attendance in Hub buildings, with opening hours adjusted to meet demands across all service delivery channels.

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the way Customer Services could be delivered. The reopening of face-to-face services in summer 2021 required significant adjustments to be made across the team, adapting to allocating resources across the Hub localities and delivering services within the COVID-19 protection measures in place in these localities. Significant training was required for new agents who had only experienced telephone call handling and the back office and digital duties where training had not been possible remotely.

The table below shows that during 2021/22 a total of 121,482 calls to the Council’s 0300 123 4510 number were answered compared to a total of 118,414 in 2020/21 (2.6% increase). A total of 19,559 social work calls were answered compared to 18,075 in 2020/21 (8.2% increase), with a combined total of calls answered for the year of 141,041 compared to 136,489 in 2020/21, an overall increase of 3.3%.

Total Calls Handled 2021/22
	Calls Answered 0300 123 4510	Calls Answered Social Work	Combined Calls Answered
Total	121,482	19,559	141,041

The number of calls answered fluctuated across each of the four quarters, with the fewest calls answered in Quarter three, as shown in the table below. This followed the full reopening of all four Community Hubs and the requirement to have customer service agents in the Hubs to meet customers, manage the front desk and deliver the face-to-face appointments which were additional to the ongoing registration and licensing appointments

2021/22 Quarterly Performance Calls Handled and Average Response Time
	Calls Answered 0300 123 4510	Average Response Time
Quarter 1	31,768	2:46
Quarter 2	31,331	6:44
Quarter 3	25,023	7:16
Quarter 4	33,260	2:48
Annual	121,482	4:44

Whilst fewer calls were answered, call volumes remained similar but calls abandoned increased. Calls are abandoned for many reasons, including:

• Customer decides queue is too long and wants to call back later
• Customer has heard message advising Council website may have information
• Once there are eight in the queue our ‘queue buster’ call back is offered

The most challenging period of call responding in 2021/22 correlated with the reopening of face-to-face services and the requirement to deploy agents to the Hubs to meet customer services appointments and front desk management in addition to registration and licensing appointments, while also supporting other digital channels of engagement and back-office functions.

Complaints - Ombudsman

The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) is the final stage for complaints about councils, the National Health Service (NHS), housing associations, colleges and universities, prisons, most water providers and the Scottish Government and its agencies and departments. The table below shows the SPSO statistics for East Dunbartonshire Council and neighbouring council areas.

Complaints Received by Scottish Public Services Ombudsman 2021/22
Subject Group	East Dunbartonshire Council	East Renfrewshire Council	North Lanarkshire Council	West Dunbartonshire Council
Building Control	2	0	0	1
Consumer Protection	0	0	0	0
Economic Development	0	0	0	0
Education	4	6	8	1
Environmental Health & Cleansing	2	3	8	2
Finance	0	2	1	1
Fire and Police Boards	0	0	0	0
Housing	10	4	16	7
Land & Property	0	2	0	1
Legal & Admin	0	1	1	1
National Park Authorities	0	0	0	0
Other	0	0	0	0
Personnel	0	1	0	0
Planning	9	4	7	1
Recreation & Leisure	0	0	1	0
Roads & Transport	2	5	1	0
Social Work	1	1	14	1
Subject Unknown or Out Of Jurisdiction	1	0	0	0
Welfare Fund - Crisis Grants	0	0	0	0
Total	31	29	57	16

Total Complaints Received by Scottish Public Services Ombudsman 2021/22

Year	East Dunbartonshire Council	East Renfrewshire Council	North Lanarkshire Council	West Dunbartonshire Council
Total Complaints Received by Scottish Public Services Ombudsman 2021/22	31	29	57	16

Complaint Handling

The Council is committed to providing quality services that reflect the needs of our customers. We value complaints and use information from them to help us improve our services. The Council publishes its performance of complaints handling to provide assurance in relation to our performance and to delivery of continuous improvement.

A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction about our action or lack of action, or about the standard of the service provided by or on behalf of the Council. During 2021/22, the Council received 497 complaints, compared to 395 in the previous year.

Category of Complaint	Number of Complaints Received
Services/Standards	393
Disagreement with Council Decision	44
Council Policy	6
Employee (attitude/behaviour)	48
Other	6
Total	497

The table below shows the average time for responding to complaints. It shows that whilst there has been a reduction in the average number of days to conclude a Stage 1 complaint, there was a marked increase in the number of days taken to conclude both Stage 2 and escalated complaints. This is due to a number of complex outstanding complaints being concluded and impacting the figures.

