Milton Keynes Council Heading in the Right Direction

11.46.00am GMT Mon 26th Oct 2009

Milton Keynes Council has received a shot in the arm with some positive findings in a new report from the Audit Commission.

Each year from now on, under its new-style Comprehensive Area Assessment, the Audit Commission will give an assessment of the performance of every council in the country.

Its latest assessment of Milton Keynes Council gives credit for all the efforts made over the past few months to bring about improvement in key areas. The Audit Commission recognises that the Council has a clear agenda for change and robust plans to deliver further improvement.

Highlights include:

• steady improvement in key service areas, such as services for older people and education

• the Council is getting better at focussing on the big issues

• the Council has worked well with partners to support individuals, communities and businesses adversely affected by the recession

• the former Community Safety Partnership (now called Safer MK) has been effective in reducing crime and antisocial behaviour

• the Council's new approach to managing projects is beginning to show positive results

• partners say they are more confident about the future

In addition, the 'Place Survey' for 2008/09 demonstrated high levels of public satisfaction with Milton Keynes as a place to live, and with the Council's performance, especially in delivering value for money. 82.6% of respondents reported that they were very or fairly satisfied with Milton Keynes as a place to live (placing Milton Keynes 14th out of 55 unitary council areas in England and Wales). So far as the Council itself is concerned, 62% of respondents said they were very or fairly satisfied with the way the Council runs things. This relatively high score placed Milton Keynes Council 9th out of the 55 unitary councils in terms of public satisfaction. Milton Keynes Council is also perceived to provide good value for money, being ranked in the top 10% of unitary councils.

Council Leader, Liberal Democrat councillor Sam Crooks, said: "Milton Keynes is a distinctive and aspirational place, with a track record of delivering exciting new projects. Milton Keynes Council needs to rise to the challenge of matching those attributes, and I'm pleased with this recognition from the Audit Commission that we have begun to do so."

"We have a fantastic array of world-beating projects going on - these include our World Cup bid, plans to deliver the largest pilot project in Europe for low-carbon vehicle (electric car) technology and our support for a Lottery-funded scheme to develop and equip Bletchley Park as a major tourist attraction. We also continue to excel in the things we do well - for example more than half the waste collected in Milton Keynes is now recyclable.

"The Council has a key role in ensuring the city stays vibrant, forward-looking and ahead of the 'competition' - and this provisional report from the Audit Commission shows that we are certainly headed in the right direction."