	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Stage 1
Number of complaints closed at stage 1 (frontline resolution)	314	216	307
Average time in working days for a full response at stage 1	4.8	10.6	8.1
Stage 2
Number of complaints closed at stage 2 (investigation)	140	118	126
Average time in working days for a full response at stage 2	20.6	24.6	34
Escalated
Number of complaints closed after escalation	66	36	47
Average time in working days for a full response after escalation	16.5	25.9	29.7

Communications and Engagement

The Communications and Engagement team provide reputational management support and deliver communications and engagement activity for the Council, EDLC Trust and East Dunbartonshire HSCP.

• This includes
• developing and delivering campaigns
• media management
• effectively using traditional and digital communications channels
• a graphic design service with increasing development of video content
• management of the Council and EDLC Trust social media channels
• management, maintenance and upkeep of the Council, EDLC Trust and HSCP websites

Throughout 2021/22 the team continued to develop and issue communications in relation to the impact of the pandemic on Council services, signpost to Scottish Government and NHS Public Health guidance and support and produce information for all communication channels in relation to both the community testing and mass vaccination programmes locally. Some key achievements of 2021/22 included:

• Production of new Consultation & Engagement Strategy 2021-24 and development of guidance for consultation planning for services for Business Improvement Plans for 2022-23.
• Development of an extensive waste campaign, including video, gif and infographic content for digital channels and extensive out of home promotions throughout the area, to support the implementation of increased types of plastic recyclate able to be collected from the kerbside and to drive a further increase in recycling rates across the area.
• Planning and delivery of the area-wide ‘Your Voice Matters’ Budget and Council priorities consultation, using extensive digital collateral and more traditional printed surveys to ensure wide participation, to inform 2022-23 Budget setting process.

Consultation and Engagement Strategy 2021/24

The consultation and engagement strategy 2021-24 outlines the approach taken by Council for all consultation and engagement activity, reinforcing the ‘we asked, you said, we did’ approach to ensure feedback of consultation findings and what we do with results is fed back to participants. The Strategy is supported by an annual Consultation & Engagement Plan, established from the planned consultation and engagement activity identified by services in the annual Business and Improvement Plans (BIPs). Both the Strategy and the annual plan are available on the consultation pages of the Council website.

Council Website

The Council website is a key communication and customer service channel for the Council.

Visitor traffic to the website remains fairly constant across the year with the peak in January coinciding with primary school registration, which is now carried out online. The most popular pages on the Council website continue to be School Holidays, Bins and Recycling and the Planning pages. This has been the case historically, for both the current and previous Council website, and is consistently the case across local authority websites.

Whilst many of the most popular pages on the Council website are information only pages, many more customers are now using the website to carry out digital transactions. This is in line with our channel shift aspirations and enables customers to perform transactions at any time. The number of digital services on the website has been accelerated as a result of COVID-19, with many more forms and payment types now possible.

Social Media

Facebook and Twitter are the predominant social media channels used by the Council to share information on service delivery and key projects, initiatives and campaigns. The channels are also used to encourage participation in

consultation and engagement activity. During the latter period of 2021 /22 Instagram and LinkedIn accounts were also established and customer engagement activity on these platforms will be incorporated in to reporting in future years.

The growth in followers across the channels remains steady and has been continually growing since the channels were established. The Twitter following rose by 710 from 18.7k to 19.4k across the year and the Facebook following rose by 770 from 17.7k to 18.5k across the same period.

Guiding Principle 3 Evidence Based Planning

We will share information and data to inform robust and transparent decision making, planning and evaluation of our impact in partnership and implementing improvement practices

Evidence based planning is about applying what we know about the circumstances, needs and aspirations of a community, to plan and make decisions about services for them which will have the most benefit. This applies to all sectors of public services. In times where public services must do more with less available to them, it is imperative that we plan our services directly in relation to the evidence about where they are likely to have the greatest impact. Using evidence to influence service decisions moves away from historic models where services were provided in a ‘blanket’ manner, across a whole population with less reflection or evaluation with the people who are using them.

The Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 requires Community Planning Partnerships to prepare a Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP) and produce individual plans for communities who experience poorer outcomes when compared locally or nationally (Place Plans). Place Plans – now referred to as Locality Plans - provide bespoke plans for the four geographic communities in East Dunbartonshire which have been identified and agreed as experiencing the most inequality. These areas are Hillhead and Harestanes in Kirkintilloch, Lennoxtown, Auchinairn and Twechar. The Locality Plans are being informed by a range of engagement, research and analysis of data and

information. They have been developed alongside the LOIP showing how inequality is experienced in the context of the new local outcomes and demonstrating the partnership commitment to tackling this.

The LOIP is a result of partnership analysis of local circumstances, needs and aspirations. It demonstrates a clear focus on outcomes and sets out the delivery and accountability processes which will support the East Dunbartonshire Community Planning Partnership (CPP) to achieve its ambitions. For each of the local outcomes there is an established multi-agency group of service representatives who work together regularly. These are known as local outcome delivery groups and are overseen by the CPP Board. These groups are delegated the responsibility to plan for and deliver improvements through partnership actions.

In the LOIP each local outcome is presented with the key facts and issues surrounding it; who the key partners are; what the priorities within each outcome are; and what the high level indicators are. All detail about planned actions and delivery is retained within the Strategy and Action Plan for each local outcome delivery group. These are at various stages of development and are anticipated to be approved throughout the year. The Action Plans aim to reflect a logical and coherent thought process, allowing partners and stakeholders to view what needs to be done and with what resources to meet specific ends.

Our Business Improvement Planning Framework enables each of our Strategic Groups to set out their own priorities and identify their contribution to the delivery of the local outcomes and guiding principles outlined in the LOIP. Strategic Groups are required through their Business Improvement Plans (BIPs) to demonstrate how they intend to target resources with other services and other Community Planning Partners to achieve our long term vision of ‘working together to achieve the best with the people of East Dunbartonshire’.

A number of plans, policies, programmes and strategies were approved over the last year that have taken these priorities in to consideration.

• Mental Health Strategy for Children and Young People and Mental Health Strategy for Adults – produced by the Health and Social Care Partnership and sets out key priorities and structural processes for three years.
• Strategic Housing Investment Plan – which sets the objectives for new build affordable housing over a five-year time frame.
• Hardship Fund Policy - This policy sets out how tenants in rent arrears due to the impact of the pandemic can be supported to maintain rental payments.
• Economic Recovery Plan - Identifies the impacts and key issues for East Dunbartonshire’s economy as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and sets out actions the Council and Community Planning partners are delivering in response, under four priority areas: Business; People; Community and Environment. This plan also adopts and updates ongoing actions from the Economic Development Strategy in response to changing economic conditions.
• Child Poverty Action Plan – sets out information on what the Council is already doing, has achieved during the year, and all new commitments for the year ahead to reduce child poverty in the local area.

Guiding Principle 4 Fair and Equitable Services

We will plan and deliver services which account for the different needs of population groups who share a characteristic protected by the Equality Act

Equally Safe at Work

The Council applied and has been accepted to join the Equally Safe at Work (ESAW) programme. ESAW was developed to support the implementation of Equally Safe, Scotland’s national strategy to prevent and eradicate violence against women and girls. The strategy, which is jointly owned by Scottish Government and COSLA, recognises that violence against women is a cause and consequence of wider gender inequality. Addressing gender inequality in the workplace is therefore a fundamental step in preventing violence against women.

Equalities Mainstreaming Report

The objective of mainstreaming equality is to integrate an equality and human rights perspective into the everyday work of the Council. Considerable progress is being made in this work and there is a greater awareness across the Council about the importance of meeting the needs of our increasingly diverse population. Equality mainstreaming is a long- term approach that aims to make sure that policy making within the Council is fully sensitive to the diverse needs and experiences of everyone affected.

Council approved the Equalities Mainstreaming and Outcome Report 2017-21 and agreed the Equality Outcomes 2021- 2025. Following collective agreement of the Equality Outcomes for 2021-25, a detailed action plan with specific actions, measurements, leads, and timescales was created across all teams and Council services.

Resettlement

A temporary Resettlement Team was created within the Council’s Community Planning Team to work with a range of key Council services and with partners, and to connect with both the Scottish and UK Government schemes in matching and offering support to individuals and resettled families in East Dunbartonshire. This included the Homes for Ukraine scheme. These programmes of work continue with increasing numbers of displaced persons and refugees arriving. Our Resettlement Team ensure access to essential services and support integration into the local community.

Counselling

All secondary pupils and children aged 10+ in primary schools continue to have the opportunity to access support from Counselling Service providers. This service initially operated as a pilot until one of the contractors, Lifelink, secured an extended contract ensuring continuity of provision. The service provides both on-site and remote support for pupils, families and school staff. The offer currently includes individual work with pupils and their families alongside consultancy and professional learning for staff. This support is also available for pupils throughout holiday periods.

Whilst the majority of referrals continue to come from the secondary sector there are proportionally a higher number from primary schools. The most prevalent reasons for referral include, emotion regulation; personal/family circumstances; negative coping strategies; and peer group difficulties. Lifelink has extended their counselling support through the launch of a free 24/7 confidential, anonymous text support service. Shout 85258 can support young people who may be experiencing suicidal thoughts, depression, anxiety, abuse, self-harm, for example. Shout will ensure a trained volunteer will text back and forth to provide the support needed.

LGBT Charter Programme

The LGBT Charter programme was launched in session 2020/21. It is a school-wide inclusion programme in secondary schools led by a champions group, which includes staff and pupils. The LGBT Charter will empower individuals to challenge prejudice and proactively create an inclusive environment. The programme supports schools to achieve equity in education and reduce barriers to learning. A charter lead has been appointed at school level and a Quality Improvement Officer and LGBT Charter Manager are providing support across schools.

Seven secondary schools are currently involved in the programme, six mainstream and one Additional Support Needs school. Five schools are on track for achieving the Silver Award at the end of this session, one other is on track for Bronze. A key component of achievement of the award is demonstrating policy and practice that is compliant with the Equality Act (2010). All Charter leads coordinated activities to mark LGBT History Month in February 2022 with evaluations demonstrating the wide reach of these activities through, for example, whole school events and social media posts.

Autism Adviser Professional Learning Programme

The Autism Adviser professional learning programme continues to provide opportunities to support capacity building across all sectors and includes seminars, workshops and practical support from a wide range of partners. The Educational Psychological Service, the Central Additional Support Needs Team and a wide range of partners including school staff and external partners all contribute to the programme. The majority of sessions this year were designed through a COVID-lens, taking into account the current restrictions and the impact these have had on learners with autism and social communication difficulties.

The Care Experience Attainment Fund

The Care Experience Attainment Fund has supported further engagement with the role of youth development workers (YDW) in all secondary schools. This year YDWs have undertaken a programme of professional development to support the focus of their work with young people. YDWs have worked with more than thirty young people who are care experienced. This work facilitates a range of interventions and programmes with young people to achieve outcomes in: improving health and wellbeing; attendance; engagement in learning; raising attainment in wider learning and achievement; developing interpersonal skills; and developing awareness of employability skills linked to positive destinations.

16 days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence

The Council supports this annual UN initiative and in 2021 Council buildings were lit up orange to mark the first and last days of the campaign. The campaign starts each year on 25 November and ends on 10 December. The 2021 theme ‘Orange World: End Violence Against Women Now’ was supported by the Council, Soroptimists, and Empowered, the multi-agency partnership of services in East Dunbartonshire which works to prevent and eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls.

Holocaust Memorial Day

The Council once again commemorated the annual international Holocaust Memorial day on 27 January 2022. The Community Hubs in Bearsden, Bishopbriggs and Kirkintilloch along with Milngavie Town Hall, were lit up purple as people across the globe joined to remember the millions murdered or whose lives have been changed beyond recognition, during the Holocaust and subsequent genocides

Gender Pay Gap

The table below shows the percentage of the highest paid 5% of employees who are women in 2021/22 was 59.59%, which is above the Scottish average.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
percentage of the highest paid 5% of employees who are women	62.20%	58.24%	59.59%	58.96%

The gender pay gap for East Dunbartonshire Council was 3.80% in 2021/22.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
The gender pay gap (%)	6.14%	5.63%	3.80%	3.51%

Guiding Principle 5 Planning for Place

We will target resources where they are most needed to reduce disadvantage caused by socio-economic inequality. This is known as using a ‘Place’ approach

The Local Outcome Improvement Plan (LOIP) is the shared plan for our Community Planning Partnership (CPP) and was approved in December 2017. The LOIP is based on an understanding of current circumstances and an evidence-based approach to setting outcomes. It outlines how and why the CPP will work together to organise and provide services in a way that tackles known inequalities.

In addition to a programme of ongoing detailed progress reporting to the Community Planning Partnership Board on each Local Outcome delivery area, there is a requirement to publish on a regular basis an overview of progress made in relation to the delivery of the LOIP.

LOIPs were produced in accordance with the guidance provided in the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015. A further requirement of the Act is to identify and produce individual plans for those communities who experience poorer outcomes when compared locally or nationally. These communities have been defined as Hillhead and Harestanes, Lennoxtown, Auchinairn and Twechar and a Place Plan has been produced for each.

To ensure resources are being targeted to those areas where poorer outcomes exist the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) was used. The SIMD is a tool for identifying areas of poverty and inequality across Scotland. The SIMD is regarded as the official measure of deprivation in Scotland and identifies small area concentrations of multiple deprivation by assigning each small area (datazone) in Scotland a ranking based on its level of deprivation.

According to SIMD 2020, East Dunbartonshire has eight datazones in the 25% most deprived in Scotland, these are located in Hillhead, Auchinairn, Lennoxtown, Kirkintilloch West and Keystone and Dougalston in Milngavie. Hillhead remains the most deprived area in East Dunbartonshire according to SIMD. The datazone in Keystone and Dougalston has just entered the top 25% most deprived.

The village of Twechar has shown improvement over time according to SIMD. The Twechar Place Plan sets out an approach to support Twechar Community Action with their own community action plan.

While statistics provide a reliable insight into how we are doing, we will always seek to understand this in the context of what communities are telling us. To structure our engagement in Place areas, we have looked at some of the key themes in the place standard tool - environment (which explore public transport, streets, green open space, community safety), health and wellbeing (e.g. finances, housing, mental wellbeing, physical health) and local services links with place standard, housing, community, social contact, identity and belonging.

The Community Planning team continued to work with Strategic Partners such as Citizens Advice Bureau, Twechar Healthy Living intuitive, EDVA and Women’s Aid through funding arrangements to deliver a range of outcomes locally. The Community Grant Scheme provides funding with ever-growing demand and popularity for the programme. The Community Development Workers have continued to support community groups.

Locality Plans

The East Dunbartonshire Community Planning Partnership is committed to reducing inequality and to targeting resources where they are needed the most. The ‘place approach’ is being used to work within those areas which experience the most inequality. Using local and national data, the four areas identified as ‘place areas’ are Harestanes and Hillhead, Twechar, Lennoxtown, and Auchinairn.

Led by East Dunbartonshire Council, the Community Planning Partnership works with the local communities to improve provision and give community led change in these areas. Crucial to this approach are the Locality Plans (previously known as Place Plans) that identify the key area of focus for the community and Community Planning partners over the next five years. These plans will look at addressing the key issues of social inequality and bridging gaps between our communities.

During 2021/22, a Locality Plans consultation was carried out which involved individuals and community groups completing a survey highlighting the issues that matter most and the current gaps that need filled. The results are now being analysed to help inform plans.

Pupil Equity Funding (PEF)

This year the Pupil Equity Fund (PEF) was allocated to priorities within school plans. Quality Improvement Officers have met with all schools and discussed planning and associated PEF spend to ensure there is a continued and clear focus on learning and support for health and wellbeing, leading to positive outcomes for all young people and, in particular, those most vulnerable.

Additional funding from Scottish Government has been allocated to core curriculum priorities as determined by funding criteria, which also included supported study funding available for secondary schools to be used to provide revision classes for those pupils engaging with SQA examinations. All schools are currently undertaking self-evaluation in order to inform next steps to assist with planning for next session.

Housing

The Housing service manages 3,721 social rented homes, including mainstream accommodation as well as homeless temporary accommodation and maintains a housing list of 3,015 households, made up of existing tenants, homeless applicants and waiting list applicants.

Affordable Housing

The Housing Service is committed to meeting housing need by increasing the supply of affordable homes in East Dunbartonshire in partnership with both the Scottish Government and Housing Associations who also deliver affordable homes in the area.

The last year has proved challenging in terms of housing delivery. The COVID-19 pandemic caused a delay in housing development due to the national lockdown and short-term closure of construction sites, which resulted in delays in projects being progressed.

As part of the Council’s existing Affordable Housing Investment Plan (AHIP) and East Dunbartonshire’s Strategic Housing Investment Plan (SHIP), 87 affordable homes for social rent and shared equity were completed during 2021/22 at the Tom Johnston House site in Kirkintilloch, and six at the Blackthorn Grove Site in Lenzie. The development of a further 38 new social rented homes at the former Lairdsland School site, Kerr Street, Kirkintilloch is under construction, alongside three at The Loaning in Kirkintilloch, with completion expected by February 2023.

A further threes homes were purchased by the Council at the former St Agatha’s School site in Kirkintilloch which are in the process of being sold for shared equity. The Housing service will take possession of a further 26 social rented properties at Blacklands, Lenzie from CALA Homes.

Tenant Rent Arrears

Rising rent arrears has been applying additional pressure on the service, largely due to welfare reforms but specifically due to the roll out of Universal Credit, which has fundamentally changed the payment mechanism for many tenants.

There are currently over 1,100 tenants claiming Universal Credit with just over 250 of these payments coming direct to the Council.

An additional two officers were added to the service before the COVID-19 pandemic, to focus on mitigating the impact of Universal Credit. The additional resource has also been targeting the reduction in rent arrears through being proactive with specific tenants, while also taking legal action when necessary for historic and non-responsive cases. A new system, Mobysoft RentSense, is now in being used, which uses predictive analytics to assist in prioritising resources through only identifying tenants requiring contact.

The pandemic and continued restrictive engagement processes has seen rent arrears increase above targets set, however, with additional resources and an arrears focused approach, figures have decreased since last year.

The table below shows gross rent arrears (all tenants) as at 31 March each year as a percentage of rent due for the reporting year, which increased slightly between 2020/21 and 2021/22.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Gross rent arrears (all tenants) as a percentage of rent due	9.68%	12.08%	12.77%	8.67%

Property Re-lets

The table below shows the average length of time taken to re-let properties in 2021/22 was 75 days.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Average length of time taken to re-let properties	57 days	135 days	75 days

*The COVID-19 pandemic hugely impacted on the average time to re-let properties as void work ceased from April to September 2020 and therefore re-let timescales were significantly affected, as shown in the table above. The average re-let time (minus COVID time) was 76 days in 2020/21.

The table below shows the percentage of rent due in the year that was lost due to voids was 1.41% in 2021/22, a decrease compared to the previous year.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Percentage of rent due that was lost due to voids	1.03%	2.15%	1.41%	1.63%

Guiding Principles 6 Prevention and Early Intervention

We will direct resources with the aim of improving resilience and preventing or mitigating poorer outcomes

Housing Benefit

During 2021/22, Revenues and Benefits dealt with over 350 housing benefit applications and processed almost 6,000 changes.

The average number of days taken to fully process new housing benefit claims in 2021/22 was 21 days

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Housing Benefit – Average days to fully process new	21 days	15 days	21 days	1.63%

Homelessness

Homelessness applications are now electronic and communication with households has been mainly by telephone or email. In person housing support has recommenced within shared accommodation.

Homelessness numbers have been significantly lower than pre-pandemic years, although this year there has been an increase of 17% in homelessness numbers since last year. The main reasons for homeless applications occurring has been due to either relationship breakdown, or fleeing domestic violence. Demand for temporary accommodation has been low and although changes to the Unsuitable Accommodation Order were introduced in May 2021, the Council did not breach the unsuitable accommodation order for the second year.

There was an increase in lets to homeless households over the year, in part due to new build completions. This enabled the achievement of the Rapid Rehousing target, of no homeless households waiting more than three years for an offer of permanent accommodation.

227 homeless households secured accommodation within an East Dunbartonshire Council or Housing Association property and 21 households were assisted to secure private rented accommodation.

The Council aims to investigate homelessness applications within 28 days, however complex cases can take longer. The table below shows the percentage of homeless decisions made within 28 days was 100%.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Percentage of homeless decisions made within 28 days	99.0%	99.0%	100%

Scottish Welfare Fund

Community Care Grants can help people leaving care to live on their own, or to stay in their own home. These grants can also help families facing exceptional pressures that are in need of essential household items, such as a cooker or washing machine.

The Scottish Welfare Team dealt with 100% of cases within the Scottish Government Deadlines. The spend for 2021/22 was £580K which was similar to 2020/21.

The table below shows the number of Community Care Grants awarded in East Dunbartonshire during 2021/22 was 410, a decrease compared to the previous year. The main reason for applying was families facing exceptional pressure.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Community Care Grant – number awarded	325	430	410

Scottish Government Scottish Welfare Fund Statistics

Crisis Grants can provide people with a safety net in the event of a disaster such as a fire or flood or in an emergency situation if money is lost or stolen. In 2021/22, there were 1,830 crisis grants awarded in East Dunbartonshire, a decrease compared to 2020/21.

Year	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Crisis Grant– number awarded	1,500	2,530	1,830

Scottish Government Scottish Welfare Fund Statistics

Mitigating Poverty/Maximising Income

Mitigating poverty and associated health and wellbeing challenges are a priority outcome for the Scottish Government and for the HSCP and wider Community Planning Partnership. The HSCP Public Health Improvement Team has established a referral pathway, enabling front line staff to make sensitive enquiries towards a person’s and/or family’s financial situation and where eligible make a referral to an independent organisation to undertake a financial circumstances review. The service operates through a referral pathway arrangement and is supported through a partnership with East Dunbartonshire Citizen Advice Bureau. During the last year, the service undertook 226 referrals with a total of £768k being identified and provided to local families and older and vulnerable residents.

Guiding Principles 7 - Sustainability

We will create the conditions for a better quality of life for East Dunbartonshire residents, by recognising their health and wellbeing needs without compromising the quality of our built, natural and historic environment. In doing so we will build resilience to a changing climate, use our natural resources prudently and consider the longer term implications of our decision for present and future generations

Sustainability

A number of collaborative projects have taken place during 2021/22, including the development of Clyde Climate Forest, which is currently developing a strategy to increase the urban tree canopy cover across the City Region including East Dunbartonshire. The Council supported the development of the Glasgow City Region Adaptation Strategy and Action Plan, which was published in June 2021, which provides a framework for the development of local adaptation initiatives in East Dunbartonshire. Work on these initiatives continued during 2021/22 and will be incorporated as local actions within the Strategy and Action Plan, and in the Climate Action Plan in due course.

The Sustainability Policy Team continued to progress work on corporate carbon reduction during the year, in accordance with the Carbon Management Plan. Analysis during the year established that Council emissions had fallen by 52% between 2012/13 and 2020/21, with a 15% decrease since 2019/20. A Carbon Management Report was prepared and agreed by Committee in November 2021, which sets out achievements and challenges to date. The Council’s Public Sector Climate Change Duties report was submitted to the Scottish Government, outlining progress across all Council functions in meeting our duties.

A new Carbon Management Plan was prepared during the year and agreed by Council in March 2022. This sets a target for a 27% reduction in Council emissions by March 2023, compared with 2019/20.

Work across Council teams took place to prepare and submit the Council’s statutory Public Sector Climate Change Duties report to the Scottish Government, setting out progress across all Council functions in meeting our duties.

Work began on the preparation of a new Greenspace Strategy for East Dunbartonshire during 2021/22. An early engagement exercise took place which will inform the preparation of the strategy which will replace the existing Open Space and Green Network Strategies and closely integrate with the emerging Climate Action Plan. It will also incorporate a Play Sufficiency Action Plan in accordance with new legislation and guidance.

Climate Action Plan

The Climate Conversation early engagement exercise was completed in May 2021. The Council agreed the Report of Consultation and commencement of a programme for the preparation of a Climate Action Plan. The plan will set a date for achievement of net zero greenhouse gas emissions for both the Council and the area as a whole and set out a strategy to adapt and increase resilience to the increasing impacts of climate change. The Climate Action Plan will guide Council action to meet new statutory responsibilities in relation to climate change and once approved will replace the climate change aspect of the existing Sustainability and Climate Change Framework and Action Plan.

A range of early action measures were agreed by Council in March 2022. These actions set out work that will be carried out during 2022/23 across Council services to support the preparation of the Climate Change Action Plan.

Active Travel

Commencement of work to prepare the second Active Travel Strategy was approved in March 2021. A range of evidence gathering work took place or commenced in 2021/22. Active Travel Discussion was the name given to a period of consultation which took place during summer 2021. The consultation included: an interactive, online ideas map; twelve online sessions; surveys with school students, parents/carers and staff; and emails/social media were monitored for consultation responses. National and regional policy on active travel has been reviewed and key statistics gathered.

A full audit of East Dunbartonshire’s off-road active travel network was completed to prepare for the second Active Travel Strategy. The audit has been informing the production of the Active Travel Strategy, giving a clear picture of the advantages and disadvantages, the links, gaps and issues with the area’s active travel network. The connectivity needed in the network has been analysed including to cycling infrastructure being built in Glasgow City Council area to the border with East Dunbartonshire.

Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy

A pilot Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) project was undertaken during 2020/21 and completed in May 2021. This examined opportunities for and implications of achieving net zero emissions in two pilot areas in Bearsden and Milngavie and considered how the findings could be scaled up to the whole of East Dunbartonshire. The findings of this work are being used to take forward the preparation of an East Dunbartonshire-wide LHEES. The first three stages of this eight stage project were completed during the year.

Re-Heat Project

The Sustainability Policy team has worked with Scottish Power Energy Networks and E.On during the year to progress the Re-Heat Project, which will introduce low-carbon electrified heat and smart control to around 50 homes in East Dunbartonshire. This will support early progress on delivery of LHEES objectives by helping reduce emissions and address fuel poverty issues.

Energy Efficiency

The table below shows the percentage of council houses that are energy efficient and the percentage of council dwellings meeting Scottish Housing Quality Standards.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Percentage of council houses that are energy efficient	85.03%	83.17%	81.67%	87.26%
Percentage of council dwellings meeting SHQS	95.07%	60.96%	13.86%	69.70%

 

13.86% of East Dunbartonshire council dwellings meeting SHQS

69.70% of Scottish council dwellings meet SHQS

The SHQS pass rate for 21/22 was significantly lower than for previous years. The Council policy during 21/22 was to avoid accessing tenanted properties for the purposes of undertaking all but essential repairs, in order to mitigate against the risk of spreading Covid-19. This had a significant impact on the compliance rate for that reporting year, due in a large part to a new requirement to undertake Electrical Installation Condition Reports (EICRs) across the whole stock. This is as every property without an EICR translated into a failure under SHQS. A programme of inspection subsequently commenced in April 2022 using an external contractor to undertake EICRs across all remaining properties, which is expected to recover the SHQS compliance rate significantly during 22/23.

Waste and Recycling

Waste Services is responsible for the collection of over 5,000,000 assorted household bins on an annual basis, providing residual, recycling, food, garden and special waste collections on behalf of the Council. The team also manage the waste and recycling collections from over 500 of our local commercial premises.

Waste Services are also responsible for the disposal and management of over 10,000 annual tonnes of materials from our Household Waste Recycling Centre. This site has seen a significant rise in both materials and number of visitors in the past two years. In order to keep our visitors and staff safe, an online booking system was introduced in August 2021, which has received positive feedback, having improved the overall customer experience and allowed operational planning to take place.

Through the year the Waste service continued to work with our Clyde Valley partners on the new treatment and disposal contract for all residual household waste. This year East Dunbartonshire processed 23,515 tonnes of waste through this contract, ensuring our waste undergoes treatment for recycling extraction prior to being sent through an Energy from Waste process.

There have been several achievements during 2021/22 these included:

• Recycling availability at educational premises was reviewed to ensure compliance and improve recycling availability.
• Improved the overall coverage of recycling at flatted properties to 90%.
• A new recycling contractor was procured to process and manage over 5,000 tonnes of our dry mixed recycling of cans, glass and plastics.
• Implementation of an online booking system at Mavis Valley Household Waste Recycling Centre.

The table below shows the percentage of household waste arising that is recycled decreased from 50.90% in 2020/21 to 45.30% in 2021/22.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
% of household waste arising that is recycled	55.31%	50.90%	45.30%	42.70%

45.30% - percentage of household waste recycled in East Dunbartonshire in 2021/22

42.70% - percentage of household waste recycled in Scotland in 2021/22

Greenspace and Streetscene

Greenspace and Streetscene are responsible for street cleansing and grounds maintenance for all adopted council roads, pavements, open spaces, school grounds, sports grounds and community facilities. The Streetscene Technical Support team provides support to the Operations team and also provides specialist advice and project development relating to trees, cemetery administration, biodiversity, contract management and implementing projects from the Council’s various environmental policies and strategies.

Work carried out by Greenspace and Streetscene during 2021/22 included:

• Street cleansing; clearing of fly tipping and fly posting along with excess waste at local recycling sites and mechanical street sweeping of adopted footways and carriageways utilising internal and external resources.
• Play area inspections and repairs programme in 2021/22 completed. Play area safety surfacing repairs carried out at 18 sites repaired (wet pour), six sites with matta tiles; emergency wetpour repair at Langmuir North & Parkburn. Annual independent play area and equipment inspection completed. New equipment installed at five locations (Croft Road, Balmore; Langfaulds Field, Bearsden; Leisuredrome, Bishopbriggs; Thornwood Avenue, Lenzie; Lennox Crescent, Bishopbriggs.
• Upgrade of Woodhead Park play area, Bishopbriggs and upgrade of Meadowburn North play area, Bishopbriggs completed.
• Nature Restoration works carried out at Lenzie Moss; Millersneuk Marsh; Colquhoun Park; Whitefield Pond; West Balgrochan Marsh; Merkland; Kilmardinny Loch and Cairnhill Woods.

The table below shows net cost per waste collection per premise has decreased to £84.80 compared to the previous year (£90.47). The Street cleanliness score (% acceptable) decreased very slightly between 2020/21 and 2021/22.

Performance Indicator	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	Scottish Average
Net cost per waste collection per premise	£82.90	£90.47	£84.80	£74.25
Net cost per waste disposal per premise	£121.49	£144.41	£123.28	£100.25
Street cleanliness score (% acceptable)	91.17%	91.78%	91.20%	89.70%

Fleet Management

Fleet Management manages fleet operations including the Council’s Goods Vehicle Operator Licence and compliance across all services. This includes provision and management of the maintenance workshops, annual testing, statutory inspections and management of drivers in line with obligations and conditions laid out in the Council’s commitment to the Scottish Traffic Commissioner.

The Service has continued to experience major challenges throughout the year due to the requirements for social distancing within vehicles and premises. Working arrangements and shift patterns had to be reviewed for fleet workshop and front-line service support, in order to ensure all vehicles in operation remained roadworthy, whilst ensuring completion of statutory testing and maintenance in line with programmes.

Fleet service also manages Transport Operations to provide an Additional Support Needs Transport service for Education and Integrated Health and Social Care, including delivery of school meals on behalf of the authority. This service has provided additional support over the year in the delivery of food parcels and PPE in support of the Council’s efforts in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic within schools and the wider community.

New fleet was introduced during 2021/22, to include 80 new vehicles and associated items of plant to include new gritting fleet, in addition to a range of cars, vans, trucks and specialised plant for Roads, Social Work, Green Space and Streetscene.